Chapter 1-Actuarial advice

Question 1

1. List 16 clients in the private sector whom actuaries advise or provide information to.

Answer 1

There are many clients whom actuaries can advise or provide information to. In the private sector these include:
• policyholders
• prospective policyholders
• members of benefit schemes and their dependants
• employers
• insurance company - board of directors
• insurance company - shareholders
• insurance company creditors
• trustees of benefit schemes
• sponsors of benefits schemes
• employees
• auditors of insurance companies
• auditors of the sponsors of benefit schemes
• investment fund managers
• members of investment schemes
• sponsors of capital projects
• banks.

Question 2

2. Describe the public sector clients actuaries may advise.

Answer 2

In the public sector actuaries advise government departments and related organisations, such as central banks and regulatory bodies. As in the private sector, advising actuaries might be employees of the relevant organisation, or independent consultants.

Question 3

3. In giving actuarial advice, what is important to identify in relation to the stakeholders involved, and why?

Answer 3

It is important to identify all the stakeholders involved when any actuarial advice is given. In most circumstances different categories of stakeholder have different interests. In most situations one or more stakeholders will remunerate the actuary, but there will be several other stakeholders with significant interests who do not contribute directly to the actuary’s remuneration.
In many cases the advice given to a client by an actuary will impact on other stakeholders. The actuary needs to consider the interests of all stakeholders, and not only those who seek (and pay for) advice.
It is important to consider all stakeholders because omitting a stakeholder will distort the context, eg one stakeholder’s risk can be a source of another stakeholder’s gain.
It is also necessary to retain a sense of proportion in considering who else may be affected by advice given.

Question 4

4. Where an actuary is advising the board of directors of an insurance company, which is planning a large expansion in business, who else may that advice have an impact on?

Answer 4

• the level of benefits that the company’s policyholders receive
• the level of premium charged to the company’s new and existing policyholders
• the level of dividend that the shareholders of the insurance company receive
• the volume of new business the company can write
• the level of taxes that the government receives on the profits earned by the company
• other insurance companies that are competing in the same market
• reinsurance companies through the level of reinsurance business that the company requires
• the employees of the insurance company through the employment benefits they receive
• job security for the employees of the insurance company
• the work of the regulatory authorities that monitor the insurance company
• other insurance companies who may be required by legislation to contribute to a compensation scheme that pays benefits to the policyholders of insurance companies that fail
• employed sales staff and independent intermediaries.

Question 5

5.1 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: policyholders and prospective policyholders.

Answer 5

• personal protection against death and illness
• protection of property
• investment

Question 6

5.2 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: members of the benefit schemes and their dependants.

Answer 6

the provision of benefits on future events such as death, retirement, illness and withdrawal.

Question 7

5.3 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: employers.

Answer 7

• protection against financial loss arising from the death or il l-health of employees
• protection of assets
• provision of work-related benefits that will attract and retain good quality staff
• meeting legislative requirements
• managing the costs of running the business
• quantification of the amount of surplus capital in the business
• investment of surplus capita l.

Question 8

5.4 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: insurance company - board of directors.

Answer 8

• meeting legislative requirements for the management of the business
• investing and managing the assets of the company
• managing the liabilities of the company
• determining the levels of provisions to hold to meet future liabilities
• setting premium rates
• meeting policyholders’reasonable expectations
• good corporate governance
• obtaining appropriate and adequate reinsurance to protect the business.

Question 9

5.5 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: insurance company - shareholders.

Answer 9

obtain a good return on their investment that appropriately reflects the level of risk that has been taken.

Question 10

5.6 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: insurance company - creditors.

Answer 10

the certainty that the monies owed to them will be paid.

Question 11

5.7 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: trustees of benefit schemes.

Answer 11

• managing the assets of the scheme
• paying the benefits promised under the scheme as they fall due
• maintaining solvency.

Question 12

5.8 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: sponsors of benefits schemes.

Answer 12

• providing protection benefits that meet the needs of the members and their dependants
• providing retirement benefits that meet the needs of the members
• managing the cost of providing the benefits
• meeting legislative requirements.

Question 13

5.9 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: employees.

Answer 13

• provision of protection benefits on death or sickness
• provision of pension benefits on retirement
• investment of surplus personal funds.

Question 14

5.10 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: auditors of insurance companies (sponsors of benefits schemes).

