Push policy quality not price

Defaqto has called on motor insurers to cease the focus on price and to educate consumers to look at cover and claims.

Mike Powell, author of the report and Defaqto's insight analyst for general insurance, said: "Although the cost of any insurance product is an important factor when deciding which policy to buy, the cover provided should always be the main consideration.

Expensive

“Encouraging consumers to simply choose the cheapest option could result in them making a very expensive mistake, especially when they realise that they are not covered when a claim is made.

“It will also be an expensive mistake for the insurer, as an unhappy customer will more than likely result in them going elsewhere when the policy is up for renewal."

The report provides an overview of the motor insurance sector in the UK, including:

• Market size
• Current issues, including ‘fronting' and ‘claims farming'
• Distribution and the growth of aggregators
• Environmentalism and safety
• Product trends

The report also includes findings from Defaqto's consumer research, which asked a sample of 5,000 respondents to rank the importance of 45 different product features.

The results of this have been aggregated into Defaqto's research tools and methodology to help providers with their product development and marketing.