During the year, a fresh publicity campaign was launched in the press focusing on certain positive aspects for our customers, and we have had very good feedback on this campaign. In addition, and most importantly, the Code of Conduct that we have been operating under for many years has now been completely rewritten and we now have a very comprehensive code as a result of a great deal of work by management and members of the Code of Conduct Task Committee. As I have said, the new code is a very comprehensive document that goes way beyond the earlier codes that members have lived by, and I believe that this is an important step forward for SAIA. There is no doubt that the new SAIA Code of Conduct is the mechanism through which self-regulation can now be effectively implemented by our members. I must stress that all of our members participated willingly and vigorously in the debate to finalise the code and to find the right balance between a code that seeks to take the relationship between insurers and their policy holders to new levels and is at the same time a practical one that our members can operate by. It is important to note that the code sets standards for ethical business and policy-holder relationships through voluntary self-regulation that will help to ensure that the spirit of the code is followed.

This code is also a living document that will be reviewed on a regular basis to see whether it can be improved from time to time. Since the code is essentially a document that our members all contributed towards and ultimately signed off on, it is a code that belongs to all our members, and it is already in place. I must congratulate Viviene Pearson and her team for managing this process in an extremely able and conscientious way and for having completed the task within a time-line that I did not think was possible.

The core role of SAIA is to promote the interests of its members. In order to do so, SAIA needs to ensure that its members’ operating environment is optimal. A good environment is one that is conducive to good business, which includes the ability to successfully serve the current market as well as to expand the existing market. Many factors contribute to a good operating environment, including a positive image and reputation as perceived by all relevant role players. Yet it is not uncomplicated to address the image and reputation of the industry. The industry consists of many different role players. The actions of one, or a few of them, have an impact on the image and reputation of the whole industry.

It is against this background that SAIA, together with the SAIA Board Committee: Image & Reputation, embarked on the important quest to identify, consider, debate and confirm the elements of a new image and reputation strategy for the industry as well as for the entity entrusted with this task, the SAIA.

The SAIA Image and Reputation Strategy was approved by the SAIA Board at its meeting on 4 August 2009. The elements identified include:

• An intensified self-regulatory emphasis by the industry and for the industry, including a new Code of Conduct
• The continuation of meaningful industry initiatives such as consumer financial literacy, crime-combating initiatives, road safety initiatives, and many more
• Continued participation in relevant activities of important role players
• An information-sharing exercise regarding trends experienced by members
• A targeted publicity drive creating awareness about industry activities as well as consumer education initiatives
• A new emphasis on creating a credible identity for SAIA as the entity tasked with the responsibility of implementing an image and reputation campaign for the industry

The elements of this strategy are currently being implemented by the SAIA, and are in various stages of implementation.