General insurer of the year

Winner

Norwich Union

We are particularly delighted to have earned this award after what has been a tough year for the whole industry.

We have worked very hard to improve service across all areas - to all our intermediaries and customers - and while there is always room for further improvement we believe we have really made a difference.

We do of course aim to get things right first time, and in the context of the size of our business we are successful at that. But just as importantly, on the occasions where this does not happen, we are much better at putting things right. This is endorsed by the feedback we are getting from intermediaries - and by the fact that we have won this award, to which we attach real credence given that it directly reflects the views and experiences of the intermediaries we serve.

The award also reflects our success at developing a breadth of products which gives our customers what they need, and our continuing drive to adapt to the changing demands of the market place. We are constantly responding to customer need, and we lead the way with innovation as demonstrated by the development of our 'flood mapping' and 'pay as you drive' projects, which will come to the fore next year.

We remain absolutely committed to serving and working with intermediaries and will continue to do everything we can to support them as we move towards the challenges, including most prominently that presented by regulation, of 2004.

Highly commended

NIG

NIG is absolutely delighted to be highly commended for the General Insurer of the Year category. Having won this award last year and been shortlisted during the last seven years this demonstrates our consistent track record of achievement and our commitment to the broker market. We thank all the brokers who voted for NIG and their continued support.

2003 saw NIG complete the acquisition of the renewal of Avon Insurance's business and its integration onto NIG's systems.

In addition, we were able to launch Insurancexpert.co.uk a web-site that promotes brokers to customers and allows visitors to find their local broker. Other e-commerce initiatives included Web Champion, which provides brokers with their own tailored websites and the launch of NIG Network our broker extranet where we have started to provide online quotation systems to brokers.

This year also saw NIG introduce integrated engineering breakdown cover on commercial package policies that we believe are unique to the market.

Now with the full support of the Royal Bank of Scotland we believe that NIG will just go from strength to strength.

Zurich

By focusing on the fundamentals, Zurich has strengthened its position in 2003, through a number of strategies designed to create value and increased flexibility for brokers, plus an unrivalled claims experience for customers.

It's been an extremely busy year which has culminated in the launch of an increased product range, enabling brokers to attract a much broader customer base.

Enhancing underwriting expertise through the creation of regional underwriting teams, providing increased one-to-one support via the nationwide network of a business development team and never being complacent, has meant that Zurich enjoys a position of respect among both brokers and customers.

As an additional benefit, Zurich provides policyholders access to risk management services, through a network of risk improvement consultants who provide independent and objective advice. Being highly commended in this category of General Insurer of the Year is testament to Zurich's successful year in 2003, and this major insurer will not rest there, but is looking forward to the challenges 2004 will bring.