The latest SmartAdvice enhancements are in development and will be ready in December.

This release includes a revamped version of the Invest Proposal, bringing in a more efficient report that removes duplications between the quote and the Invest Proposal. The Invest Proposal will also show the performance of funds regardless of whether all funds have at least three years’ performance.

The new Discovery Choice Dynamic Asset Optimiser Fund of Funds for the three risk profiles will also be available in the upcoming release. This Fund of Funds will replace the old Discovery Choice Dynamic Asset Optimiser option.

The release also includes the introduction of the Active Integrator which is available on the Classic, Essential and Business Life Plans. Clients who are not Discovery Health or Vitality members will be able to apply for Active Rewards for Life (the standalone version of Vitality Active Rewards) for only R25 a month.They will then be able to get all the benefits of the Active Integrator, including upfront discounts of up to 15% and PayBacks of up to 10% every five years.

For a limited period of time Active Integrator clients will have the opportunity to receive a 10% guaranteed PayBack after one year for reaching at least five Active Rewards goals in the first nine months of their policy. The offer will be available until the end of February 2016 for policies with a date of commencement up until 1 March 2016.

In addition, the annual inflation increases for 2016 are included in this update and will be applied to all quotes from 1 January 2016. These include increases to the:

• Global Health Protector premiums
• Global Education Protector premiums
• Vitality contributions
• Health Plan Protector premiums
• Medical Premium Waiver premiums;
• Benefit maximums
• Health claims bands used in the Health Integrator
• Health claims bands used for the Cover and Financial Integrator

Please note: All applications must be finalised and submitted before you can upgrade to the new version.

As part of Discovery's commitment to help with intermediary education and make our intermediaries more proficient, we will run the normal FPI/ CFP training course to help those wanting to write the FPI exams. The course is also suitable for anyone wanting to update and improve their knowledge. [70% of the class normally consists of those who have already passed, and are just on the course to refresh their knowledge.]

Note that those intermediaries attending the course for a second time get a 20% discount on fees; those attending a third time get a third off! We even have a student who is attending for the 16th time!

The schedule for the Gauteng lectures follows. All dates fall on a Friday morning and the lecture runs from 09:00 until 11:00.

29 January

5 February

19 February

4 March

11 March

15 April

13 May

27 May

10 June

24 June

22 July

12 August

19 August

2 September

The venue will be the Auditorium at Discovery Head Office for all the lectures, apart from the one in bold, which will be in The Forum.

The cost is R3 050, a mere 7.5% increase from last year! Also, remember the discounts mentioned above for those attending lectures for a second or third time.

Please note that a Cape Town course will only be run if we have 20 confirmed bookings, so make sure to respond quickly! Times and venues will be confirmed once we have sufficient people.

The sessions will involve tax and estate planning, detailed business assurance, capital gains tax, detailed practical calculations, offshore tax, local and offshore trusts, laws of marriage, wills and estate duty calculations, retirement tax matters, FAIS and general compliance issues, a lecture on health, a lecture on investments, and discussions of old exam papers.

Anyone wanting to attend, please email harryj@discovery.co.za to book your place, as seating is limited.

Please note: for those wanting to write the exams, the FPI enrollment process closes in early January. Please contact the University of the Free State and enrol formally as a matter of urgency.

On 24 November 2015, the Ombudsman for Short-Term Insurance (OSTI) is quoted in an article on www.insurancegateway.co.za titled Ombudsman for Short-Term Insurance comments on implications of driver behaviour monitoring policies. The article explained the ruling on a complaint against an unrelated insurer and further made comments on the ‘implications of taking out a driver behaviour monitoring policy’ and cautioned consumers to study their terms and conditions carefully in relation to this and seek further clarity from their insurer where necessary.

