New Zealand’s financial conduct regulator named the use of complaints data to drive improvements as one of its three insurer-specific priorities for 2026/27 – a backdrop against which Fidelity Life has appointed Raffi Rassam (pictured) as head of claims and confirmed what its industry-nominated claims innovation tool does.
The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) released its second annual Financial Conduct Report on June 30, 2026, setting out priorities for 2026/27 across insurance, credit, banking, advice, capital markets, and investment management. Four cross-sector themes anchor the report: managing conflicts from remuneration structures, product design, use of complaints data, and fraud detection and prevention. That scrutiny arrives against a documented complaints escalation. The Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme (IFSO Scheme) accepted a record 600 disputes for investigation in the year to June 30, 2025 – a 25% increase on the prior year and a 110% increase from 2022.
Critically for life insurers, health, life, and disability insurance disputes rose by 69% that year, with life insurance generating 27 disputes, income protection 27, and trauma 25. The IFSO attributed the rise to cost-of-living pressures and rising consumer expectations around what policies should cover as premiums increase. For brokers, the dispute data is commercially material. The IFSO’s top five dispute issues were scope of cover, policy exclusion, non-disclosure, gradual damage, and misselling or misrepresentation – each intersecting with the adviser relationship at placement stage, not solely at claim time. A client who disputes a declined claim frequently contacts their adviser first.
The most substantive element of the Fidelity Life announcement is the innovation behind its Financial Services Council (FSC) Award nomination. The Claims 3D Tool is designed to manage long-term disability claims assessed as non-recoverable or permanent, developed in partnership with reinsurer Gen Re. The tool was nominated in the FSC’s Innovation of the Year category, judged against a criterion requiring measurable, positive outcomes for customers and the wider financial services industry.
The FMA’s thematic review of insurer operational resilience, published July 8, 2026, found that nearly three-quarters of respondents (74%) use legacy systems – defined as technology more than 10 years old – for core operations, and 43% of those said more than 30% of their business functions depend on that infrastructure. All four Innovation of the Year finalists address operational inefficiency directly, a pattern that sits squarely within the FMA’s documented concerns about sector technology maturity.
For advisers managing clients with long-term disability claims, a tool designed specifically for non-recoverable or permanent assessments has practical relevance: it speaks to the consistency and transparency of outcomes at the most consequential end of the claims spectrum, where disputes are most likely to arise and most damaging to the client relationship.
The appointments reflect a structural consolidation at Fidelity Life. Seema Bangera, formerly chief claims officer, now holds the expanded title of chief claims & operations officer, with her remit covering customer onboarding, operations, and claims end-to-end. The change integrates claims into the broader customer journey rather than treating it as a standalone function. Rassam moves into the head of claims role from his previous position as claims operations manager – strategy & stakeholder engagement, bringing more than a decade of financial services and claims experience. His broader industry contribution has included claims education delivered to advisers across New Zealand and participation in sector forums and committees.
Bangera outlined the rationale in a company statement. “Raffi has been a driving force behind the progress we’ve made in claims over the past year. He brings technical depth, strong adviser relationships, and a genuine commitment to doing the right thing for customers at some of the most important moments in their lives. His leadership has helped us lift capability, improve consistency, and use data and insight in a more proactive, human way,” she said. Rassam described his priorities. “Claims is where the value of insurance becomes real. My focus will be on continuing to build a claims experience that is fair, transparent, efficient, and deeply human. One that gives customers confidence at the moments they need us most,” he said.
FSC data shows annual life insurance premiums reached $3.31 billion as at March 31, 2026 – up 2.7% year-on-year – even as cover numbers continued to fall across several key products. In the September 2025 quarter, more than 60% of total life insurance premiums are attributed to the 46-to-65 age group – the cohort most likely to generate claims, including the long-term disability claims the 3D Tool is designed to manage.
Fidelity Life holds nominations across three separate FSC Award categories – Innovation of the Year, Emerging Trailblazer, and Team of the Year – in the 2026 programme. The FSC Awards Dinner is scheduled for August 13 at the FSC26 Amplify conference in Auckland.
