Aren't lastminute.com and the likes essentially price comparison sites?
Or are they a broker that just exposes their panel like some insurance brokers do?
I think they are a bit of hybrid, similar to what Aviva did for a while. They are predominately a broker as for the majority of the bookings you complete the booking on their site. I do see for some options they do present some of their "competition" - I havent looked to see if it is competition or sister brands.
Aviva, whilst not a broker, used to show some selected competitors price once they took their anti-aggregator stance.
Unfortunately never been close enough to the travel industry to know how these things all really work behind the scenes
If they really do share insurance information, why do we need to fill in any information at all? You just type in your driving license number, and the car's registration, then any claims history and NCD should already be on a shared database.
This combination should be sufficient for each insurer to hold a basic quote, which can be adjusted by how much voluntary excess you choose, and any add-ons like courtesy car. They just retrieve and reply with the same quote every time, updated after say 30 days.
I expect prices from different comparison sites to be different, as they don't always transfer correctly the data you give them, and often make different assumptions on what excess you want etc
Maybe I've had a unique motoring history, but in my experience insurers don't all treat accidents and claims the same way either. I've had a couple of accidents where there was no related claim and some insurers didn't want to know about this but others did. Also I had an accident where there was a claim, and with some providers it could have counted under 2 or 3 of their categories. Some providers are just downright bad with their website designs - so it says one thing on one screen and one on another, so you're just left guessing what they actually mean or want!
Because it isnt competitors colluding to fix prices. Its a marketing company saying we will only promote your products if you dont sell it cheaper elsewhere.
This is the oddity of aggregators, they dont sell the policies, they just market them. They have no direct control over the price etc etc
Cameron? 2002 the first insurance aggregator came into being, think you need to look at Blair and ask whos side he and rest of the Labour are on :money: :rotfl:
Some years ago, First Direct was doing a beat your renewal quote by 10% type promotion. I don't think they are on comparison sites, but It would be amusing to see how this works out if they were.
Obviously, by its very nature, the quote would be all over the place.
Some years ago, First Direct was doing a beat your renewal quote by 10% type promotion. I don't think they are on comparison sites, but It would be amusing to see how this works out if they were.
Obviously, by its very nature, the quote would be all over the place.
I believe the pricing rules only apply to online sales as there are a number of insurers that have differential pricing by web and phone who'd be unable to otherwise comply. Similarly, if you are big enough you can always negotiate different terms with the aggregators, just depends where the balance of power lies
Certainly all the "we guarantee to beat your renewal quote" marketing activities I have seen, and there have been many over the years, were all ultimately done over the phone as they validate the like for like cover before doing the pricing adjustment
Replies
Or are they a broker that just exposes their panel like some insurance brokers do?
I think they are a bit of hybrid, similar to what Aviva did for a while. They are predominately a broker as for the majority of the bookings you complete the booking on their site. I do see for some options they do present some of their "competition" - I havent looked to see if it is competition or sister brands.
Aviva, whilst not a broker, used to show some selected competitors price once they took their anti-aggregator stance.
Unfortunately never been close enough to the travel industry to know how these things all really work behind the scenes
This combination should be sufficient for each insurer to hold a basic quote, which can be adjusted by how much voluntary excess you choose, and any add-ons like courtesy car. They just retrieve and reply with the same quote every time, updated after say 30 days.
Saves on processing time, I would have thought.
Maybe I've had a unique motoring history, but in my experience insurers don't all treat accidents and claims the same way either. I've had a couple of accidents where there was no related claim and some insurers didn't want to know about this but others did. Also I had an accident where there was a claim, and with some providers it could have counted under 2 or 3 of their categories. Some providers are just downright bad with their website designs - so it says one thing on one screen and one on another, so you're just left guessing what they actually mean or want!
Because it isnt competitors colluding to fix prices. Its a marketing company saying we will only promote your products if you dont sell it cheaper elsewhere.
This is the oddity of aggregators, they dont sell the policies, they just market them. They have no direct control over the price etc etc
Cameron? 2002 the first insurance aggregator came into being, think you need to look at Blair and ask whos side he and rest of the Labour are on :money: :rotfl:
Obviously, by its very nature, the quote would be all over the place.
I believe the pricing rules only apply to online sales as there are a number of insurers that have differential pricing by web and phone who'd be unable to otherwise comply. Similarly, if you are big enough you can always negotiate different terms with the aggregators, just depends where the balance of power lies
Certainly all the "we guarantee to beat your renewal quote" marketing activities I have seen, and there have been many over the years, were all ultimately done over the phone as they validate the like for like cover before doing the pricing adjustment