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As an insider to the debate, it has been fascinating for Tim Hardcastle, CEO of the British insurtech INSTANDA to see the role and contribution of insurtech in the evolution of the insurance industry. He’s proud that INSTANDA can count itself among the early waves of companies championing the idea that there are different ways to think about technology and how it can be used to enable, streamline and modernise core insurance processes.

“Ultimately, this is about creating a better proposition and a better experience for customers,” he said. “And I think people in the industry knew that what they had, several years ago, was not as good as they should be, and they were frustrated. There was a lot of hype and expectation around the beginnings of insurtech [about] five years ago. You also saw the venture capital companies coming in and realising there were some good ideas and backing them up with funding.

“So, there was a lot of hype and expectation and sadly not all of the promises have been met from the insurtech contribution. But overriding that I think the most substantive thing and the most exciting thing to be talking about is the fact that a small but significant number of companies have grown through that period, have gained traction with many clients and organisations within insurance, and have made significant contributions to the progression of insurance.”

Insurance does what it does well, Hardcastle said, and insurtech has helped it do what it does much better. And with the dust settling from the hope, hype and excitement after the splash insurtech made when it entered the market, the market has seen some amazing success stories emerge over the last five years.

He noted that while there are still some great new companies coming forward, you can point to 10-20 companies globally that are doing a lot of really interesting things and are working with some major clients and partners to the benefit of the wider ecosystem.

These firms are delivering real value and have raised capital, he said, which is always a good indicator of market confidence in the proposition. INSTANDA itself recently announced the close of its latest $45 million fundraising – led by the growth equity investment firm Toscafund, with the participation of existing investor Dale Ventures.

“You can argue that the funding providers are a kind of lighthouse seeing out into the future and believing whether or not a company has the ability to ultimately make money for them,” he said. “And so [that where] you see companies like ours, that have raised significant amounts of equity and capital coming in… And [generally speaking], looking over the five years, there’s a lot to be really pleased about.

“Sadly, not every company has made it but, really positively, there is a significant number that have made it and have really got a lot more to offer. And that’s where I feel we are. We’ve got to a significant milestone with the recent fundraising, and we’ve got so much more to do. It’s now just about trying to find the hours in the day.”

Listen now: For crying out cloud: INSTANDA offers a practical guide for insurers on cloud computing

Looking across the market at the makeup of the firms that have succeeded over the last five years, Hardcastle highlighted that there are some “systemic success factors” that these firms share. These are the attributes required to transition a great idea into something that matches market demand and is scalable, he said – and one such factor that is especially relevant to the market right now is the question of performance.

It stands to reason that a successful insurtech must be able to have an impact on an insurance company’s performance, he said, whether that’s to do with the customer, cost-saving, data analytics or new insights. But this systemic risk factor also offers a keen insight into why it’s so difficult for insurtechs to make the move from ideas to scalable offerings.

Large insurance companies are looking for solutions that will impact their core business, he said, and the pressing challenge, especially for new entrants, is the characteristics that define the technology companies that these goliaths are comfortable partnering with for these solutions.

“One of those metrics is – are you financially stable?” he said. “So, you’re in this wonderful chicken and egg situation. Because to be financially stable, we actually have to grow and have some quite significant revenue, then we can get raise some money, and then we can have a balance sheet that looks amazing. Which is where [INSTANDA is] are right now.”

Hardcastle noted that the difficulty that arises for new firms looking to offer something like the end-to-end digital core platform that INSTANDA offers is that people do not want to use such platforms unless they know that the company is going to be around for a while and is financially secure.

It’s almost a contradiction in terms for these firms, he said. They’re being asked to have a significant impact on core operations but are not being given the opportunity to be used in a meaningful way before they have proved the full benefit of their proposition. Therein lies the challenge, and it’s the reason that a lot of companies with brilliant ideas haven’t made it – they simply haven’t been able to build the momentum necessary to get the funding required to make themselves appear a safe bet.

“You could argue that’s just a natural selection process and the way that business works,” he said. “But personally, I am of the view that there are ideas out there that have been really good and could have made a significant impact, but the industry hasn’t found a way to support them sufficiently well to get them to the place where they then would be financially secure. It’s just been left to the craft and the ability of the insurtech management teams to navigate that juxtaposition.

