The insurer has proposed plans to refocus its personal lines home and motor business

Zurich UK has announced plans to refocus its personal lines home and motor business to concentrate on the high-net-worth (HNW) market, alongside its MGA and partnership channels.

In a statement released yesterday (13 July 2023), the insurer said it had “reviewed its mass market home and motor strategy to simplify routes to market and focus on the areas where there are greater opportunities to grow”.

As a result, Zurich is proposing to withdraw from the regional broker and national (panel) broker channels.

David Nichols, head of retail at Zurich, said the move came with the UK personal lines market continuing to be “intensely competitive”.

“We’re a minor player in the home and motor personal lines market, with a very small market share and relatively low level of premium,” he said.

“This makes us well positioned to re-focus our strategy to maximise the clear growth opportunity in the HNW market, where we already hold strong relationships, whilst also building on our existing MGA and partnership relationships.”

’Wider commitment’

Under these proposals, Zurich would honour new business and renewal quotes already provided and continue to cover existing home and motor customers until the end of their policies.

Nichols added: “Zurich remains one of the largest general insurers in the UK and we are unwavering in our wider commitment to SME, midmarket and commercial customers through our regional and strategic broker relationships, where we continue to invest.”

This came after RSA Insurance announced it would exit the UK personal lines motor market earlier this year (28 March 2023).

RSA said the motor market in the UK remained competitive and “requires significant scale to drive meaningful outperformance”.

The insurer is now focusing on optimising its position in home and pet lines by improving segmentation and focusing on growth in the direct business and managing partnerships.

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