United Kingdom (UK) Insurance Aggregators Market Share, Trends and Analysis by Line of Business, Competitor Profiles and Marketing Strategies, 2023 Update
United Kingdom (UK) Insurance Aggregators Market Share, Trends and Analysis by Line of Business, Competitor Profiles and Marketing Strategies, 2023 Update
Summary
This report explores ever-changing consumer purchasing behaviors through price comparison websites. It identifies the most influential factors for customers when selecting a policy through this channel. The report discusses the brand strategies and marketing approaches of the four leading sites. Key factors that will influence the market over the coming years are also highlighted.
Despite experiencing respective declines of 1.7 percentage points (pp) and 1.1pp in terms of purchasing activity, motor and home remain the most frequently purchased insurance products on PCWs. A driving factor behind decreases in these lines is Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rules that have limited providers’ ability to aggressively compete on price to win new business. Accompanying this are inflation and supply chain issues resulting in claims inflation, thus causing premiums to soar. With consumers struggling to find better value on aggregators, five of the seven lines of business discussed in this report experienced a decline in purchasing activity on PCWs.
Scope
PCWs are the third-largest distribution channel for non-life insurance, with 24% of respondents from GlobalData’s 2022 UK Insurance Consumer Survey indicating they purchased a policy through this channel.
PCWs rely heavily on return customers, which is one of the reasons why sites offer so many products. 59.5% of respondents indicated they chose their respective site because they had used it before.
The proportion of consumers using PCWs as a pre-purchasing tool for research increased in 2022, but consumers who did use a PCW were less likely to purchase a policy through the site compared to previous years.
The percentage of respondents who switched at renewal decreased for both motor and home, highlighting the effects of FCA regulation on dual pricing.
Reasons to Buy
Discover consumer purchasing trends through price comparison websites (PCWs) in 2022.
Determine the market shares of the four leading PCWs in various general and life insurance lines.
See the effects of insurance market regulation on PCWs.
Understand the effects of inflation on consumer behavior.
Ascertain pricing differences between PCWs across a variety of life and non-life products.
Adapt your distribution strategy to ensure that it meets customer purchasing needs and behaviors.
Executive Summary
Market overview
Key findings
Critical success factors
The Aggregator Market
Aggregators are an important channel for the distribution of insurance policies
Table Figure 1: PCWs are more frequently used for non-life insurance than life insurance
PCWs need to innovate amid FCA pricing rules
The cost-of-living crisis is affecting the aggregator market
Table Figure 2: Inflation peaked in October 2022 at 11.1%
The majority of consumers choose a PCW because they have used it before
Table Figure 3: Most customers choose a PCW because they have used the site before
Consumers increasingly used PCWs to conduct research across all four non-life products in 2022
Table Figure 4: Consumers are increasingly using PCWs to conduct research amid the cost-of-living crisis
Six of the seven lines saw their conversion rate decline
Table Figure 5: Conversion rates decreased for six out of the seven products in 2022
Motor and home insurance experienced a decrease in the number of respondents who switched
Table Figure 6: The proportion of people who switched within the motor and home lines decreased in 2022
Table Figure 7: Over half of customer switches in the home and motor lines came through PCWs in 2022
Aggregators by Line of Business
Non-life insurance products on PCWs
Table Figure 8: Compare the Market offer the most expensive quotes for motor insurance
Table Figure 9: The impact of FCA regulation is clear as there is less price variation across PCWs
Table Figure 10: Policy Expert provides the cheapest home insurance quote on three out of four sites
Table Figure 11: There is greater disparity between home insurance quotes from the four leading PCWs in 2023
Table Figure 12: Compare the Market provide the most expensive quotes for travel insurance
Table Figure 13: Variation in prices across the four leading PCWs
Life insurance products on PCWs
Table Figure 14: Legal & General offers the cheapest quote across three of the four PCWs
Table Figure 15: Choozi provided the most expensive quotes across the six sites
Table Figure 16: Zurich offers the cheapest quote for term assurance with critical illness cover
Table Figure 17: HSBC provides the cheapest quote on Choozi for term assurance (level) with critical illness cover
Competitor Profiles and Market Shares
Compare the Market is the leading PCW
Table Figure 18: Compare the Market remains the most frequently used PCW for non-life products
Table Figure 19: Compare the Market is the most frequently used PCW for life products
Competitor profiles
New Competition in the Aggregator Market
Amazon launches UK insurance comparison site
Honcho's failure demonstrates the dominance of the UK’s top four aggregators