It emerged last week that Tesco is pressing ahead with plans to capture further market share over the course of the next few years in both the household and car insurance sectors following the formalisation of its partnership with Fortis (UK) Ltd.
The new partnership with Fortis effectively ends Tesco’s relationship with RBS-owned UKI Partnerships who previously provided underwriting and claims management services. Tesco claims that the new deal, which runs until 2015, will allow greater responsibility by the retailer for products, including pricing, sales, marketing and customer service. In addition it could mean a further 1500 new jobs will be created.
The deal also benefits Fortis in terms of consolidating its position as one of the major home, van and car insurance companies in the UK. It is estimated that a further 1.7 million customers will be added to Fortis’s existing customer base of around 7 million customers. The net effect of this would mean Fortis insuring over 2 million of the cars driving on Britain’s roads.
Only time will tell whether this new partnership is beneficial to Tesco customers, but what is clear is that this will come as a major blow to UKI partnerships who are owned by RBS, the consequences of which could result in a number of job losses.
Subscribe to our RSS Feed