“We’re quite fortunate that we’re seasoned insurance veterans and so have been able to navigate that, probably better than most. But I do feel for some younger entrepreneurs who may haven’t got that industry experience and quite as many scars on their back, which means they might struggle in getting that transition from idea to scale. So, that’s one of the big systemic success factors, but in and of itself, it’s a fundamental challenge.”

Hardcastle highlighted that there is an inconsistency in expecting firms to deliver innovation while measuring their success against such traditional metrics. The industry needs to find a better way to engage and support smaller companies with great ideas, he said, for the benefit of themselves if nothing else.

“There are exceptions and companies that are quite progressive,” he said. “But at an industry level, I think it could do more and it wouldn’t cost it very much. And it would be so much more beneficial for the industry to nurture and develop these great ideas. So, we’re fortunate that we’re in a great position but I’m not being parochial or myopic here, I’m looking at the broader industry issues – and I think [the insurance industry] could do more.”

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The search for the UK’s 2023 Elite Women in insurance is still in progress. The special report, proudly supported by iCAN, Managing General Agents’ Association (MGAA), British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA), DWF Law LLP, The Insurance Institute of Sussex and Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), gathers the industry’s outstanding women leaders who have achieved remarkable success in their careers.

Readers are invited to submit a nomination for a deserving colleague. Nominations are open to all women in the UK insurance industry from diverse backgrounds.

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The London Market Group (LMG) has revealed that Sean McGovern (pictured), chief executive officer, UK & Lloyd’s, AXA XL will take on the mantle of chair of the LMG from January 1, 2023.

Matthew Moore, executive vice president and president of underwriting at Liberty Mutual Global Risk Solutions will step down at the end of his three-year tenure in December. He will remain a member of the LMG Board.

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Read more: CEO on seeing the insurance profession rally behind a great cause

Leading the way is the entrepreneurial spirit behind the whole idea, Alex Gibson – founder and chairman of Challenging MND, and EMEA senior capital modeller at AIG – who will ascend the steps of a 52-storey high building the 39 times that it takes to match Mount Everest’s 8,800 metres. Speaking with Insurance Business, Gibson discussed how the idea took root within his mind and what the initiative will mean.

“Despite my diagnosis with MND, I still have the aspirations to achieve many of my lifetime goals,” he said. “I have always been fascinated with climbing Everest. It has always been at the back of my mind and I’m sure I would have explored this venture at some point if MND had not taken its cruel and devastating blow. Since my diagnosis, I have deteriorated across many facets of my life.

“This is my one chance to see if I have the ability and attitude to basically physically challenge myself to scale the equivalent height of Everest within a safe environment. Because, funnily enough, Everest has a fatality rate of over 14%.”

Gibson who has worked at AIG for over 13 years now, continues to work full-time, while he can and paid warm tribute to the support and generosity of his employer. It is the support of his team of family and friends that will be instrumental in ensuring that he completes the challenge as his limited mobility due to the disease will mean an estimated challenge completion time of about 35-40 hours.

And it is tapping into the support and generosity of the wider insurance market that is driving the challenge – which aims to raise awareness and funds to support families living with MND. A target has been set to reach £10,000 through individual donations, and the team is also looking to encourage corporates to sponsor the challenge.

Discussing the upcoming project, Tarzem Shoker, an operations manager with the University of Lincoln who is supporting the campaign, highlighted that it has several objectives:

 1. To raise awareness of the charity Challenging MND and how it helps the MND community

2. To inspire people through Gibson’s spirit of never giving up despite adversity

3. To raise awareness of MND in general

4. To raise funds via individuals and corporates 

Shoker stated that while spaces for participants are limited, the team is hoping to recruit 10 additional people to the challenge as well – and to bring on new corporate sponsors. The idea behind the scale and scope of the ‘Mount Everest Challenge’ is to provide a window into the lives of those suffering from MND, he said, as every day is a challenge for those individuals. 

Commenting on the upcoming challenge, Liane Iles, CEO of Challenging MND – herself an insurance veteran – noted that there are very few individuals who are not living with MND who would be capable or eager to embark on the World Record breaking challenges that Gibson sets himself and so the message is clear, “if he can do it so can we.”

“Even if it’s not a challenge of this magnitude he is a real inspiration for all of us to live in the moment and make the most of every opportunity that comes our way, even when life is tough, as it is for the MND community,” she said. “It’s also about teamwork – supporting each other, lifting spirits and making those lifelong memories together.”