Discovery Insure’s policy for using DQ-Track data

Discovery Insure uses telematics (DQ-Track) information to incentivise better, safer driving and not to reject claims. This is confirmed by our Plan Guide wording, which forms the basis of the contract between Discovery Insure and our clients and states the following:

"We will not use your DQ-Track data (smartphone-enabled or standalone) for purposes of approving claims. We will use the information to verify time and location of an incident. We may use the information for general risk management and underwriting purposes to ensure that you receive the best cover possible.”

Some insurers do use the underlying data in the assessment of claims, but this does not apply to Discovery Insure.

In the event of a claim, we use the data to check the time and place on an incident, to avoid fraud and the payment of invalid claims. This protects honest policyholders as ultimately the cost of fraud is paid by the entire policyholder base through higher premiums.

Other ways we use data to our clients’ benefit

In addition to incentivising better driving behaviour, we also use the data to enhance our product and service offering. Here are some examples:

• Our voluntary Vitalitydrive programme is based on the same behavioural economic principles as Vitality in the wellness space, that people behave rationally and adapt their behaviour if they are presented with useful information and meaningful rewards for doing so. Our clients get up to 50% of their BP fuel spend back every month, in addition to other rewards.
• Clients can give us their permission to use the data to prove that a third party caused an accident. Where we are able to prove that our client was not responsible and that an insured third party caused the accident, the client’s excess is waived upfront. This benefit is unique to Discovery Insure in the global insurance market.
• Using our telematics data we are able to provide clients with a special safety feature called Unique driver profiles. Each client has a unique driver profile and as soon as their car is driven in a significantly different manner than normal (for example, more severe), it triggers an alarm and in the event of theft or hi-jacking we are able to provide assistance quicker than traditional solutions, which rely on the client contacting the insurer or police.
• With ImpactAlert, we are able to proactively reach out to clients and assist them by sending our emergency services to the scene of an accident when our telematics data indicates the occurrence of a high G force event. If we are unable to get hold of the client, we immediately dispatch assistance.

If one of your Discovery Insure clients is in a vehicle accident, they should call Discovery Insure on 0860 75 17 51 as soon as possible. We will help your client through this traumatic experience and provide support assistance.

We will also help your client get an approved towing provider, making sure that the towing and storage costs are covered in full. When clients use towing and vehicle storage providers that are not approved by us, it will result in limited cover and they will be responsible to settle these providers’ accounts in full. In other words, your client would be responsible for fees charged in excess of the Discovery Insure cover limits if they don’t use approved providers.

Clients who have downloaded the Discovery app can initiate their claims on the app. The app will guide them through the whole process, clearly indicating what is required, for example:

• Photos of the damage to the vehicle as well as of the accident scene
• Photos of the third party’s licence disc and registration number
• Details of any third parties and witnesses.

Remind your clients that all accidents must be reported to their insurer or to you, as their financial adviser, within 30 days, even if they don’t plan on claiming.

Reporting an incident to SAPS is crucial

Clients must report their vehicle incident to the South African Police Services within 24 hours:

• They should report the incident even if their own vehicle is not damaged.
• Regardless of damages, they must also report the incident to the SAPS if there’s a third party involved. Even if the other person says they will report it, your client should still go ahead and report the accident.

Your clients may consider not reporting an incident if it was a single car mishap with very little damage, no one was injured, or where they are certain that the damage is less than the excess would cost. This is a risky decision, however, because there might be hidden damage or damage that worsens over time. In this event, an unreported accident may negatively affect their insurance claim. If your clients are unsure whether to report the incident or not, it’s always safer for them to report it.

Stolen or hijacked vehicles must always be reported as quickly as possible to the police. This way, the police can immediately notify their officers, investigative units and border posts of the missing car.

Report all accidents to the police, including minor bumper bashings

Following a minor bumper bashing, clients may think that there is no or only little damage to their car and the other party may even tell them that they will pay for your client’s damages. But what if:

• There is hidden damage that is not apparent until closer inspection?
• The other party misleads your client and they do not have insurance or cannot afford to pay for the costs of the repair?
• They end up sending your client a letter holding them responsible for incurred costs?

