The Intermediary – May 2025 - Flipbook - Page 80
T E C H N O L O GY
Opinion
here’s a lot of talk
about when it comes
to how technology can
improve your business.
Efficiency. Profitability.
Flexibility. All these
benefits are undoubtedly on offer
with the right tools, employed in the
right way.
But what does this actually mean
in practice? Adding ever more
technology platforms to your business
can have the opposite effect, if not
properly planned.
The investment in new tech is
substantial, the time it takes to
train staff to use it effectively and its
integration with existing systems and
processes can present a stronger case
to give it a wide berth, rather than
encouraging you to take the plunge.
The cultural change that comes
with new technology should never be
underestimated. Many a good system
has withered as users have found
workarounds to the first problem
they encounter!
As a directly authorised (DA) firm,
ascertaining where to invest to get
the best bang for your buck takes
considerable time – and more oen
than not it’s time that is already
being spent dealing with the dayto-day of compliance, functionality
and security.
Yet the world is increasingly
demanding of firms: data has been
important for more than a decade.
T
Using it wisely to identify risk
exposure, performance trends and
compliance weaknesses and strengths
is the name of the game.
The case for geing the right
technology in place is strong. Here’s
just a brief summary of what you
should be thinking about as a DA firm.
Keeping clients safe
Data security is critical; fraud is now
the most common crime commied
ROB MCCOY
is senior product and
business manager at TMA
in England and Wales, according
to the Office for National Statistics
(ONS), rising by 19% to almost four
million cases between September 2023
and 2024.
The National Crime Agency believes
that fraud is largely under-reported,
with the Crime Survey of England
and Wales estimating that just 13%
of cases are reported to Action Fraud
or the police by victims. Four-fihs
of reported fraud are cyber-enabled,
according to the National Fraud
Intelligence Bureau.
Selecting and evidencing
The majority of mortgage
intermediaries are signed up to
offering clients protection, be it life
cover, term assurance, critical illness
cover or income protection. For those
who do, it won’t have escaped your