Andy Long, Gibson’s friend, wingman, Challenging MND patron – and a co-conspirator behind the ‘Everest’ event – highlighted that by taking on these incredible challenges, Gibson is showing that he is not letting his MND diagnosis define him and in doing so, is an inspiration to everyone. With regards to the challenge itself, he said, preparing for the day is a case of going into the unknown as it’s difficult to train for something like this – except with the tried and true methods of a positive mindset and a can-do spirit.

Read more: Why charity and insurance make for a great combination

When raising awareness for the event across the insurance market, Iles noted that once numbers are discussed – 52 floors, 39 times, an ascent time of 20 minutes to an hour – people’s jaws tend to drop. There’s an incredulous expression that crosses some people’s faces at the mere thought, she said, while others who have been invited just “laugh nervously”. Amazingly, the team has almost filled its 10 available spaces on a first-come, first-served basis. 

“From those that are aware,” Shoker said, “this challenge has been viewed as momentous, the mental strength required to do this will be by far the biggest battle. The most inspiring part of this challenge is the fact Alex is determined to complete it, for us mere mortals it would be incredibly tough, let alone for some with mobility issues.”

As to how the climb will work on the day, Iles said it will start early Saturday morning – with staggered starts from 6 am. The challenge is expected to take 35 hours plus for Gibson, she said, and there will be a team of 10 on rotation supporting him throughout, as well as the additional 10 participants who are able-bodied and may summit within 15 hours. There are scheduled minimal breaks to replenish energy levels, water and snacks and an area to have physio when cramp sets in.

“This is a tough challenge,” Shoker said, “as well as needing good fitness levels, the biggest test will be mental, so ensure you’ve convinced yourself that you will do this regardless as to how you may feel physically.”

It’s an endurance event, not a sprint, Long added. And it’s all about completing and being on your feet at the end and getting over the ‘finish line’. To those considering taking part, his message is clear – why wouldn’t you?

Iles encouraged those debating the challenge to speak to Gibson as, “you’ll soon sign up!” The warmth, camaraderie and sense of achievement in joining the Challenging MND Team is something very special, she said, but so is the knowledge that you will be raising awareness and fundraising for the MND community who really need our support. And of course, you’ll receive a limited-edition Everest Challenging MND shirt.

Looking ahead to the challenge itself and sharing what preparing for December 10 is teaching him, Gibson emphasised that, despite adversity, it is amazing how resilient and capable the body actually is. It is going to be a real test to accomplish this challenge, he said, but one which he is keen and enthusiastic to do.

“Don’t let adversity hold you back,” he advised. “It is a classic example of unleashing the inner burning drive and desire to set the record straight. After all, we only are here for a short period of time and why not learn what you are capable of doing.”

Alex Gibson and his team will be undertaking the Challenging MND ‘Mount Everest Challenge’ on December 10, 2022 at The Leadenhall Building. To find out more, please follow Challenging MND on Instagram, LinkedIn or Facebook.

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Blocksure was found to have “unlawfully deducted” wages from the claimant between August 2019 and June 2022.

Also in October, Blocksure was ordered to pay £20,460 to an N Shah for having “unlawfully deducted wages” between 31 January and 6 April of this year, according to tribunal documents.

Danabek declined to comment, while Shah was not immediately available for comment.

On 1 August, the company was given 42 days to pay former employee Martynas Petuska  £13,984.03, with the tribunal having ruled that “unauthorised deductions” had been made from Petuska’s wages.

“My hearing was basically pretty straightforward,” Petuska said.

“They chose not to defend; I don’t see how they could – the only thing they did ask for was the extension of the grace period [to 42 days] to pay on the monies owed.”

Petuska, who left the company in April, told Insurance Business that he had yet to receive the full sum that was due to be paid before the end of September as per the tribunal’s August ruling and in line with the extension requested.

Petuska alleged that staff were told on multiple occasions that any owed wages would soon arrive under the understanding that a US-based investor would come on board, but he said that he gave up waiting in April and switched jobs.

Blocksure was founded in 2016 and has claimed to be an “insurance technology company with a difference”. Blocksure CEO Ranvir Saggu, a former Towergate finance director and Fosun Europe managing director, declined to comment when approached by Insurance Business.

The business launched its first Blocksure OS product with insurer Covea and broker Commercial and General in 2018.

