Personal lines is now intermediated more than direct writers will admit
At a recent meeting with brokers where BIBA was presenting on a number of industry issue, I was reminded by a member of the audience how important and emotive words can be. Two words had prompted this individual to speak out namely ‘industry’ and ‘profession’ and, in particular, the issue of how we in the broker sector would want to be viewed by those inside and outside the insurance business.
It made me think of a famous line from one of Robert Burns’ poems which goes ‘O wad some power the giftie gie us, to see oursels as ithers see us’.
Is insurance broking a profession?
Yes I believe so, very passionately.
Are intermediaries professional?
Yes.
Is our sector an industry or a profession?
Answers on a postcard or email please.
Do we aspire enough to regain the professional high ground?
Answers on a postcard or email please.
Corporate commercial and business insurance is and must remain the brokers’ sector and benefit from the value of professional advice. Commoditisation and the idea that price is the only consideration is creeping in from micro business and retail. However, even with commoditisation brokers can compete with better products and services.
Personal lines business is I believe now intermediated more than the direct writers will admit – because of aggregator growth. It may not currently be the type of intermediation that I want to see as many aggregators mislead consumers by saying they compare the market. Some are much better than others and BIBA will be looking to improved practice among them in the months to come. I think some of the current insurance advertisements on television have reached an all time low. I won’t mention names because that only provides even more exposure.
But back to profession, professional and industry. There is a drive to re-engage with the word professional and raise the bar on professionalism from within BIBA and the CII. From attracting the right talent, to encouraging the taking of professional qualifications and the chartered status plus everyone can use principle based regulation to take back control of their business.
Commercial reality, however, combined with little understanding or no interest from government, the EU, the FSA means that we will need to fight even harder in this distribution war if we are to win more battles.
