Insurance comparison sites are not 'middlemen'

Insurancewide.com chief executive James Harrison has responded to Direct Line advertising campaign and Deloitte report findings.

“It is misleading of Direct Line to suggest in its advertising that insurance comparison websites are ‘middlemen’,” said Harrison. “The word middleman suggests that customer will pay more for a policy if it’s bought through a comparison service. This is not the case.

“Comparison websites exist to guide customers expertly through several hundred direct and indirect brands all competing for attention. The job of the online comparison service - in asking customers to complete just one form - must be to filter this bewildering choice into a shortlist of competitive, relevant insurers that match the customer’s profile. More sophisticated systems such as Insurancewide.com take into account how successful an insurer has been with similar customers and ranks short-listed insurers accordingly.

“No insurer can possibly claim that its deals are suitable for every type of customer. This is borne out by Direct Line’s position in a new motor insurance report by Deloitte. Out of 1000 ‘risks’, it ranked in the top 3 (not no. 1) for only 257 of them.

“The word middleman suggests that customers will pay more for a policy if it is bought through a comparison service. This is not the case.

Insurancewide.com chief executive James Harrison

“Direct Line may offer its customers ‘unique benefits’ other than good prices, but it should recognise that every customer values these benefits differently.

“A customer who uses a comparison website is far more likely to get a better deal than one who is tempted by the simplistic advertising of one single insurer.

“Customers should first identify who is competitive and then compare policies to find the best value cover for their needs. By choosing not to appear on comparison websites, insurers are simply making the customer’s life that much harder.”