ABTA members will be able to continue earning commission on the association’s own travel insurance after the Financial Services Authority rules change next year thanks to a new scheme.
Providing they have registered, the association’s members will be granted introducer appointed representative status when dealing with any product from the assocaition’s own-brand ABTASure range of travel insurance policies. This means agents will direct the customer to ABTA to purchase their insurance, but still earn commission on the sale.
The new FSA rules, which come in on January 1, 2009, mean travel agents will have to become directly regulated by the FSA or choose to be appointed representatives or introducer appointed representatives for a regulated firm.
ABTA head of finance Mike Monk said: “It is tremendously important that customers do not travel without insurance and our members can and do play a very important role in this.
“I would urge them to obtain IAR status with ABTASure, thereby ensuring their customers are adequately covered and protecting their insurance income.”
For further details and registration ABTA members can either contact ABTASure on info@abtasure.co.uk or 0845 618 0380 or apply online at abtasure.co.uk.
For more information on the regulations, see the FSA’s advice.