To everyone’s surprise, Amazon has just made a sensational foray into the UK insurance sector. It now offers home insurance there with three partners, including Ageas.
The UK insurance industry is one of Europe’s most digitally driven markets. Online comparators are flourishing there, forcing companies to be extremely competitive both in terms of price and coverage. Today, online purchase of home insurance has become the priority channel with approx. 40% of con…
The UK insurance industry is one of Europe’s most digitally driven markets. Online comparators are flourishing there, forcing companies to be extremely competitive both in terms of price and coverage. Today, online purchase of home insurance has become the preferred channel with around 40% of contracts concluded this way. It is therefore hardly surprising to see Amazon rushing into this breach. This foray into the insurance sector is not the first for Amazon, which, in addition to health cover in the US, already sells car contracts in India and insures certain SMEs as part of its Business Prime offering in the Kingdom. But this is the first time that the world leader in e-commerce is tackling the home insurance market. Therefore, last week and to everyone’s surprise, it launched an insurance comparator called Amazon Insurance Store. Reserved for Prime subscribers, it will be extended by the end of the year to all users of the site. If it is primarily a comparator, the online store is characterized by the establishment of a basic offer common to all partner insurance companies, called the Amazon Standard of Cover, which should meet the needs of most basic insurance for renters and landlords. For its debut, Amazon partnered with three industry heavyweights: Allianz, Co-op (a British mutual group) and Ageas. The British subsidiary of the Belgian group is very active in the online market, which it has made a central element of its strategy. She has also been named “Insurer of the Year” three times a year by various entities.