This year, Blocksure’s microinsurance platform debuted in Indonesia, Saggu said on social media three months ago.

The company had net liabilities of £3.8 million in 2021, and capital and reserves of minus £3.8 million, according to Companies House filings.

Parent company Blocksure Holdings had net assets and capital and reserves of just over £1.4 million each for the same year, documents showed.

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Read more: SiriusPoint hit with losses, announces office closures

Spotlighting some key figures, he highlighted the impact of Hurricane Ian, for which SiriusPoint has reserved on the basis of a $60 billion market event – a figure on the more prudent end of market estimates. Here the impact of the ongoing strategic restructuring that SiriusPoint has done around its underwriting and exposure management becomes clear, he said, as seen from the performance of SiriusPoint relative to its peers.

“Hurricane Ian, for us, was about 3.5% impact on book value,” he said, “while I think the peer average is along the lines of about 6-6.5%. So relative to the market average, we’ve performed incredibly strongly. And in addition to that, we’ve taken a very strong approach to credit management with some of the insurers and reinsurers – particularly for Florida-based ones – so, we don’t have any credit exposure in that regard as well.

“While the hurricane has had a huge impact on our numbers, I think it’s been a really good evidence point of the hard work that we’ve undertaken.”

Amid the reporting of its year-to-date results, SiriusPoint announced several of the changes that will result from the restructuring of its underwriting platform – including the closure of three offices in Hamburg, Miami, and Singapore, and the reduction of its footprint in Liege and Toronto. Touching on this, Egan emphasised that these decisions were not taken lightly, and noted that the “number one priority” for him and his executive management team is to ensure that those affected by the decision are treated fairly and with respect.

Offering context to the decision, he noted that while the overall premium impacted is only about 10% of its global portfolio, the move will see SiriusPoint reducing its international property portfolio by about 75%. As a consequence of that, he said, the group will be doing international property reinsurance on a smaller scale – consolidating those operations down from five offices globally into its Stockholm office.

“Off the back of that decision-making, we’re also making what I think is a very sensible operational change that will see our international property reinsurance done from Stockholm, and will see our US business done from Bermuda,” he said. “So I think it will be a much easier hub-and-spoke model in terms of our operations.

“But to be clear, globally, we will continue to have appetite for property reinsurance… and we’ll continue to have appetite for cat XL through our Bermuda office. And we will still have an appetite through our international platform as well, much more focused on cat XL, but albeit on a much more limited scale.”

The “why” behind the decision is simply that the portfolio has not performed at the level SiriusPoint has wanted and needed it to for a period of time. This isn’t a decision that has been taken lightly, Egan said, and it’s something the group has decided only after significant deliberation over a period of time. Simply put, the time has come to take portfolio action instead of individual risk underwriting action.

Read more: SiriusPoint announces new CEO Scott Egan

Egan also highlighted that among the key figures announced by SiriusPoint for the year-to-date is the news that on an ex-cat basis, its combined ratio has improved 4% year-on-year – in evidence of the momentum that’s beginning to set in at SiriusPoint. It’s very much a work in progress, he said, but looking into 2023, even from the early-doors position that he’s viewing it from – he feels excited about that growing momentum and the step-changes in performance to be delivered going forward.

While it’s too soon to talk to specifics, he said, SiriusPoint will be building its strategy around several key priorities.

“Number one, we’re an underwriting business, and therefore, we need to focus on that and we need to improve our performance in that regard – across both our primary insurance businesses and reinsurance businesses,” he said. “The second thing is that we enjoy some very successful distribution ownership.

“And obviously, we’re looking to leverage our distribution footprint, especially when it complements our underwriting risk appetite. I think that’s really where we can be incredibly strong and so we’re looking to leverage that. I think the third thing is that we’re looking to leverage our specialisms across all areas of our business i.e. distribution, insurance, and reinsurance. We really see those specialisms cutting right across all the areas in a very complete and joined up way.”

The fourth area of focus for SiriusPoint is its drive to ensure it is organised in a manner which enables it to deliver agile responsiveness to its customers. For a company of this shape and size, that should be a competitive advantage, he said, and he wants to make sure the firm is structured optimally to deliver that.

