Progress is being made on commission and bonus reforms: CIF

But further changes are anticipated once the royal commission publishes its report

Progress is being made on commission and bonus reforms: CIF

The Combined Industry Forum claims its participants are tracking well on its reform package for the broking industry as the deadline looms.

Lenders and aggregators are said to be moving forward on the CIF’s core recommendations around changes to remuneration and loan size, moving away from soft dollar benefits and clearer disclosure of ownership structures. The deadline for implementation on these matters is this December.

Yet so far only Macquarie and Bankwest have made their standard commission model changes public. The CIF recommends that remuneration relate to loan size and the funds drawn down and utilised by the customer.

The CIF said in its progress report, released Monday (27 August), that respondents have noted that work on commission adjustments is “contingent on project management and change management, particularly in relation to training and communication”.

“There were several comments that identified that amendments to legal agreements and system changes will be necessary to finalise the implementation of this reform.”

CIF and royal commission

While the royal commission, Productivity Commission and ACCC inquiries will likely propose further changes to the mortgage broking industry, the CIF said it will continue with its work in the meantime.

“Until there is more certainty as to what those changes might be, the CIF will continue to focus on the Sedgwick recommendations and ASIC proposals to build a platform for the future.”

“The CIF will continue to make efforts that aim at improving customer outcomes, while maintaining the commercial viability of the industry, and promoting competition.”