Internet giant's trial could lead to entry into insurance market.
Google could be set to enter the crowded insurance aggregator landscape, following the trial launch of a price comparison service for secured loans.
The internet giant insisted it had no plans to expand the trial of Google Merchant, but industry sources have speculated that, if it were successful, a move into insurance could be the next logical step.
A Google spokesman said: “We constantly look for new ways to help people find what they are looking for on the internet. This is a small ad unit test-running against some secured loan search queries.”
Ashton Berkhauer, commercial manager of insurance at aggregator uswitch, said the industry would be closely monitoring Google’s progress.
A spokesman for Gocompare said established aggregators would have nothing to fear from Google. He said: “We are confident that our proposition is very strongly differentiated in the market.”
