Pre-sales Underwriting – January Forum Recap – Part Two
As the discussion progressed into the second half of the session, attention turned to how pre-sales underwriting operates in practice, with advisers sharing first-hand experiences of navigating complex cases and managing client expectations.
Joining the discussion were:
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Toby Corden, Protection Co-ordinator – L&C Mortgages
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Dan Hill, Protection Adviser – P10 Financial Group
- Adam Kaplan – Pendragon Protect
Discussion centred on the limitations of existing pre-sales tools when handling complex cases, particularly where medical history, mental health disclosures or occupational risk are involved. Advisers highlighted frustration where significant time and care is taken to provide accurate pre-sales information, only for final underwriting outcomes to differ materially once an application is submitted.
Listen to the full session recording and explore the highlights below to hear how advisers and industry leaders are calling for a more responsive, transparent and human approach to underwriting.
Click the audio playback below to listen to the full session.
“It’s reassuring in a way that it’s not just me experiencing these issues.”
“Despite the teething problems with newer systems, it’s still important that advisers use them and show there is demand.”
“If advisers don’t engage with these tools, they’re not going to improve.”
“Using them gives providers the ammunition to go back to insurers and push for better data and stronger integration.”
Full session audio
Part 1:
Part 2:
“You can ask insurers what their current service turnarounds are, but often they’ll quote their longest outstanding case rather than the average experience.”
“What we really want to know is where 95% of cases are actually sitting.”
“Some insurers really struggle to identify that average, but those are the questions we’re asking.”
“We’re making that information visible to advisers using a traffic-light approach.”
“Insurers who are maintaining good service standards should be rewarded for that.”
“Making service levels more visible is only going to become more important.”
“We are doing more than sufficient pre-sales underwriting and getting all the right relevant information.”
“What frustrates me is that we are 100% consistent with our pre-sales information and our application submission.”
“Nothing has changed from pre-sale to post-sale, yet the underwriting outcome is completely different.”
“If your pre-sales tool is telling advisers one thing and underwriting is doing another, you’ve got a serious problem.”
“We’re supposed to rely on these tools, and if we’re being pushed down that route, they have to be reliable.”
