Rabobank goes bush
The specialist financial planning arm of Rabobank, Rabo Financial Advisers (RFA), has moved to strengthen its insurance offering to the rural sector.
RFA commissioned research group Dexx&R to provide a full review of insurance offerings for regional areas, with the aim of finding providers that could meed the unique needs of farmers and regional businesses.
The research singled out Aviva, Asteron and CommInsure as the strongest providers of insurance to the rural sector. Using the results from the survey, RFA impressed upon those successful firms the need for a consultative and broader approach to the underwriting process.
“We see Aviva, Asteron and CommInsure as being an integral part of out business going forward and will look to them to play a leading role in providing risk products to our expanding client base,” said RFA head Colin Williams.
Dexx&R managing director Mark Kachor said: “With RFA now positioned to work much more closely with the insurance underwriters, they can help forge closer ties to this market.”
According to Williams, underinsurance was a bigger problem in non-metropolitan areas and needed urgent attention.
“RFA has been focusing on the provision of suitable insurance for its rural and regional clients and their city counterparts for some time. It has always been a challenge to find providers that can not only play a role in both sectors, but are willing to be progressive rather than defensive underwriters,” he said.
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