These four elements give a strong flavour of the group’s strategic alignment and the direction of travel that it’s looking to pursue, and Egan highlighted how he and his team are actively working to build out these strategies in order to roll them out to market as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Underpinning it all, he said, is the power of creating, maintaining and nurturing strong market relationships – and he has been delighted by the opportunity to reacquaint himself with peers across the market he hasn’t worked with for a while as well as the chance to meet new people. And what has been especially fantastic, is the feedback he has received from the wider marketplace regarding the quality of his new colleagues and how well they respected they are across the industry.

“They’ve earned that respect through their capability,” he said. “And my job as the CEO is to make sure that I can try and bring together that capability, loyalty, enthusiasm, and drive it towards better performance… Because we have to be honest and say that the overall level of performance over the last few years – for a company with this potential – has not been good enough. And I absolutely believe it can and it should be better. I’m determined to play my part in making us get there and it’s 100% the reason why I’m so excited to be here.”

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An unnervingly large percentage of companies are underprepared when it comes to data protection, according to a new cybersecurity study from international law firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman.

Conducted in partnership with Mergermarket, the survey polled corporate board members, C-level executives and in-house counsels. Among its key findings were:

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Gallagher Ireland CEO Ronan Foley (pictured left) welcomed Doyle Mahon Insurances’ acquisition, commending the well-established name in professional insurance broking it has built over the last 13 years.

He said: “As the market continues to consolidate at pace, our ability to help smaller brokers grow and expand demonstrates why Gallagher is the partner of choice for brokers in Ireland. We remain on the lookout for further acquisitions which are the right fit for Gallagher while also continuing to grow our business organically. Over the next few years, we will establish Gallagher as the go-to broker in Ireland.”

Michael Rea, CEO of Gallagher’s retail division, UK & Ireland, also commented on the deal and said: “It is fantastic to welcome the Doyle Mahon team to Gallagher. The business is a great fit with our existing operations in the country, and its location in Wexford will scale up our network further. The bringing together of the teams we now have in Ireland, coupled with the global scale and reach of Gallagher, gives us a great platform for further expansion.”

Meanwhile, Doyle Mahon Insurances director Colm Mahon (pictured right) offered assurances that it will be business as usual for the broker’s customers.

“We are very pleased to become part of Gallagher’s ambitious growth plans. The Gallagher team shares our values, and its focus on great client service fits well with what we do best – looking after our customers,” Mahon said. “[Customers] will continue to be supported by our excellent team in Wexford; however, by becoming part of a global business, we can further enhance our service and product offering.”

Read more: Gallagher expands into Ireland with major deal

Doyle Mahon Insurances joins Gallagher following the global brokerage’s acquisition of Innovu. Innovu has officially integrated with the broking giant and will rebrand to Gallagher on November 07 – marking the firm’s first direct presence in Ireland.

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Register to watch the Dive In 2022 on-demand events

“In 2019 we had a very worrying investigation by Bloomberg into some of the behaviours in the Lloyd’s market,” he said. “I think when that came out, it really shone a light on how much culture work we needed to do. We introduced a Culture Survey – to find out first-hand, experiences of and attitudes to various different aspects of culture – alongside a series of targets to promote diversity in our market.”

Then in 2020, in the wake of activism against racial inequality following the murder of George Floyd, Lloyd’s apologised for its role in Trans-Atlantic slavery and committed to several actions to improve ethnic diversity, development and representation.

Neal said he is proud of how Lloyd’s has handled this sensitive work, forming independent academic partnerships with Black Beyond Data from Johns Hopkins University, re-curating historical displays in the Lloyd’s building and providing in-depth information on its website. He highlighted that all of these initiatives will go towards helping Lloyd’s in delivering against its ethnicity ambitions.

“In 2021, the global pandemic hit all businesses and we’ve been working through the balance of flexibility, agile and remote working that enables our market to function effectively, given it is a market built on relationships,” he said. “We recruited a head of culture in 2022, and have launched our Culture Strategy against which we are making good progress.

“Lloyd’s has achieved Gold level Clear Assured status for our inclusive practices and has risen from 75th to 45th on the Social Mobility Foundation’s, Social Mobility Employer’s Index, but there is much more to do.”

Amid these milestones, Neal has seen how the outlook towards DE&I in the Lloyd’s market is changing. The Culture Survey results reveal that the market is a more inclusive place than it has been before, he said, and this is in part due to attitudes shifting. It’s important to say that one of the true differentiators of the insurance marketplace has been its ability to attract talent, he said – therefore, it’s hugely important, through both design and intent, that the market is inclusive if it wants to represent the very best in the insurance industry.

