Last week a report by FWD Research pointed to a whopping 94% of insurance brokers in the UK who are currently placing business electronically. Now, as further testament to the growing appeal of going paperless, the market’s digital risk transfer platform Placing Platform Limited (PPL) has released its latest numbers.
According to PPL, 250,000 firm orders have been bound on the platform since it was rolled out three years ago. “Every day, more than 1,000 people log on to the platform to quote, bind, and endorse – saving time and paper,” it noted.
Pleased with the progress, Lloyd’s Market Association (LMA) chief executive Sheila Cameron commented: “It is encouraging to have got this far and we must continue to build on these successes if we are to truly realise the benefits for the market and its clients.”
Earlier this year Cameron urged the marketplace to become fully digital and seamlessly connected.
Also offering his insights was International Underwriting Association (IUA) CEO Dave Matcham, who said IUA members “have always been clear that e-placement via PPL must encompass the full process from quote to bind,” adding that new guidance is designed to assist the market in reaching that goal.
Matcham stated: “Adoption rates, so far, have been encouraging and should rise further as PPL realises its full potential and continues to evolve and improve its offering.”
London & International Insurance Brokers’ Association (LIIBA) chief executive Christopher Croft, meanwhile, shared what he believes is crucial in adopting new systems.
“Mutual respect and cooperation in the use of electronic placement is a vital part of making new processes work properly for everyone – most importantly the end client, in the process,” declared the LIIBA boss. “Our focus should be on getting it right, right from the start.”
For PPL board chair Bronek Masojada, “liquidity and choice are the crucial success factors for any market – actual or electronic,” highlighting how the platform has achieved critical mass in three years.
“It is the key foundation stone for enabling the efficient digital placement of complex risks,” said Masojada. “The focus for everyone should now be getting all the information in properly at the front end so the entire market can benefit from better data throughput at every stage of the value chain.”
