Aviva have delivered their IGC report and it’s a thorough piece of work. You can download it here or read it in full from this blog
The marketing of these reports seems to depend on very relaxed executives in casual ware , a background of the City reminding them that these humans are savvy to the ways of the financial markets.
The report from Aviva actually bears this out, Colin Richardson is a human and so are the team and Aviva are a pretty steady force in the City of London. They are very honest, they are doing what they’ve been asked by September 30th, they’ve been asked to deliver a report by the FCA ( and I suspect the result for Aviva that they are delivering)
The report could have run to one sentence
This is the third one of these IGC reports and I haven’t read any other judgement, nor do I expect to.
The question is whether the IGC are going to be mates to the people who are paying them or if they’re going to leave a chance that the club’s in the relegation zone. Numbering amongst them heavyweights including Colin Richardson as the Chair, there is unlikely to be any shenanigans, Emma Douglas is on the board , pays the one and runs Pensions UK.
The Aviva IGC may not have the fancy digital delivery of L&G or the fervour of Royal London (all over linked in with their IGC) but Aviva has budget for research and we get to see some fancy charts.
Charges
This anonymous work could be deciphered if everybody published themselves but that’s what the consumer needs. This anonymity – which in universal – is not helping the people who are supposed to be reading these reports.
Investment
It is helpful that Aviva have done their own research on who’s doing what over one year
and over 5 years
The thinking about glidepaths – evidenced in a 2024 report doesn’t look to have much future. This is strange stuff when we know that within a couple of years providers will have to deliver defaults for a lifetime income.
These kind of charts and marketing style reporting on Aviva investor funds is anything but what we expect from the Pension Schemes Bill/Act. The sooner that reporting is done within a quarter of the end of year reported on , the better.
Service
Aviva have managed to find another anonymous analysis of reports that (like Redington’s) shows them super-duper. I have a concern that the other providers gauged have names and that they may not be in quite the same go. Provider K has only detractors which suggests it has no place competing or retaining workplace business
There follows a lot of happy comments from the promotors, nothing from the neutrals or the detractors ( who are over 2/3 of Aviva customers responding).
The remainder of the report is in practice a brochure for leaving with prospective and current clients.
The IGC must speak to and for the policyholder
Colin Richardson’s Chair statement includes references to the large number of internal meetings taking place between Aviva and its IGC. I do not want to criticise but I suspect that some of this report might be better if the report was a little more rigorous in its approach.
Take this puff for an acquired adviser
Following its acquisition of Succession Wealth, Aviva is particularly well-placed to provide members with a full range of financial guidance as they approach retirement. Members learn about the range of support options available either reactively or proactively. Reactive engagement comes when they call Aviva about something else.
Proactive engagement happens from a communication to policyholders when they turn 50, when Aviva visits their employer onsite or when they use Aviva’s online retirement planning tool.
Typically, members are offered a free 20-30 minute retirement preparation call. This might lead to them being invited to a webinar or seeking advice, either restricted to Aviva or a “whole of market” option, if their needs are complex.
The IGC was impressed by the proactivity and the breadth of services, and the fees appear to be competitive.
Aviva’s IGC’s importance
The majority of this high quality report aligns with Aviva;- showing it a high quality workplace and investment pathway provider . But sometimes “less may be more” and the back of this report could do with rather less advertising!
