Introduction, Methodology and Sample

The first annual Insurance Times Salary Survey set out to provide not only a review of pay in the general insurance market, but also to assess the level of satisfaction that employees have with their employers and the industry in general. How much are you worth? Is enough time being devoted to your ongoing development? In general, are employees in the insurance industry stressed? We set out to answer these questions and more in the following report. MethodologyThe Insurance Times Salary Survey 2001 was conducted entirely on-line, across insurancetimes.co.uk and workthing.com. The survey was limited to respondents working within the UK. The questions were designed such that the survey was quick and easy to complete, with the expressed purpose of maximising response. Both the questions, and responses, were intended to be minimally invasive. To this end, predefined response ranges were provided to a number of questions, including salary and bonus ranges. In turn, a number of the average values in the forthcoming analysis have been calculated utilising the midpoints across a series of ranges.£1000s worth of SONY prizes were offered as an incentive to complete the survey. The prizewinners are listed in the 26th April issue of Insurance Times.The responses have now been collated and the results analysed. Following are the key findings...SampleOf the respondents completing the Insurance Times Salary Survey 2001, three of every four were male.

Figure 2. Geographical spread of response across the UK.The bulk of the respondents were aged 25-35 years old - more than 50 percent of the sample. This is perhaps a reflection of the widespread internet usage amongst this sub-sample. A full breakdown of the age of the respondents is provided in figure 1.

Figure 1. Breakdown of age of respondents.The majority of the respondents work for either an insurer or an insurance broker/intermediary (31 and 26 percent respectively). The `balance' are employed across a variety of disciplines, a listing of which is presented in table A below.

Figure 3. Number of employees in office.Responses were received from executives working for a wide spectrum of companies, including Allianz Cornhill, Zurich, Norwich Union, AXA, Groupama, Independent, Royal & SunAlliance, Aon, Marsh, NIG and Williamson Moore.Table B highlights the trade bodies to which the respondents are affiliated. The bulk of respondents either belong to the CII or to no specific trade body (41 percent and 35 percent respectively). A minority of respondents are affiliated to more than one trade body.