Amazon Is Launching an Online Home Insurance
Amazon will begin selling home insurance in the United Kingdom through partnerships with three local insurers, expanding the e-commerce behemoth’s foray into financial services.
The product will display quotes for policies from insurance providers such as Ageas, Co-op, and LV+ General Insurance, with the company profiting from each sale its partners make. It is similar to the services provided by price comparison websites such as Comparethemarket and Moneysupermarket. Customers who apply for home insurance on Amazon must complete a questionnaire about their insurance needs. They will then see offers, reviews, and star ratings from other Amazon insurance partners. Users who have decided on a policy pay for it through Amazon’s online checkout. The service will be available for a few select customers. However, it will be available across the United Kingdom by the end of 2022.
The launch was “just the beginning,” implying that Amazon may eventually expand into other insurance categories. It is the first time the company has opened an insurance store. Previously available insurance products from Amazon include product warranty and third-party seller insurance. It is Amazon’s latest foray into the financial sector. The company already provides credit lines to merchants who sell items on its platform.
Changes Due to Inflation
Amazon raised the price of its Prime subscription service, which provides faster delivery times and TV and film streaming, to $139 from $119 in the United States earlier this year, highlighting the challenges posed by supply chain disruptions, labor constraints, and high inflation. The company has devoted significant resources to investigating and prosecuting fake review brokers to prevent them from orchestrating fake reviews in its store.
Amazon’s entry into the insurance market coincides with increased interest in insurance technology. Several startups have raised substantial sums of money from investors on the premise that insurance is a market in desperate need of digitization.