Answer 14

advice on the assessment of provisions (future liabilities).

Question 15

5.11 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: investment fund managers.

Answer 15

advice on investment strategy, particularly taking into consideration the need to meet liabilities.

Question 16

5.12 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: members of investment schemes.

Answer 16

how to invest in order to meet specific liabilities or objectives, such as saving for retirement.

Question 17

5.13 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: sponsors of capital projects.

Answer 17

• assessment of the risks underlying the project
• consideration of potential risk mitigation techniques
• evaluation of the future cashflows.

Question 18

5.14 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: banks.

Answer 18

• the provision of investment and savings products and the use or investment of surplus funds.
• monetary strategy.

Question 19

5.15 Outline the interests on which actuaries may provide advice for the following stakeholders: government

Answer 19

• setting legislation that impacts on the provision of financial products, schemes, contracts and transactions that provide
benefits on future financial events
• monitoring the adherence to this legislation
• funding benefit provision by the State
• monitoring the funding of benefit provision by the State

Question 20

6. Explain why and how certain factual information about the client should be sought in order to give advice.

Answer 20

Such advice will often set out alternative solutions and the implications of each solution. These solutions must always be relevant to the particular circumstances of the client.
In many cases the client will give a brief to, or agree terms of reference with, an actuary without specifying the client’s particular position. This is normally not because the client is trying to hide information, but because the client is so knowledgeable about their own position that they inadvertently thinks everyone else is well informed.
It is important that before starting analysis of the problem, the actuary is fully briefed about the client. There will be a significant amount of information in the public domain, for example information in any company accounts or similar publications. Many clients also have web sites that contain important information. Before starting on the specific task, the actuary should research and assimilate such information. This exercise might then require a follow-up pre-project meeting with the client to ensure that their position has been fully understood.

Question 21

7. In giving advice, what should the actuary be aware of and what should he try to avoid happening?

Answer 21

At all times the actuary should be aware of any conflict of interest. An example of when a conflict of interest could arise is when an actuary is advising both the trustees and the sponsor of a benefit scheme. The primary concern of the trustees will be the security of members’ benefits whereas the employer will also be concerned about costs.

Question 22

8. Explain why subjective attitudes of clients - especially towards risk - are relevant to an actuary giving advice.

Answer 22

As well as the factual information referred to in the previous section, there is a wealth of subjective information that the actuary needs to assimilate before giving advice. As with the information discussed in the previous section, if the actuary is not aware of information regarding the client’s background, ethical position and culture, there is a risk that the advice given will be inappropriate.
Corporate bodies have a risk appetite, which is essentially driven by the risk appetite of their stakeholders, particularly their owners.
Corporate bodies frequently describe their risk appetite openly in the annual accounts or other published statements.
It is also important for the actuary to be aware of the general style and culture of the client. This is often best achieved by an initial meeting at the client’s premises, or the opportunity for a more general discussion with the client in a less formal session than a business meeting.
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Question 23

9. Describe the three types of advice that can be given by an actuary.

Answer 23

• indicative advice - giving an opinion without fully investigating the issues - for example in response to a direct oral question
• factual advice - based on research of facts, eg legislation
• recommendations - researched and modelled forecasts, alternatives weighted, recommendations made consistent with requirements, work normally peer-reviewed.

Question 24

10. Who else may need to be involved in providing the advice?

Answer 24

There will also be occasions when other professionals need to be involved in providing the advice, such as accountants or lawyers.

Question 25

11. Explain what the actuary should communicate to the client in relation to the assumptions made.

Answer 25

The actuary will have made specific assumptions in reaching the advice and recommendations that are given. The assumptions must also be relevant to the particular circumstances of the client. Part of the process of advising the client will be to explain to the client the reasons for making those specific assumptions. The actuary should also explain the implications of making alternative assumptions and of any alternative solutions that may have been considered but eventually not recommended on both the client and other stakeholders who may be affected.

Question 26

12. Give an example of a situation where a life insurance company actuary will be giving advice as opposed to making decision.

Answer 26

An example of where an actuary would only be giving advice would be in the recommendation of bonus rates on with-profit policies to the Board of Directors, of an insurance company in the UK, who will make the final decision on the level of bonuses to be declared. However, the actuary may have made some implicit decisions in formulating the advice, for example the grouping of policyholders for the purpose of bonus allocation. These implicit decisions should be disclosed as part of the process of giving advice.

