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CV: Andrea Rozario was appointed director general of Ship in October 2007 and began her role in December. Ms Rozario heads Ship's management board, managing the execution of decisions from the main Ship board. She has worked in financial services for 15 years and in July 2004, she set up Rozario Harris and Co Ltd, an independent, whole of market IFA specialising in the equity release market, which she ran until her appointment as director general.

MA: You have been director general of Ship for nearly five months now. How do you believe you have made an impact on the organisation?

AR: Before I joined, Ship was ready to take up the task of recognising itself as the trade body of equity release and commitment from the members was recognised by the fact they all agreed to having their fees increased. I would say the fact that we now have a management board and a director general in place it is not all simply down to me. We have put a business plan in place and we have got a 12 month activity plan including a website and logo revamp. Ship is also embarking on an educational process to ensure all the key stakeholders are aware of what differences there are in the industry now compared with 10 years ago. We are also making sure everyone understands the safeguards in place and appreciates how regulated equity release works and what differentiates Ship members from the rest of the industry. We are also looking at building relationships with other trade organisations and places such as Citizen's Advice, Age Concern and Help the Aged. Everything is pulling together really nicely. Ship is also looking at recruiting one to two more members of staff.

MA: What will the website and logo revamp entail?

AR: What we want for the website was for Ship as a whole to be seen as the place to go for information on equity release. We want advisers, customers, the legal industry and the government to feel they can come to us if they need information on equity release and that they can rely on the information we generate on our website. The website will have a new look and there will be a lot more content. There will be a lot more detailed information that people can have access to, which will enable them to make better informed decisions and it will help them to understand how the industry has moved forward, what changes have taken place, what the differences are between Ship members and other providers, the differences between regulated equity release and the sale and leaseback sector and how equity release works today and how it worked in the past. It is going to be an ongoing project because there is an awful lot that needs to be done but I would hope that by the end of the year we would certainly have the new look and content built up.

MA: What have you achieved so far in lobbying the government?

AR: It is early days. But having said that we are building relationships with MPs. We have had several key meetings and I guess the results are going to take a little time to be seen because you are not going to create miracles overnight. What you need to do is establish those relationships and get them to understand Ship is the trade organisation they need to come to for information. But we also need to demystify equity release. We need to ensure the government is aware of exactly how the market works and what gaps it can plug, especially when you think of care homes or making additions to your property. We now have a generation coming up that will be living longer. There is going to be a lot more people needing care in their own homes. The need for equity release is increasing and even though we are in an unstable economic climate it does not affect the fact equity release is needs driven.

MA: A recent report by the Council of Mortgage Lenders said equity release was not increasing as quickly as the market expected due to adviser fears over mis-selling. How do you respond to reports such as this?

AR: On the one hand it is frustrating to think people still have misconceptions about equity release. But on the other it shows us the misconceptions are there and it is partly Ship's role to get rid of those misconceptions, which is why we are taking the routes that we are taking in trying to educate consumers, advisers, the legal industry and government. This is going to be a large part of what Ship will be about. While the report did not tell us anything we did not know when you are embroiled in the industry and you are aware of what has happened it can be frustrating when everyone else knows that as well. It is our job to get the message out there.

MA: How long do you believe it will take to repair the reputation of equity release?

AR: The tide is turning already. We have seen an increase in applications from advisers. It was something like 25 per cent up last quarter and we are getting more interest from intermediaries and companies that are looking to enter the sector. If anything I think this is a very good time for the equity release industry because advisers are looking for other avenues of revenue. The need from the industry for equity release is increasing. Obviously the economic climate is without a doubt having an effect on the whole of the industry, which of course includes equity release, but we could actually come out of this really well because we would have been able to attract more advisers into the market. Providers may be looking at other avenues of revenue as well.

MA: Do you believe more providers will be looking to enter the market this year?

AR: Definitely. We will see more providers enter the market and if we can attract larger players then it would definitely be beneficial.

MA: Key Retirement Solution's equity release market monitor showed the take up of income drawdown schemes has grown by 29 per cent. Is this the way forward for equity release products?

AR: The flexibility of drawdown appeals to a lot of customers. It seems to be an ideal solution for people that are wanting to dip into their equity without having to take out unnecessarily large lump sums. It is filling a growing need and it will continue to grow. As for the market, obviously we are going to be impacted as the rest of the industry is with the credit crunch but if we can ride the storm we could potentially come out of it very well.

MA: What do you think of the Personal Finance Society's equity release guidelines, which were launched in May?

AR: Any initiatives that help to educate the adviser and remove obstacles to them entering the market will be of benefit. So obviously we would welcome anything the PFS can do to stimulate advisers entering the equity release market. The more help there is out there and the more easily accessible help for advisers the better.

MA: Did the 6 April deadline for advisers to get their home reversion qualifications in place go as planned?

AR: On the whole it was reasonably well publicised. All in all it went quite smoothly and a lot of work was done to develop and promote the qualification. Equity release is not complicated but there is an element of research required and you have to be able to match the consumer's needs to a product. Before you even get to that stage you have to make sure equity release is the correct option so there are other options that need to be discussed and the adviser needs to know the differences between lifetime mortgages and home reversion and then they need to find the correct product within either lifetime or home reversion.

MA: Do you believe the deadline has had an effect on the number of advisers recommending equity release products?

AR: If anything I would expect the number would increase as advisers begin to look for other avenues of revenue but on top of that they are beginning to understand equity release is not only here to st ay but its profile will increase. More understanding will help to build confidence among the advisers so I think there will be a continued increase.

MA: What are the main challenges for Ship?

AR: The main challenges are getting the message across and turning around opinion, dealing with negative publicity and the impact of the current economic climate on some of our members. The challenge is also being able to achieve everything that we want to and have set out to achieve within the first 12 months and hitting the targets that I particularly want.