Retailers and wholesalers first on Allianz's UK growth agenda

Allianz will target retailers, wholesalers and their insurance brokers as it seeks to topple RSA and Aviva to become the UK’s largest commercial insurer.

Allianz last month revealed its plan to have the biggest commercial underwriting profit in the UK by 2018.

To help reach its goal, it will target six sectors of the economy it wants to write more premium for in the next 18 months.

The first of these is shops and wholesalers, and Allianz plans to launch a campaign to win more of their business next month.

“We identified this as an area where we have a good strong appetite,” commercial general manager Simon McGinn told Insurance Times.

As many of 23% of businesses in the UK fall into this category, and Allianz predicts they will grow as part of a consumer-led economic recovery.

“We’ve amended some elements of the product and added some services.

“I think it gives brokers a bite-sized chunk of the world’s biggest property and casualty insurer and makes it easier to navigate the Allianz business,” McGinn said.

Allianz’ suite of products, which it thinks will help retailers and wholesalers, include protection against cyber attacks as online sales grow, product liability, and the increased risk of supply chain disruption as businesses increasingly buy and sell globally.

It will also look to articulate how end clients and brokers can benefit from Allianz’ risk management advice, such as helping them stay up to date with health and safety legislation and advising start-up businesses on the risks they face.

“We’re aiming to help the broker package the stuff more easily,” McGinn said.

“I certainly think there are a lot more customers out there that we don’t currently deal with, that perhaps don’t understand what Allianz brings to them. I’m hoping this will give brokers a wide colour palate to paint the solution for the customer.”

Subscribers can read the full interview with Simon McGinn