Question 27

13. Give examples of situations where a life insurance company actuary will be making a decision as opposed to just giving advice.

Answer 27

Sometimes the actuary may be responsible for making a business decision. An example of where an actuary may actually make the decision is in the determination of surrender values, under life insurance policies, where the policy wording permits.
Sometimes, an actuary may also have an executive role within an organisation and may be making decisions on matters such as provisioning, reinsurance programmes, asset allocation. In such situations there is a danger that the actuary will take decisions based on their own conclusions and the actuary should seek further advice or peer review of the decision made.
It is vital that the rationale behind any decisions taken is properly documented, including documentation of alternatives that have been considered.

Question 28

14. Where are the IFOA’s requirements in relation to professional conduct set out?

Answer 28

In the Actuaries’Code.

Question 29

15. Describe why reading the Actuaries’ Code is important for actuarial work.

Answer 29

Professionalism is essential in setting the scene for the context in which the actuary will operate. The basic principles of professionalism will determine the suitability of solutions to the problems raised. The Actuaries’ Code is therefore essential background to the consideration of the solution to any actuarial problem.

Question 30

16. Who is responsible for setting the ethical and professional best practice standards and what are they collectively referred as?

Answer 30

Ethical and professional best practice and standards are the responsibility of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, and apply to all members of the profession, regardless of the territory or area of work in which they operate. These are referred to as Institute and Faculty of Actuaries Standards.

Question 31

17. In the UK, who is responsible for the TASs?

Answer 31

In the UK, technical actuarial standards (TASs) are the responsibility of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC).

Question 32

18. What is the aim of the TASs?

Answer 32

The aim of the TASs is to ensure that ‘users for whom actuarial information is created should be able to place a high degree of reliance on that information’s relevance, transparency of assumptions, completeness and comprehensibility, including the communication of any uncertainty inherent in the information’ (the Reliability Objective).

Question 33

19. What are the TASs comprised of?

Answer 33

• TAS 100: Principles for Technical Actuarial Work. This is a short statement of high level principles covering judgement, data, assumptions, models, communications, and documentation
• Specific TASS.
• There are currently three of these Specific TASs, covering practice areas:
-TAS 200: Insurance
-TAS 300: Pensions
-TAS 400: Funeral plan trusts.

Question 34

20. Describe how TASs apply to UK and non-UK operations.

Answer 34

The TASs are developed in the context of UK legislation and regulations. They apply to work done in relation to the UK operations of entities and any non-UK operations which report in to the UK.
However, for TAS 100 wider adoption is encouraged by the FRC.

Question 35

21. To what extent can work depart from the requirements of a TAS?

Answer 35

Work may depart from the requirements of a TAS if the departure is considered not to be material. In this context, something is material if, at the time the work is performed, the effect of the departure (or the combined effect if there is more than one departure) could influence the decisions to be taken by the users of the resulting actuarial information.
Most major actuarial organisations around the world have their own frameworks of professional standards of practice and codes of professional conduct. Whilst there are some differences, there is a considerable amount of consistency in the approach taken to standardsetting by many of the major actuarial organisations around the world.

Question 36

22. What is the reason for consistency in the approach taken to standard-setting by many of the major actuarial organisations around the world?

Answer 36

One reason for this consistency in approach is the influence of the International Actuarial Association (IAA). The IAA is a worldwide association of professional actuarial bodies. Its aim is to represent the actuarial profession and promote its role, reputation and recognition in the international domain.

Question 37

23. Who has developed the Actuarial Qualify Framework and what is it designed to do?

Answer 37

The FRC has developed an Actuarial Quality Framework which is designed to support effective communication between actuaries and other stakeholders in actuarial work.
These stakeholders include the clients and employers of actuaries, senior management and members of governing and review bodies, other professionals such as lawyers and accountants, end-users and their representatives, policymakers, and regulators.
The Framework is intended to be complementary to professional and other regulation affecting actuaries and those who rely on their work.

Question 38

24. What does the Actuarial Quality Framework aim to promote?

Answer 38

It aims to promote the following drivers of actuarial quality:
• methods: reliability and usefulness of actuarial methods
• communication: communication of actuarial information and advice
• actuaries: technical skills of actuaries and ethics and professionalism of actuaries
• environment: working environment for actuaries and other factors outside the control of actuaries.