CII: design with age in mind

The Chartered Insurance Institute produced another in its series of Thinkpieces calling for financial products to be aimed specifically at older people, claiming they represent 45% of the adult population.

The financial services industry should follow the examples of manufacturers such as Fiat, OXO and London Taxis, who have all come up with products that can be used easily by older people as well as the mainstream market, argues the CII, based on a report by Age Concern.

Inclusive Design: the challenge of an ageing population looks at how financial products can be made to cater to the needs of older people living with problems such as reduced cognitive ability or dependence on others for carrying out financial tasks. Rather than creating specialist niche financial services for such groups, the paper argues, the industry could look for ways to make general products more easily useable by those with age-related problems.

The paper recommends five broad principles for inclusive design:

• Adaptability: the product development process should consider the needs of customers over the lifetime of the product/relationship.
• Accessibility: products and services are available through channels which can be accessed by as many people as possible.
• Fairness: treating all customers fairly, irrespective of age, income or ability.
• Useable information: information is designed to be capable of being understood by customers with a range of abilities.
• Minimising hazards: the safety of the customer and their money is built into the design of the products, systems and facilities.

Manufacturers such as Fiat have found that by ensuring that product design accommodates the needs of people with particular difficulties - with problems, for example, in getting in and out of a car or reading a display - they can extend their market to previously excluded groups, or those with temporary difficulties such as illness. The new London Taxi was designed for accessibility and the houseware company OXO grew its business by more than 30% year on year through its Good Grips range of inclusively designed products.

CII Thinkpiece author, Jane Vass of Age Concern, said: "Over 50s already account for 45% of the adult population and, with more than four fifths of life company investment bonds and the majority of all ISAs in their hands, the industry could benefit by drawing this large market into the fold of its ‘regular' products.