Ageas' Ant Middle on why good brokers are like chameleons

One of our broker partners, Darwin Clayton, celebrates 100 years of trading this year. Reaching this landmark means it has successfully traded while the insurance industry has transformed from hand written ledgers to cover notes and digital trading that continues to revolutionise our lives every day.

And Darwin Clayton is not the only success story in the UK broker market – far from it. The latest figures from the British Insurance Brokers Association show that over 1800 individual Financial Conduct Authority-regulated firms registered as members last year. These businesses wrote £10.8bn of commercial insurance business and £8.0bn of personal lines insurance. If that’s not impressive enough, the total premium placed through insurance brokers represents 1% of UK gross domestic product.

So what’s the essence of success for broker businesses that continue to thrive?

In one of his Ted talks Martin Reeves, director of the BCG Henderson Institute, says that all successful businesses demonstrate the ability to adapt, diversify and recognise the moments when they should either be prudent or take risks. For insurers where business is heavily weighted towards the broker, success depends on the ability to support brokers, providing them with products and services that meet the ever diversifying needs of their customers at a sustainable price that makes sense.

Knowledge and insight into customer requirements is one of the distinguishing features of successful brokers. Insurance brokers that are trusted by their customers to find the product to meet their specific needs are highly valued by them. We all know that delight is contagious and if customers are happy with the service they receive they will share that joy with others – an element of success that’s become even more important and elusive in the days of online reviews.

Non-standard insurance products, such as modified vehicles, are one area where brokers provide invaluable expertise to their customers. Supporting brokers in this endeavour is a must for their insurance partners and so last year we partnered with Biba to produce a guide for brokers to help customers understand more about the complexities of modified vehicles.

As insurers we know that for many people finding the right insurance for a vehicle can be confusing when it comes to declaring modifications. It’s not always clear what’s been added to the car by its previous owner, or even by an authorised dealership after the vehicle left the factory. While most simple modifications are covered by standard policies, those vehicles that have been fitted to an enhanced induction kit or treated to a bespoke paint job really do need a specialist insurance policy. It’s in these scenarios that insurance brokers are really in a league of their own.

Looking towards the future when traditional patterns of motor ownership are likely to be changed by new patterns of use, like car sharing services, both insurers and brokers will have to change the products they offer to meet these emerging market needs. If insurers and brokers continue to work together there is no doubt that we can all not only survive but thrive. After all, brokers have proven to be the most adaptive chameleons I know.