Insurance Times Awards 2026: Instanda on why adaptability is its greatest strength

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Tim Hardcastle, co-founder and chief executive at Instanda, explains his firm’s entry to the Underwriting and Distribution Technology Partner award

Why did you put yourselves forward for the category?

Tim HardCastle

Tim Hardcastle co-founder and chief executive at Instanda

Speed to market has become table stakes. The more pressing question is whether insurers and MGAs can build, adapt and scale on their own terms the moment markets shift.

That’s the problem Instanda was designed to solve and four different businesses show what it delivers – a tier-one carrier quotes a 5,000 vehicle fleet in under 15 minutes – a specialist M&A MGA launches every new product in six weeks – a broker-led business has grown sales by 20% – and a landlord specialist has lifted new policies by 44% year-on-year. One platform, four markets – that breadth felt worth putting before the judges.

What do you think makes your entry stand out and why should you win the award?

If I had to choose one word, it would be adaptability. Our platform turns every capability into a foundation for the next and our clients bear that out. A tier-one carrier went live with 19 integrations and runs more than 50, drawn from the same blueprint.

A broker-led business had a platform that would otherwise take two years delivered in six months, with 40% less operational support. And when a landlord specialist saw pet legislation coming, it reshaped its forms, rates and rules and was in market far ahead of the competition. Pace, reuse and control – that’s our case for winning.

What would winning this award mean to you and your firm?

For our engineering and delivery teams, it would be a fitting reward for years of careful, deliberate work. For our clients, it would affirm their decision to be in control of their own products, pricing and expertise.

And for Instanda, it would reinforce the conviction that sits at the heart of everything we build – the finest insurance technology doesn’t make decisions for people, it gives them the flexibility and control to move fast when it matters most. As artificial intelligence (AI) transforms the market, that principle has never mattered more, which is exactly why we’re shaping our AI roadmap hand in hand with our clients.