The use of the internet to buy personal insurance set to grow rapidly, according to Datamonitor.
The analyst forecast that motor insurance internet sales would account for nearly a third (29%) of the market by 2009. This would be driven by direct distribution.
In 2005, the internet sales of motor insurance accounted for 12% of the market, the company said in a report on the UK general insurance market.
Datamonitor also predicted that home insurance internet sales would rise “rapidly” to 17% of the market by 2009, and would reach 13% in 2007.
“Online distribution, particularly via aggregator sites, will increase the commoditisation of insurance products, encouraging the development of simple, no-frill offerings,” said Mathilde Jakobsen, financial services analyst at Datamonitor and author of the report.
