The National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) says furthering the broker community’s cause is a primary objective for this year.

President Graham Stevens told the annual general meeting in Melbourne last week that representation, professionalism and community engagement are key aims.

“Our goal in representation is to represent the interests of members to governments, regulators, industry stakeholders, the media and the community in a manner that is respected and relevant,” Mr Stevens said.

“NIBA’s role is to make sure the views of insurance brokers are heard and respected, and are taken seriously when new initiatives and new regulations are being developed.”

He says the broking sector has performed well compared with the wider financial industry, which has been rocked by scandals linked to bad investment advice.

NIBA will continue to develop and push for better professional standards.

“The NIBA board has, for many years, been committed to the need for brokers to be properly trained and to be committed to high standards of professionalism, with a strong commitment to acting in the best interests of the client,” Mr Stevens said.

“This is probably the main reason why current concerns about professionalism and ethics in financial services do not apply to brokers.”

Advancing the public perception of the insurance broking industry is also high on NIBA’s agenda for this year.

“The goal of promoting insurance broking as a desired profession is critical for the future success of our industry,” Mr Stevens said.

“This is an area where I have a strong personal interest, and I will be working hard while I am President to do what I can to make insurance broking as attractive as possible as a desired profession.”