In this episode, Hazel and Wayne had the privilege of speaking with Beth, a Legal & General colleague who shared her heartfelt and poignant story about her husband Pete's battle with cancer and his unfortunate passing last year. Beth discussed the importance of having insurance, specifically critical illness cover, and life insurance, and how it impacted her family during such a challenging time.

We also cover;

• Financial flexibility and choices that having insurance provides.
• The importance of mental health support, and the need for open conversations about insurance and its long-term impact.

Overall, Beth's experience sheds light on the lasting effects of illness and loss, the need for comprehensive insurance coverage, and the ongoing support required for individuals and families facing such challenges. Thank you, Beth, for sharing your story.

You can also watch Pete’s story here - https://www.legalandgeneral.com/adviser/protection/adviser-toolkit/our-claims/case-studies/people-stories/#pete

In this episode of the Just Covered podcast, Hazel and Wayne are joined by Chartered Financial Planner, George Laidlaw from Gilson Gray Financial Management. George shares his inspiring journey from working in the banking industry to where he is now and why it was important to him to achieve Chartered status despite raising his young family. Throughout George’s career he has adapted how he brings the topic of protection into his client conversations through the use of cashflow modelling and we loved exploring this with him.

This episode also covers;

• Building professional connections with law firms, allowing both parties to offer comprehensive services to their clients, covering both financial planning and legal advice.
• Goal-based planning, aligning protection with clients' overall financial goals, rather than viewing the protection conversation as a disturbance or a negative aspect of the fact find
• The importance of building a community of peers in the industry. George emphasises the value of learning from others and staying connected with fellow advisors. By sharing knowledge and experiences, advisors can enhance their skills and provide better service to their clients.

Special: Divorce after 50: pensions and property

In this special episode of the Just Covered Podcast, our hosts Hazel Johnston and Wayne Holcombe are joined by financial planner and pensions expert, Fiona Tait, and mortgage broker and later life lending adviser, Manjit Kaur.

It starts with advice, and it starts with you.

When property and pensions are your client’s two largest assets, of course, it makes sense to approach them with caution and understand the bigger picture. Our experts, Fiona and Manjit, give their take on pensions and property in divorce, and how the role of an adviser can help to secure the best outcomes for clients going through later life divorce.

In this episode we cover;

• The importance of broadening your professional network
• Why no two clients are the same
• The value of advising clients earlier on in the process

In this episode of the Just Covered podcast, Hazel and Wayne are joined by Sam Oakes from Financial Planner Life, where they reflect on the past year and discuss their goals for the new year. They also talk about the importance of checking in on colleagues and clients, and the power of asking the question "How are you out of 10?" to gauge someone's well-being.

This episode also covers.

- The Power of Connection: We explore the significance of advisors being able to connect with each other, their families, or join support groups like talk clubs.

- Self-appreciation and Improvement: Our conversation also delves into the importance of taking the time to reflect on personal well-being and professional growth.

- The Power of Talking and Listening: We discuss the power of communication in boosting mental fitness.

Useful Links

- Umbrella Benefits

- Business Protection

- Mental health charities

Happy Podcastiversay! We are so thrilled to be reaching the one-year anniversary of our podcast. It’s been an amazing journey filled with insights, opinions, and stories from advisers across the country. So thank you to all of those involved, and for making our first year a roaring success!

In this Christmas special episode of the Just Covered podcast, host Sam Oakes takes over as the interviewer and is joined by Hazel and Wayne, the usual hosts. They reflect on the past 12 months and discuss how the podcast has helped them in their jobs.

Also covering

• The last year of top tips
• Stand out moments of 2023
• What you can expect from 2024

Special Thanks to all our amazing guests, hosts, production team and to you, our listeners!

We look forward to what 2024 brings and to continue providing an authentic and raw experience, where guests share honestly and openly, allowing listeners to learn and potentially make changes in their own businesses.

If you feel you demonstrate brilliant customer outcomes and got your own story to share? Contact hazel.johnston@landg.com if you are interested in appearing on our podcast

In this episode of the Just Covered podcast, hosts Hazel and Wayne are joined by Wayne Griffiths from One Financial Solutions. He shares his journey to becoming an independent financial adviser after starting in the financial services industry in the 1990s.

Wayne discusses the challenges and uncertainties he faced during this transition and how joining a network helped to ensure compliance and support.

This episode also covers

• The importance of being nosy and storytelling with your clients
• How to approach certain clients
• Intergenerational planning and equity release.
• Mental health and the importance of checking in on each other

Overall, the episode highlights the need for compassion, collaboration, and support within the financial services industry. By working together and fostering a sense of community, professionals can navigate the challenges of their job and create a more positive and inclusive work environment.

Useful links

Bank of family –https://www.legalandgeneral.com/adviser/bank-of-family/

Charity mentioned -Men’s Mental Fitness charity - https://talkclub.org

Mind - https://www.mind.org.uk/

Dubbed the “Queen of Claims” by her colleagues and with an ability to keep protection advice both relatable and understandable – it is safe to say Amy Whittingham is one of the industry’s leading protection advisers.

Amy shares with Hazel and Wayne some candid stories of where the cover she has set up has made a difference to her clients as well as exploring how to navigate the protection conversation within the wealth space.

This episode is a must for any adviser dealing with customers in the wealth space and any advisers who are time short and want to refer their clients over to a protection specialist.

We cover:

• Amy’s journey and what it meant to be Future Proof’s first ever employee
• The reasons why it is crucial to be having a robust and holistic protection conversation
• The importance of true listening and taking the time to find the right solution
• Balancing affordability, wants and needs when it comes to protection advice
• Why we should never walk past a protection conversation, even if it looks like the customer is fully covered

If you are experienced in financial planning, mortgage or protection advice and would like to feature on future episodes, please reach out to hazel.johnston@landg.com. Please also get in touch with any topics you would like us to cover on this podcast.

Useful Links

Deadline to breadline

Protection Success

Claims case studies

We are excited to bring to you an extended “Technology Special”! The world of technology has an ever-changing landscape and evolves at such a pace so how can advisers keep abreast of the tools that can enhance their role, their customer service and provide them time to advise on protection? James Adams, Director of My Simple Mortgage, and Thora Kehoe Chief Product Officer at Smartr365 spent time with Wayne and Hazel to uncover some of the truths around using technology in our industry, how it can enhance customer relationships, help keep advisers on the right side of compliance and drive efficiencies. All these aspects are key to running a successful business and in turn, provide extra time to provide great advice to our customers.

In this episode, James shares how he has embraced and incorporated technology into his business and Thora shares some of the key facts advisers should keep in mind when looking at adding technology enhancements to their strategy. This episode is a must for any adviser considering how they can utilise technologies within their business.

We cover:

• James’s journey to adding technology into his business and some of the challenges and learns along the way
• The reasons why technology could help keep your business compliant, especially in the new world of Consumer Duty.
• What a “data prisoner” is and how to avoid becoming one
• The questions to ask of a technology provider before committing to add them to your business strategy
• Some of the ways James’s team uses the extra time that technology provides them and why this helps create a successful environment for advising on protection

If you are experienced in financial planning, mortgage, or protection advice and would like to feature in future episodes, please reach out to hazel.johnston@landg.com. Please also get in touch with any topics you would like us to cover on this podcast.