When will they ever learn?

"There are ill discoverers, that think there is no land, when they see nothing but sea."                                                                  Francis Bacon. I have written about New Zealand Insurance Companies before.  I have received literally hundreds of complaints from NZ readers who suffered at their hands.  But naturally enough, the insurance companies regard themselves as impervious institutions because for many years they could afford to take their income for granted.  Today it's a different ball game.  Two of the biggest are having financial problems because management made offshore investment decisions that failed.  I know little about international investment but the simple application of commonsense would indicate that different countries have different cultures and expectations.  What is good for the NZ goose is not necessarily good for the European gander.  My advice is stick to what you know.  Not what you think you might know.      The NZ banking system uses automatic payments (AP's).  These are regular payments paid out by the customer on the day their income is deposited.  Rent, mortgage, car payments etc. Then there's direct debits (DD's). These are payments demanded on dates set by certain businesses to suit themselves.  In reality, insurance companies are one of the few industries still demanding DD's.  What this means is that they have access to your bank account and can and do, take what they want, when they want.  It doesn't take much intelligence to realise the dictated dates might not suit you.  This commonsense factor is ignored by insurance management who not only make lousy investment decisions, but willfully ignore the financial viability of your budget.  Their heads are deeply buried in the greedy sands of the past.      Many local companies have been snaffled up by big players with more money than sense and a number of well-known companies no longer exist.  Because of the reducing numbers, the survivors seem to think they can dictate terms and conditions.  The public are rebelling and turning aside from these 'head in the cloud' institutions.  They are being told in increasing numbers where to go.  Shove you policies where it hurts the most and so on.  After a little Internet research and independent financial advice, I've sent the following note to my insurance broker of twenty years.  No doubt I will be criticized for stating the obvious and accused of being an anti capitalist socialist pig or whatever name he can dream up to justify his commission-based stance.  To him, insurance companies are being generous by insuring anybody for anything.  They can do no wrong and the public must bow to their financial genius.  Yeah! Osamba bin Laden lives in the Waldorf Astor and George Bush is a great guy.  Pull the other leg, Herr Saddam. Dear Saddam,      I have discussed my insurance companies demanding premium payments by direct debit with a number of financial professionals.  The unanimous agreement was, that because Kiwis do not have the same amount of disposable income of say, 5-10 years ago, DD's are no longer viable.  In addition, there are privacy concerns with the insurance companies demanding access to private bank accounts.  It was also suggested that the mindless rhetoric they dish out is based on arrogance and the reducing number of viable companies is nobody's fault but their own.  Naturally, if they fail to heed the needs of the customer, they will disappear.  This is a fact of life. The customer does not owe them a living.  One must also consider the number of times the Fair Go TV program and the Consumer Institute has had to step in to right the wrongs.      Accordingly, please advise my current companies that I wish to pay via Internet banking.  It's simple.  All they have to do is arrange an automatic reminder email a week before the money is due and I can pay withing a few days.  I will require a name, account number and a method of identifying the policy.  It will reduce their administration costs considerably.  It might be to their advantage to open an appropriate bank account. The current DD's will also have to be cancelled.      However, if they refuse this method, I will make other insurance arrangements.  Offshore insurance companies will accept AP's when it suits my budget.  I can also use Internet banking if I desire.  There are many different payment options available on the world market.      Incidently, I phoned the NZ Insurance Council regarding AP's and was told a pack of lies.  I know you will have difficulty understanding that the industry that has supported you for many years is at fault, but the world changes and so must we.  What was acceptable yesterday is no longer acceptable today.  The response I had from my Internet articles on lewisnews.com and yellowtimes.org was overwhelming.  They were reproduced by a large number of other websites around the world. Nearly seven hundred Kiwis sent examples of insurance stupidity.  The NZ Insurance Industry deserves a hefty kick up the ass and it will happen if they continue to ignore the needs of the customer.  The world is a global market and we must all move with the times.  I'm afraid our insurance company fantasies are nothing more than self-serving bullshit.  The public is not completely gullible and will not support such institutionalised stupidity.  It's called reality.  The companies can either understand the concept of market reality or go broke.  That's the way the world works today.  (AMP & Tower?) I have also been contracted to write an article about the NZ Insurance Industry for a Russian financial magazine.  Might prove interesting. I sent the Consumer Institute a copy of this letter and received a nice thank you. Their  researchers are already looking into this matter because of numerous complaints. Lets hope the insurance industry has enough gumption to get the message. Personally, I don't give a damn if they all go broke. It will provide an oportunity for JIm Anderton of the Alliance Party to start a NZ owned and operated insurance company that services the needs of Kiwis. His much fought for Kiwi Bank is going great guns and will soon be profitable. There's an old saying.  Where there's will, there's a way.