JAKARTA - Amazon.com Inc launched a home insurance portal in the UK and has registered three major insurance companies in its efforts to further push into financial services around the world.
According to Amazon, Wednesday 19 October, Ageas UK, Co-op, and LV= General Insurance, a unit of Germany's insurance company Allianz, will provide third-party services initially. They hope to add more insurance companies to "early next year".
Moneysupermarket.com shares slumped more than 15% following the news.
"Amazon will be a huge threat if it seriously invests and focuses its efforts on this market," said analyst Schel Hunt. He also added that insurance - including home insurance - forms about 43% of the Moneysupermarket business.
Moneysupermarket said earlier this week that it expects annual core profit to be at the forefront of market views, as the UK's cost of living crisis focuses consumers' minds on saving money.
Other companies operating comparison sites include Uswitch, Compare the Market and GoCompare, which are owned by Future, whose shares have fallen more than 3%.
Last year, 29.4% of UK consumers bought household insurance through price comparison sites in the UK, according to analytics firm GlobalData.
The persons are concerned that tech companies will steal their business parades, and are interested in partnering with them, offering commissions to sell their products.
Amazon's Portal is an interesting step for the industry," said Simon Hird, director of the partnership at LV= General Insurance.
"This site will give insurance customers more options on how they buy coverage," Charles Offord, managing director, Co-op Insurance, said.
Sementara CEO Ageas UK Ant Middle mengatakan pasar asuransi membutuhkan "platform distribusi digital baru dan progresional" seperti Amazon.
Amazon has been considering launching a comparison site in the UK for several years. Reuters reported exclusively about its plans in 2018.
The new portal, the Amazon Insurance Store, will also include reviews and customer assessments of insurance companies and levels at which claims are accepted for the policies offered.
Amazon partnered with Lloyd's broker, Superscript, last year to offer insurance to UK business customers on a small and medium scale.
They started offering motor vehicle insurance in India in 2020 through Acko General Insurance and also provided product guarantee insurance in Europe. They also launched a purchase scheme now pay later in the UK with Barclays last year.
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