The majority of us seem to agree that not only is insurance important, but so is seeking professional advice about our insurance needs. Most of the time we're not informed enough to go through the whole process on our own. One step that we can do ourselves, however, is do a life insurance comparison and choose the options we think are perfect for us. Then we can consult and cross some off the list. The problem is, relatively few Canadians actually have a relationship with an insurance professional who might give them that all-important counsel.
In a recent Leger national public opinion survey, 84 per cent of respondents believe it's important or very important to secure professional advice about insurance for their home, car or business. Interestingly, women are significantly more likely than men to believe this. We consider receiving professional advice is more important about insurance than it is about banking, loans, mortgages and tax preparation.
The survey also revealed that the vast majority of Canadians would have more confidence in advice from an educated insurance advisor. A Chartered Insurance Professional (CIP), has earned the benchmark of professional insurance designations. The research also showed a gap between how important Canadians consider car, home and business insurance to be, and respondents' respective levels of knowledge about each. For instance, while 96 per cent of respondents consider home insurance to be important, only 70 per cent consider themselves knowledgeable about it.
Finally, despite Canadians' strong belief in the importance of insurance and the need for professional advice on insurance, and high confidence in insurance professionals with the CIP designation, still nearly three quarters of respondents have no professional insurance advisor. These survey results reveal a gap that needs to be bridged. In particular, they suggest that we need to seek out experienced insurance professionals for advice on car, home and business insurance.
Learn more about the survey results and the CIP designation at beassured.ca. / www.newscanada.com
