Group Direct, owners of Commercial Vehicle Direct (CVD), has set up a Gibraltar-based insurer to underwrite motorcycle insurance.

Southern Rock Insurance will sell motorcycle insurance solely over the internet directly to customers, offering flexible cover and web-based policy administration.

Group Direct chief executive Arron Banks said: "Not only will you be able to buy online but you will also be able to do mid-term adjustments and renewals. We are also introducing pay-as-you-go insurance, allowing customers to switch policies on and off as they like."

The Gibraltar-based insurer has a capacity to write £13m of business in its first year and will also underwrite a couple of schemes for CVD.

Banks said: "We are taking a cautious approach to the business in the early days but we are also trying to do something different to our competitors."