Michael McCarthy

My FSP number: 308886

Address: 9 Hopetoun Street, Freemans Bay, Auckland 1011

Phone: 09 218 3878 / 021 364848

Email: mike@theinsuranceadviser.co.nz

I am a financial adviser and provide advice on behalf of Virtual Communications Limited trading as The Insurance Adviser, FSP1006610, who are licensed as a Financial Advice Provider by the Financial Markets Authority.

Both Virtual Communications Limited and I are registered on the Financial Service Providers Registry, which can be viewed at fsp-register.companiesoffice.govt.nz.

Our mission is to empower Kiwis to secure their financial future by providing advice to educate and inform, so you can make the best decision.

I have been working as an Insurance Adviser since 2013. During this time, I have completed the New Zealand Certificate in Financial Services (Level 5) (Investment) to meet the legal requirements for giving financial insurance advice (and KiwiSaver investment advice only) in New Zealand.

I am also highly involved in the community as a volunteer at the Takapuna Cricket Club, where I was awarded NZ Cricket's Volunteer of the Year in 2017.

The conditions of my licence allow me to provide the following financial advice services:

• Personal Risk — Life, Income, Disability & Health Insurances
• KiwiSaver Investments only

For Personal Risk, I provide personalised advice based on your individual circumstances to determine the products that best meet your personal goals and needs, limited to the providers we have chosen to work with. I follow a documented advice process that uses your personal situation to determine what is important to you, what products you need and how much cover you should have in place, then recommend the provider that offers the cover suited to your stated preferences.

• AIA NZ
• Asteron Life NZ
• Chubb Insurance NZ
• Partners Life
• Fidelity Life NZ
• NIB NZ
• Southern Cross Health
• UniMed (Accuro)

How am I paid?To ensure that advice remains accessible, I do not charge an upfront fee for providing personal risk insurance advice or for implementing advice if you decide to proceed. In place of an upfront fee, I (Virtual Communications Ltd / The Insurance Adviser) am paid a commission by the recommended insurance provider from the premium they charge you for your cover. This commission will range from 140% to 220% of the first year's premium, depending on which insurance company you take out cover with. I will then receive a servicing commission of 7% of the annual premium for the life of the policy.

I also provide personalised advice on KiwiSaver, limited to the providers we have chosen to work with. As part of my service, we will discuss your risk profile and I will recommend a KiwiSaver fund that matches your investment timeframe and tolerance for risk.

Providers I work with: Generate Investment Management, Milford Asset Management, Pathfinder Asset Management, Booster.

How am I paid? I receive commission from KiwiSaver scheme providers if you choose one based on my recommendation. I will receive an ongoing commission of 0.2% – 0.25% of your account balance for as long as I help you manage your KiwiSaver scheme. This can be additional to fees charged by the fund manager, or for some schemes the fund manager pays adviser fees to me from the fund management fees they receive.

Managed funds & retirement planning: I do not offer investment planning or retirement planning services. For managed funds, I can refer you to service providers and will receive an ongoing commission of 0.2% – 0.25% of your account balance, paid from the revenue they receive from your fees.

General insurance: I do not provide advice on general insurance; however, I can refer you to a general/commercial insurance broker, for which I may receive a referral fee. Referral commissions range from 3.75% to 6.25% of each premium, depending on which insurance products you put in force, after taxes and levies.

The services I/we offer are provided free of charge because Virtual Communications Ltd / The Insurance Adviser is paid by the providers when one of their products is taken up on the back of my/our recommendation. To ensure that we always put your interests first:

• We follow a proven 6-step advice process that puts the client's needs at the heart of the advice.
• We identify and disclose the maximum level of commission I may receive on the back of our recommendation.
• If our recommendation involves replacing cover, we provide a comparison of covers and explain what the recommended provider offers that your existing cover does not, and anything your existing provider covers that the recommended provider will not.
• All recommendations are provided in writing with an explanation of how they are based on your individual needs.
• The Insurance Adviser completes internal and external reviews of my advice process to ensure client interests come first.

Under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013, Virtual Communications Ltd and I have duties to:

• Meet the standards of competence, knowledge and skill set out in the Code of Professional Conduct for Financial Advice Services.
• Give priority to your interests by taking all reasonable steps to ensure advice is not materially influenced by our own interests or those of any other person.
• Exercise the care, diligence and skill that a prudent adviser would in the same circumstances.
• Meet the standards of ethical behaviour, conduct and client care set out in the Code of Conduct.

We value your feedback and the opportunity to put things right if you are unhappy with any aspect of our service. If you would like to raise concerns, we have an internal complaints process:

• We request your complaint in writing.
• We acknowledge receipt within 2 working days.
• We investigate by speaking with all involved parties and reviewing the documentation we hold.
• We provide a formal written response within 28 days of acknowledging your concerns.

To provide feedback or make a complaint, please email mike@theinsuranceadviser.co.nz.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of our internal complaints process, you can escalate it to our independent dispute resolution scheme, free of charge:

Financial Dispute Resolution Service (FDRS)
Level 4, 142 Lambton Quay, Wellington 6011
Phone: 0508 337 337
Web: fdrs.org.nz