“We are very aware that there is a need for more education and more leadership capability around diversity and inclusion to ensure we meet our D&I and culture goals,” he said. “Leadership accountability for change is an important part of shifting attitudes.

“Does it feel different on the ground, or in the room? I’m not sure it does yet – but that’s hopefully the step that follows a mindset shift. Every year for the last eight years, the insurance industry globally has hosted Dive In which is all about DE&I. This year there were over 25,000 attendees to events from 98 countries. This is absolutely showing that attitudes are shifting but we need to work out how to turn this into action.”

There are several key areas where more work needs to be done around DE&I – as revealed by Lloyd’s ‘Market Policies and Practices and Culture Survey’ results. These results show slow but steady progress year on year, he said, but reveal that more leadership accountability is needed to move the dial on DE&I.

The market is now at 30% women in leadership, he said, so achieving parity in that respect needs to remain one of Lloyd’s priorities. The organisation has also set a one-in-three hiring ambition for ethnic minority talent and the market is achieving approximately a 15% hiring rate, so again, there is more to do. 

Neal noted that Lloyd’s set out a number of ethnicity commitments in 2020 and that he is proud to say the team has delivered on many of them. 

• • Charitable funding, 
  • Sponsoring Race Equality initiatives
  • The one-in-three hiring ambition, mandating the collection of ethnicity data, publishing ethnicity pay gap information
  • Accelerate programme for ethnic minority talent 

“Areas like disability and accessibility need more focus and we need more data on social mobility,” he said. “We are active in this space through many of our partnerships such as our partnership with SEO London, but we’re still not where we want to be.”

Read more: Industry leader on the places an insurance career can take you

A common challenge around DE&I is how to convert thoughts and ideas into actions, and Neal highlighted that talk without action isn’t enough, especially for the next generation of talent.

There is a pressing need to look closely at transparency, he said, and publishing data and being deliberate in the drive to improve diversity, inclusion and culture is now an understandable, expectation. Similarly to the expectations of the next generation of talent around sustainability and climate, these aren’t ‘nice to do’s’ anymore – and, “they never should have been if we’re honest with ourselves.”

“I think we’ve been pretty robust at Lloyd’s in putting concrete steps in place – and not just nice-sounding initiatives,” he said. “We’ve factored culture and inclusion into our performance process, making culture a critical performance factor in how we assess the market’s annual plans. We take the culture of the market very seriously and take action where standards are not upheld. It’s important that we don’t just say we care about it, we have to act where there are those who do not live up to the standards expected.”

Examining how leaders can become more accountable and empower their own people, Neal highlighted that the good news is that the market now has a clear view as to what a good organisation looks and feels like. And for many people, he said, who you work for and who you work with is as important as how much you get paid. No one in 2022 can underestimate the importance of setting the right cultural framework for a business or an organisation to succeed.

“I actually think we need to treat diversity like insurance,” he said. “Gather the data to identify risk areas, put in place activities to mitigate the risks to your talent pool, set targets for diversity like you would for combined ratio outcomes and hold your leaders to account for performance. If we do that we will shift the dial. 

“I also think we can give them direct access to leaders to make sure their voices are heard and they feel they can drive action forward – as we’ve sought to do with our Employee Change Forums, which the chairman and I meet with regularly.”

His time in the insurance market has enabled Neal to see first-hand the ins and outs of what it takes to lay the secure foundations on which a healthy culture might flourish. He emphasised that setting the tone for culture and inclusion needs the same level of commitment as the ambition to deliver good performance or have the right technology. 

“At Lloyd’s, our Advance and Accelerate programmes for female and ethnic minority talent have been very successful in developing cohorts of future leaders,” he said. “Dive In is also a huge success, with 150 + events in over 40 countries this year. Increases in women in leadership and the increase in ethnic minority representation are also progressing – with 18 firms now meeting the 35% women in leadership target and 11 firms meeting the one-in-three hiring ambition. 

“Embedding culture as part of our oversight process has also been a big step forward. I think we can point to a number of successes but there remains much to do.”

Register to watch the Dive In 2022 on-demand events

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Worldwide, Amazon has over 300 million active customer accounts and it saw revenues of nearly $470 billion last year. With its products including Ring doorbells, Alexa voice assistants, and – a recent addition – iRobot vacuums, the underwriting data its connected home arsenal could potentially provide could spell opportunity for insurer partners but could also give them pause for thought depending on its ambitions.

