PwC: Insurers more confident about Brexit than peers

Insurers are less concerned than other financial services firms about the impact of the decision to leave the European Union, a survey has found.

The latest quarterly CBI/PwC financial services survey, which polls UK industry leaders, found that uncertainty around business prospects had risen since the Brexit vote.

But it also found that the UK’s insurance market remains confident.

PwC UK insurance leader Jonathan Howe said: “Much of the insurance industry is more focused on domestic markets than, say, investment banking so while business uncertainty is still very much a concern for insurers, it is not as pressing as in other areas of financial services.”

According to the survey, the biggest risk to UK insurers from Brexit is potential changes in access to EU markets, with 87% of respondents mentioning this.

The survey also found that 33% of the UK’s general insurers have not analysed how Brexit will affect their staff.

General insurers see the acceleration of transformational change as the biggest opportunity from Brexit.

Howe said: “London is a global centre for insurance so it is reassuring to see UK companies say they intend to increase employment in the wake of the referendum result.

“However, it is surprising that a third of the industry has not yet taken steps to understand how the UK leaving the EU will impact its people. The sooner firms understand the potential impact, the sooner they can reassure staff and concentrate on making the most of the opportunities ahead.”

He added: “It seems insurers accept that uncertainty in the UK market will continue for the foreseeable future and, as a result, they are planning to up their game. Investing in technology and talent has been a trend for some time now and insurance firms are thinking outside the box for transformational change in a post-Brexit world.”