Use this article to generate recommended cover amounts for your client, edit them as the adviser, and record client variations, all on the Recommended Cover page of an Insurance Advice Opportunity. You'll want the client's fact find, needs analysis, and existing cover recorded before you start.
What is the Recommended Cover table and how is it calculated?
The table on the Recommended Cover page displays the cover areas selected on the Nature & Scope page (such as Life, TPD, or Trauma) for your client and their dependants, detailed further in the Needs Analysis sections.
When you first arrive on the page, select "Calculate Cover from my Settings" to load it. The table flows through to your generated SOA document.
Trail calculates the cover amounts from the fact find information, the selections in the Needs Analysis, the client's Existing Cover, and your Cover Level Settings.
Important note
This is purely an estimate, based on client data entered into Trail, of a recommended cover amount for your client. It is not a replacement for your considerations as an insurance adviser on how much your client realistically needs based on their situation. Editing the recommendations is covered below.
What if I want to input my own recommendations?
If you select "Input my own recommendations" instead, the cover level pages in your SOA will have blank tables and sections for you to manually enter your own calculated cover amounts, and you can skip straight to compiling your Statement of Advice.
How does dependant cover appear?
To view the recommended dependant cover table, click the Dependant tab. It works the same way as it does for the adults involved. For how dependant cover runs through the whole advice process, see Dependant Cover in Trail.
How are premiums estimated?
Trail estimates the client's total premium cost based on the insurer chosen in your Cover Level General Settings. The estimates adjust as you edit the recommended cover amounts, and you can click any Estimated Premium figure to overwrite it.
How do I edit the recommended cover?
Click any figure in the table, or Refine Cover above it, to open the editing view, where you can change the cover Trail has calculated.
Finding your way around the editing view:
Navigate between cover types at the top.
Under Trauma or Health, you can switch to the Dependant view if dependants are part of your advice.
Toggle the switch to move into client variations mode, which asks for your reasoning on any changes you make.
You can edit the description within each cover item to help explain what the section means to your client, and overwrite Trail's estimated amounts with what you would recommend.
If your client doesn't want a certain cover type, deselect it in the summary at the bottom of that cover tab to exclude it, and enter a reason for the exclusion. The reason appears in the client's Statement of Advice. Exclusions work the same way on the dependant tab.
How do I record variations with my client?
Most clients will want to vary the recommended cover. Rather than writing up variations after the meeting and coming back a second time, you can vary the cover with your client on the spot:
1. Click the green Enter Portal button at the top of the page.
2. The Cover Level Portal opens with a summary of the client's recommended cover.
3. Click any number the client wants changed and overwrite it. Cells that differ from the original turn orange. Repeat for each recommended cover type.
4. Note the reason for any variation when prompted.
5. Use the notes section at the bottom of each cover page to record anything your client says along the way.
6. Once all the cover levels suit the client's needs, go back to the application editor and you'll see the updated recommended cover.
What next?
With the recommended cover settled, start working on your SOA document.
Questions about recommended cover in Trail?
Get in touch at support@gettrail.com, or use the chat button in the bottom right of the screen.