5 minutes with…Tim Dunn
What makes Carpenter Box Financial Advisers (CBFA) stand out from the rest is our people and their commitment to having great relationships with their clients, and with their colleagues.
In our ‘Five minutes with…’ series we meet some of the great team at Carpenter Box Financial Advisers. We posed various sets of questions to people across our firm to provide a glimpse into their lives and perspectives.
It’s the turn now of the newest member of our team; Protection Adviser, Tim Dunn!
Tell us about yourself
I’m Tim Dunn, I recently joined Carpenter Box Financial Advisers as a Protection Advisor. I came to Worthing at 14 years old having lived in various parts of England, moving around with my fathers’ job. My brother and sister moved away from Worthing as they grew up, but I stayed and settled here, got married to Hannah and together we brought up two fantastic boys who are now making their way in the world. Worthing is certainly my hometown. I’m proud to live in Worthing and love living by the sea. This part of the South coast is the best in my eyes.
For most of my career, I’ve worked for large corporates. I started out at 18 as a trainee underwriter for Cornhill Insurance in Brighton. I then spent 17 years with Lloyds Bank and Lloyds TSB Insurance, 2 years with Barclays Insurance, and then to AXA PPP healthcare and SunLife Insurance for the next 14 years. I’ve performed many different roles, all in sales environments; from training, account management, team leadership and product and business development. In the last 4 years I have specialised in Life and Health Insurance, working directly with personal and business clients to advise them on best ways to financially protect their most treasured possessions; themselves, their businesses and their loved ones!
Outside of work, what keeps you busy?
I’m sport mad to be honest! I like most sports, particularly cricket, golf and football. I used to play cricket and was 1st XI Captain of Worthing for 7 years in the 1990s. I also played a bit of football and represented Worthing for a season in 1992/3. Now I coach cricket for Worthing CC, supporting my eldest son who is the 1st XI captain. I also try to play golf to a reasonable level. My handicap is currently 7 so I am constantly trying to improve that, but as anyone who plays golf knows, it’s a hard game to really improve without a lot of time investment, so this is probably as good as it’s going to get!
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing the financial industry?
For me I’d say regulation. Businesses are spending much more time and money to make sure their systems and processes are in place to keep up with ever-changing compliance regulations. One of these is undoubtedly around data protection where breaches are heavily punished, and with many institutions using old legacy IT systems this is an area of concern. Also, with everyone trying to over exceed customer expectations sometimes regulation can become compromised.
What is the best professional advice anyone has given you?
Not to ‘over promise and under deliver’. I learnt this very early in my career and particularly in sales, where the pressure to deliver is high, and sometimes there is a temptation to say what the customer wants to hear. Always be honest. If it can’t be done by a certain time or the cost is higher than expected, front up and deliver the news. The client will respect you far more for that in the long run and it will lead to a better relationship.
What are your ambitions whilst working at Carpenter Box Financial Advisers?
To try to push the Protection agenda. A 2020 FCA survey revealed there is still a significant protection ‘gap’ in the UK. With 53% of people surveyed not having any protection products in place and almost three quarters of parents having no life insurance to protect their families. However, knowing this, the subject of protection still falls low on many individuals and businesses priorities list. This is often because the need isn’t totally understood, the products perceived to be confusing and costly or the process complicated. I’d like to try to really help to improve this and work closely with the Advisers team to help get more clients financially protected.
Find out more about ways in which we can help you by getting in touch with our team on 01903 534587.
