The Treasury’s decision to regulate the sale of travel insurance by travel agents appears to have been justified if research from Sainsbury’s Bank is anything to go by.

The survey found that in the past 12 months up to 3.56 million people have fallen victim to dubious sales practices when purchasing insurance from travel agents.

It also found that many travel agents were not following basic procedures to ensure that the travel insurance policies they sell are appropriate to their customers’ needs.

One finding caught Backchat’s eye – 9% claimed they had been wrongly advised that they could only secure their holiday if they also bought their travel insurance there and then.

The FSA will have some fun regulating the sector.

The 2025 Insurance Times Awards took place on the evening of Wednesday 3rd December in the iconic Great Room of London’s Grosvenor House.

Hosted by comedian and actor Tom Allen, 34 Gold, 23 Silver and 22 Bronze awards were handed out across an amazing 34 categories recognising brilliance and innovation right across the breadth of UK general insurance.
Many congratulations to all the worthy winners and as always, huge thanks to our sponsors for their support and our judges for their expertise.