Kevin Paterson is sales and marketing director at Assurant Intermediary
Overall home insurance levels in the UK are high, but they could be even higher. Three out of 10 adults in the UK have no home or contents insurance at all, according to the October 2012 Mintel UK Home Insurance Market Report. Whilst home ownership is well below average among those under the age of 35, this statistic still indicates a large potential market in the UK for contents insurance.
Not all of the 1,916 UK adults surveyed by Mintel were home owners, of course, but it’s hard to believe that the 30 percent without insurance all live with their parents or rely on someone else to protect their belongings. Even adult students and those in rented accommodation need contents insurance.
The rental sector itself represents a solid market opportunity, as the rental market in the UK is booming. Buy to let is the one area of the mortgage market that continues to flourish and these renters will need insurance. According to the same Mintel survey, however, only 40 percent of people currently living in rented accommodation own a home contents policy. Smart brokers will look for ways to tap into this thriving market.
The rising number of renters are being housed by a growing number of landlords in an increasingly competitive landscape. It’s not unusual these days for landlords to have more than one property and some have sizeable property portfolios. Have you approached these clients to discuss selling them a package of contents insurance to help attract quality tenants?
Whilst a focus on renewals and cross selling a full range of GI products to your existing customers is a solid strategy, it should not be pursued at the expense of recognizing new business. The opportunities are out there.
The question for brokers is… how will you reach them?
