Direct fleet offers online insurance
A new online fleet insurance company for commercial vehicles has been launched.
Direct Fleet Insurance works on similar principles to online auctions. A fleet operator or broker submits details of the fleet and insurers then proceed to ‘bid’ for the policy. At any time before the end of the auction both buyers and sellers can see what has been offered, and insurer bids can be amended to try and win the business.
Major insurers already signed up to use the service include Zurich, Allianz and AXA who, together with the other panel insurers currently handle over 50% of the UK’s fleet insurance business. DFI is also currently in discussions with other insurers and plans to add more names to its panel.
The DFI service is quick and easy to use with the entering of vehicle registration details auto-populating many key information fields. Fleet operators or their brokers then answer a simple ‘sixty second’ questionnaire that gives the insurer the additional information they need to be able to quote both quickly and accurately.
If any further questions do need to be asked, beyond the data already submitted, the site hosts a real-time question and answer function. This allows a direct dialogue between insurers, brokers and fleet operators which can be viewed by all site users. This speeds up the quotation process further and helps quickly answer any queries regarding the cover being sought or the policy being offered.
The advantages of the DFI concept to fleet operators, brokers and insurers are numerous.
The fleet operator or broker benefits from a quick and transparent quotation process where insurers openly compete for policies. And in addition to just seeing who offers the lowest price, the operator or broker can evaluate competing quotations in terms of what’s included in the different bids.
This aspect of the service will help operators and brokers not only get the best possible price but also the right type of cover to meet their individual business needs.
The insurers benefit from competing on a level playing field, with all competing quotes visible throughout the bidding period. Insurers also have the option to submit numerous bids to try and secure the policy.
In addition, savings made through the operating efficiencies that the DFI platform brings means that insurers can afford to be more competitive throughout the entire quotation process.
Paul Samways, director of DFI, said: “Fleet insurance has traditionally been a very labour intensive process for everyone involved because it doesn’t lend itself to quotations based simply on vehicle history, postcode and other standard risk assessments.
“But by combining the efficiencies of a sophisticated online site with the expertise of dedicated fleet underwriters we are now able to offer all parties a quick, accurate and highly competitive platform on which to do business.
“Direct Fleet Insurance will genuinely revolutionise the way fleet insurance is purchased and our model could be adopted for many other business to business transactions.”
Dave Smith, SME fleet manager at Zurich commercial, added: "The new DFI site is a very innovative and interesting project and we are delighted to be one of the panel of insurers trading on the site at the start of the project. We will be working closely with DFI and watching the developments with great interest."
