Table of Contents
Overview
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- What you need to know
Executive Summary
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- The market
- Open Banking and new insurance models arrive to disrupt distribution
- The consumer
- 45% have arranged car or home insurance in the last three years
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- Figure 1: Products switched/arranged in the last three years, March 2019
- People are more likely to be attracted by a good deal than pushed by bad service
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- Figure 2: Prompts to consider switching/arranging new retail banking products, March 2019
- Price comparison sites dominate insurance research
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- Figure 3: Sources of information used to research financial services products, March 2019
- Arranging financial services products is an online pursuit
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- Figure 4: Methods used to purchase financial services products, March 2019
- People are happy with the purchase process
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- Figure 5: Attitudes towards the financial services path to purchase, March 2019
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- Apps are yet to take a central role but personal loans show the way
- The facts
- The implications
- Consumers have moved on from branches for account opening
- The facts
- The implications
- Technological excellence may be the only way forward for challengers
- The facts
- The implications
- Advisers can use the mortgage process to introduce other services
- The facts
- The implications
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Distribution disruption - Open Banking arrives…
- …and new insurance models emerge
Product Research and Purchasing in Context
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- Major brands roll out Open Banking services
- Saga and Aviva look to shake up general insurance terms
- Current account switching has declined since the launch of CASS
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- Figure 6: Annual volume of current account switches, 2014-18
- Comparethemarket is the most popular aggregator
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- Figure 7: Price comparison sites used for researching financial services products in the last 12 months, September 2018
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- 45% have arranged car or home insurance in the last three years
- People are more likely to be attracted by a good deal than pushed by bad service
- Price comparison sites dominate insurance research
- Arranging financial services products is an online pursuit
- People are happy with the purchase process
- Challengers face an uphill struggle
Product Buying Activity
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- General insurance remains the most transient finance sector…
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- Figure 8: Products switched/arranged in the last three years, March 2019
- …especially among older groups
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- Figure 9: Insurance products switched/arranged in the last three years, by generation, March 2019
- Current account switching remains limited
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- Figure 10: Retail banking products switched/arranged in the last three years, by generation, March 2019
Prompts to Purchase
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- Product quality is key
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- Figure 11: Prompts to consider switching/arranging new retail banking products, March 2019
- Younger consumers are primed to benefit most from Open Banking
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- Figure 12: Selected prompts to consider switching/arranging new retail banking products, by age, March 2019
- Online notifications most likely to succeed in promoting personal loans
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- Figure 13: Prompts to consider switching/arranging new retail banking products, by retail banking products switched/arranged in the last three years, March 2019
- Brand building offers the highest advertising value
Product Research
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- Price comparison sites dominate insurance research…
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- Figure 14: Sources of information used to research financial services products, March 2019
- …and have a growing influence in credit markets
- Savings comparison is restricted by the low rates on offer
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- Figure 15: Use of price comparison sites to research savings accounts when arranging one in the last three years, by household income, March 2019
- Mortgages can be a gateway to professional advice
First Point of Contact
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- Price comparison sites serve as a starting point in most markets
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- Figure 16: Source of information first used to research financial services products, March 2019
- Branches are falling from favour
Purchase Methods
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- Arranging financial services products is an online pursuit
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- Figure 17: Methods used to purchase financial services products, March 2019
- Personal loans leading the way for mobile product applications
The Path to Purchase
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- Most consumers stick to one source of information
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- Figure 18: Number of sources of information used to research financial services products, by type of product arranged, March 2019
- People tend to use the same channel throughout the purchase journey
- Four fifths of online researchers follow up with an online purchase…
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- Figure 19: Current account purchase method, by first source of information used, March 2019
- …while those who start research offline are more likely to change channel on the way
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- Figure 20: Savings account purchase method, by first source of information used, March 2019
- Figure 21: Credit card purchase method, by first source of information used, March 2019
- Call centres are still valuable sales channels in general insurance
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- Figure 22: Car insurance purchase method, by first source of information used, March 2019
- Figure 23: Home insurance purchase method, by first source of information used, March 2019
Attitudes towards Product Research and Purchase
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- People are happy with the purchase process…
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- Figure 24: Attitudes towards the financial services path to purchase, March 2019
- …but are split on their approach and openness to assistance
- Online channels are valued and preferred
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- Figure 25: Agreement with attitudes towards online product research, by household income, March 2019
Attitudes towards Choice of Product Providers
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- Half would rather keep all products in the same place
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- Figure 26: Attitudes towards choosing financial services providers, March 2019
- Challengers face an uphill struggle
Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
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- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
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