Why I chose B2B InsurTech the next chapter in my career
By Lauren Bagley
When you think of general insurance (GI) advice in the intermediary world, it’s invariably the third or fourth priority for most regulated firms. So why would I choose B2B insurtech?
To put it simply, I chose this career to challenge the status quo in an area with so much opportunity. GI remains an enormous and relatively untapped lever for growth across pretty much all advisory businesses.
The Systemic Conundrum
The big conundrum is that every customer needs at least buildings insurance alongside every mortgage, therefore why is there so much disparity between what the customer needs and what advisory firms offer? I’ve been exposed to this systemic challenge and the various reasons why ever since I began my financial services career. Is this something that can change? I firmly believe so.
More Exciting Things Than Comparing Home Insurance
The decision to join Uinsure in particular, was made even easier because of its tech investment and its ambition to use tech to differentiate itself against a very saturated and traditional marketplace. We’re not short of insurance distributors and manufacturers in the intermediary market and those that recognise the power of data, digital journeys and technology to deliver against continually evolving consumer wants, needs and expectations will ultimately help solve the aforementioned “conundrum”. Plainly speaking, I think we can all agree that there’s plenty more exciting things to spend our time on than comparing home insurance – so let’s make it easier, faster and overall more effective. All I would add here is watch this space.
A Redefining Experience
The obsession Uinsure shares in relation to customer experience also drew me. For example, its belief that customers should not be expected to remember their renewal date to maintain a competitive premium. For far too long the industry has labelled “savvy” customers as those who are consistently scouring the market to find the best deal each year, but why should anyone be expected to do that? This mindset of customer centricity is absolutely where innovation starts to happen.
Advisers Have the Advantage
And then there’s the biggest shake up in the insurance market for decades. Following the FCA’s recent GI Pricing Practice proposals, there’s an expectation that pricing will equalise considerably across direct, aggregator and intermediary channels, as a result of the proposed ban on “price walking”. In a nutshell I think this will mean that advisory firms can make headway in a fairer market and will naturally start to capture more market share.
More so than any brands on the planet – advisory firms are a trusted voice to loyal customers and certainly best positioned to make sure that home insurance needs are covered and up to date. Firms also have the first indication that home insurance may be needed – so we should not give up that opportunity to others.
If you’ve managed to get this far in the article (!), thanks for reading and if you have any questions or thoughts, please feel free to share, comment or drop a message.
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