If the incident accident is not reported within the prescribed period, their insurer may not be able to assist your client in recouping their losses and will be under no obligation to deal with any legal action taken against them.

Vehicle repairs

Your clients must not repair their vehicle before getting authorisation from their insurer. All insurers prefer to assess the damages before sending the vehicle for repairs. This allows them to measure the loss and to assess the accident and damage suffered by the client and third parties. It also helps them with any claim recoveries from third parties.

If your client chooses to repair their vehicle or the other party’s vehicle, it’s possible that their insurer could be prejudiced by their action and, if so, they may reject your client’s claim or not reimburse them fully.

If you have any questions, please call our dedicated call centre on 0860 66 55 44 from 8:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday, or email inland servicing Insureinlandintermediary@discovery.co.za and coastal servicing at Insurecoastalintermediary@discovery.co.za

Discovery Insure Ltd is an authorised financial services provider. Registration number 2009/011882/06. Limits, maximum fuel and Gautrain spend limits, terms and conditions apply. Go to www.discovery.co.za for more details or call 0860 751 751.

The Discovery Life Medical Premium Waiver and Health Plan Protector rates have been updated for 2016, please click on the links to download your copy for ease of reference.

These will also be available on the Financial Adviser Zone by next week.

We have updated the Discovery Life terms and conditions to comply with the new Protection of Personal Information Act. We are communicating with clients to explain:

• How we will treat and use their personal information
• Who we will share it with and for what purpose.  

You can also access this information.

Accepting these terms and conditions is voluntary, but it is required to activate and service your client’s policy; the client should only respond if they do not agree to the terms.

If they choose not to accept these terms and conditions, they need to advise us in writing by emailing us at lifecampaigns@discovery.co.za. This will mean that we cannot service their policy in the future.

Many companies pay their employees earlier than usual in December. To make sure your clients have peace of mind about their cover going into 2016, we encourage them to pay double their premiums in December.

We will send your clients an email giving them the option to allow us to collect their December and January premiums a bit earlier.

Your clients may:

• Request that we debit their account twice on their selected debit order date for collections due in December 2015 and January 2016
• Choose an earlier collection date for December 2015
• Permanently change their debit order date.

Your clients can respond directly through the links on our email if they would like any of these arrangements.

We will restore their normal debit order date in January 2016, unless they choose to permanently change to the new date.

Please remember we cannot debit an account on a Sunday or public holiday. If a client chooses a debit order day that falls on either of these days, we will debit their account on the next banking day.

We apologise for any inconvenience cause due to the incorrect dates posted in last week's eDiscoverer, please see an example of the communication we will send to clients.

Download the latest update on Investment Integration matrices for 2016.

Discovery Invest currently offers the existing Dynamic Asset Optimiser, which is a unique asset allocation structure wherein clients can either select an aggressive, moderate or conservative risk profile, depending on the client’s risk preference. View the list of frequently asked questions for more information on upcoming enhancements.

The three risk-profiled Discovery Choice Dynamic Asset Optimiser Fund of Funds will be available for investment on SMAD from Monday, 7 December 2015, and will be found under the Discovery Funds tab. Fund fact sheets will be available for the three risk-profiled fund of funds under the Interactive fund fact sheets tab at www.discovery.co.za.

Your clients can get up to 20% cash back when they shop and pay using their Discovery Card in our partner store network.

Clients can save R400 on stylish polarised shades. Plus, they can get up to 20% cash back at Sunglass Hut stores nationwide!

All they need to do is:

• Head out to their nearest Sunglass Hut store
• Pick the perfect pair of polarised sunnies
• Pay for the sunglasses with their Discovery Card to get up to 20% cash back
  By simply following these steps, they will get R400 off on the purchase price of their polarised sunglasses in-store, for a limited time only.

Remember, your clients can get their discount from 1 November 2015 to 30 November 2015 ;on full-priced polarised sunglasses – so they better hurry! The offer excludes Glider sunglasses.

Terms and conditions apply.

Discovery Card, the credit card that helps your clients’ money go further!