Read more: It’s official – Amazon unveils insurance store

Amazon, according to Oxbow, is well poised to “ride” what the firm identified as key insurance trends, including personalisation and embedded insurance.

“Insurers and insurtechs have been trying to make these trends work for several years, often in isolation, and certainly largely without any kind of breakthrough success,” Oxbow said in its briefing.

“Amazon is, in our opinion, in a position to change the game.”

Should Amazon Insurance Store build on its initial home cover proposition – as of October three insurer partners were on board, LV, Ageas and Co-op – and become a “super gatekeeper” for insurance, multiple parts of the industry chain could be affected.

“I’d be concerned if I was an insurer,” Oxbow Partners partner Chris Sandilands told Insurance Business.

Big tech could look to further financial services acquisitions, a recent FCA paper set out. Market speculation has included that Amazon could later look to establish or purchase its own insurer, depending on how the insurance store performs for it.

“I don’t think they’d struggle to buy a balance sheet if they wanted one – but the key point is, do they want one?” Sandilands queried.

Underwriting costs and the regulatory burden have been mooted as barriers to an Amazon insurer entry.

Should Amazon continue partnering with insurers and start to take market share away from PCWs, this could have a “knock-on effect” on brokers.

“A lot of their volumes from price comparison sites, so it’s not obvious that they would have a role to play in the Amazon model,” Sandilands said.

It is PCWs, though, that have already felt some market concern around the Amazon entry. Go Compare, Money Supermarket, and Compare the Market all saw their share prices dip upwards of 3% on the news.

Amazon had reportedly been mulling a price comparison entry since at least 2018.

Read more: Amazon ‘in talks with insurers for UK price comparison site’

“The market certainly thought that this was a real threat, with share prices slipping considerably on the day Amazon announced their launch,” said Altus insurance director Mark Andrews.

Recent years have seen GoCo sold to Future and Admiral’s Penguin Portals comparison business, including Confused, sold to RVU. The market has also grappled with general insurance pricing practices rule changes, as the FCA has worked to stamp out dual pricing.

“The incumbent PCWs are feeling the pressure from big tech, the traditional comparison model needs to change and that this is the top of the market and a time to get best value from a sale,” Andrews said.

Amazon’s insurance store launched with a “standards” commitment, which, along with PCWs’ strong foothold in terms of brand association for consumers, led experts to question whether the tech behemoth will look to compete on experience rather than price.

“Brand association for Meercats and Opera Singers is about saving customers money and making the time spent looking for insurance as short as possible,” Andrews said.

“They’ve spent millions drumming that message over many years; I don’t see Amazon following that message, they’ll need to invent a new way to attract customers.”

Amazon’s insurance entry was ranked just a three out of 10 for impact by Altus, and Andrews described the move as a “toe in the water distribution deal”.

With three insurer partners on board, the insurance store looks more managing general agent (MGA) or distribution partner than PCW for now; its question set – at 37 questions – is also around half the size of the big PCWs.

For the short term, PCWs will “continue to win” when it comes to brand loyalty and customer apathy, Andrews predicted.

“If PCWs can convince customers they are getting a tailored, unbiased and trustworthy recommendation, they can outshine Amazon,” said Somo SVP of Experience Design, Zeina Fahra.

“The flip side of the massive marketplace is that people aren’t sure what results to trust on Amazon. Why are they being shown those choices versus others? Is it a paid placement?

“People may distrust an insurance offering from Amazon if they’re unclear on why they are being presented with that option.”

Given the Amazon venture remains in its early days – and remained available only to select users at time of writing –, just how it might evolve remains “anyone’s guess”, in the words of René Shoenauer, Guidewire director of product marketing, EMEA.

Google, a fellow big tech giant, shuttered its comparison site play in 2016 – just a year after launch.

“The question for market incumbents is how they protect against being swallowed up by the Amazon machine if this foray proves successful and they make a larger play to offer Amazon branded policies, likely backed by a white-label provider,” Shoenauer said.

“The big thing here is that consumers will become normalised to buying insurance from Amazon, and Amazon will be able to refine its customer portals, the purchasing journey for consumers, and the links between them and the insurance providers.”

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