At FMG, our internal values drive our behaviour and culture to ‘do what’s right’ for our clients. This means putting trust and integrity at the heart of what we do for our clients and for each other.
As a Mutual, FMG exists to provide affordable insurance solutions and advice for our clients.
This document summarises FMG’s Fair Conduct Programme. The Fair Conduct Programme consists of policies, processes, systems, and controls designed to ensure FMG treats clients fairly. It also aims to identify and address any instances of unfair treatment that may arise.
FMG’s Fair Conduct Programme is effective from 31 March 2025.
About FMG
FMG underwrites its own general insurance products that include a range of domestic, rural and commercial insurance products. FMG also distributes products underwritten by other providers.
FMG distributes its products directly to clients. It does not use intermediaries and/or agents in respect of its products. The policies, processes, systems, and controls that comprise FMG’s Fair Conduct Programme reflect this key characteristic of FMG’s business. They are designed to ensure that the methods FMG uses to distribute its products to clients operate in accordance with the Fair Conduct Principle and that fair client outcomes are achieved.
How FMG complies with the Fair Conduct Principle
FMG’s Fair Conduct Programme is designed to help FMG achieve fair outcomes for our clients in designing and managing products, distributing those products to clients, and dealing with claims. “Treating clients fairly” includes the following:
- Paying due regard to clients’ interests, by, for example:
- ensuring that we understand what our clients (when viewed as a group) are likely to need from their insurer and designing our products to meet those needs as best we can, and having regular reviews and ‘checks’ in place to ensure our products, once delivered to our clients, are performing as intended; and
- making financial advice available as appropriate, to assist clients in selecting insurance cover.
- Acting ethically, transparently and in good faith. One of the ways we do this is by assisting clients to understand FMG’s products by providing policy wordings in plain English and making additional information available to clients where they need it. These steps also assist FMG’s clients to be equipped to make an informed decision about whether to insure with FMG, what our policies cover and what cover options may best meet their needs.
- Communicating effectively about our products and services. In addition to what is outlined directly above, this includes ensuring clients are fully informed across all key interactions we have with them from when they initially engage with us about insurance, to discussing changes in their circumstances or our products, or making a claim.
- Providing services in a way that takes into account clients’ varied circumstances when viewed as a group, including any clients that are in circumstances that require extra care.
- FMG’s Fair Conduct Programme includes processes to identify and address complaints and instances of unfair client outcomes.
FMG’s Fair Conduct Programme is supported by processes that ensure the FMG’s employees are trained and supported to contribute, in their varied roles, to the delivery of fair outcomes for FMG’s clients.
As well as reviewing its products as described above, FMG conducts regular reviews of its services and distribution methods to monitor whether Fair Client Outcomes are being achieved. That review activity, along with regular reporting on the effectiveness of FMG’s Fair Conduct Programme through to senior leadership and ultimately the Board of Directors, helps FMG to identify conduct that may unfairly impact on clients as soon as possible and addresses that should it arise.
Client feedback and complaints
Feedback from our clients, particularly when things have not gone as expected, is essential to help us determine whether our Fair Conduct Programme is delivering the fair client outcomes we aim to achieve. FMG welcomes all forms of feedback from our clients, through our website, our call centre teams or face-to-face through our mobile team.
Learn more about our complaints handling process.
