Life insurers must focus more on service and technology to differentiate themselves from competitors, according to MLC Insurance EGM Duncan West.

“The basic policy has become commoditised,” he told insuranceNEWS.com.au. “Because insurance is about the individual, we cannot make all our services the same; this would be bad for the consumer.

“It would also make the life insurance industry unsustainable.”

Mr West says MLC has three components to its life offering: the product, service and technology.

“The product is hard to differentiate, so we have to concentrate on improving and expanding our service and technology components,” he said.

“While the consumer probably cannot differentiate between the various policies available, they do see differences in the service offered, such as the time to process an application.”

MLC has introduced the RiskFirst Rapid system to speed up applications. Consumers can split their cover into two stages, allowing one portion to be issued faster, often before any mandatory evidence can be requested or received.

“We will be offering a price and conditions on application based on the information supplied by the consumer,” Mr West said. “The cover can then start, which is good for the consumer, and the adviser receives their commission quicker.

“It is a market-first innovation allowing us to offer some differentiation that is good for consumers and advisers.”

MLC has also introduced a 20% discount on income protection if consumers bundle their life, total and permanent disability and critical illness cover together.

And it has added its product range to its investment platforms, MLC Wrap and MLC Navigator, allowing premiums to be paid tax-effectively from super or self-managed super accounts.

“These improvements are the latest in a series of regular upgrades we’re making to meet the needs of consumers and advisers while streamlining the insurance process,” Mr West said.