Amazon Eyes UK Insurance Comparison Website

Amazon.com is eyeing the U.K. insurance market and is reportedly in talks with European insurers about creating a price comparison website.

Reuters, citing three industry executives, reported companies have held discussions with Amazon about the potential to launch the website, with one source telling the news service the website is part of several talks Amazon and insurers have had. Meanwhile, a second source said there are no near-term plans to roll out a comparison insurance website in the U.K.  Reuters noted that while there were no details as to what types of insurance would be compared, home and motor policies are popular sellers on U.K. insurance comparison websites.

“As Amazon becomes a larger part of the home, whether it’s products delivered to the home, security monitoring, home services like Wi-Fi installation, you can make the case that insurance is the next logical step for this company,” Morningstar analyst R.J. Hottovy told Reuters in the report.

If Amazon were to build a U.K. insurance website, it would expand the eCommerce giant’s products in Europe, in which it offers extensions to manufacturer’s warranties through its Amazon Protect services.  What’s more, a comparison website could be a tool to drive more visitors to its eCommerce site.  Meanwhile, industry sources told Reuters that a comparison website would enable Amazon to provide customers with access to insurance from several providers and avoid any regulatory issues.  With insurers relying on comparison sites in the U.K. for sales, it’s likely Amazon will get interest from the industry players if it were to launch a site. Hastings, the U.K. insurer, told Reuters 90 percent of its motor policies are sold through comparison websites. Meanwhile, Admiral, the U.K. car insurer, said it also relies on websites to sell its policies and would be open to joining an Amazon site, chief financial officer Geraint Jones said. “If it establishes a comparison site, then I suspect Admiral will be interested in being a member, potentially. Price comparison is the main source of distribution of our products, and we’ll await with interest what they do,” Jones told Reuters.