Continued industry recognition for Fortis
Highlights:
- First insurer ever to achieve the Incisive Media Gold Standard
- Winner of the ifs Financial Innovation ‘Most Promising New Product - Insurance'
- Sixth time winner of the Insurance Times Awards ‘Motor Insurer of the Year'
- Voted ‘Insurer of Choice' in a survey of over 4,000 repairers
- Shortlisted International Travel Assistance/Claims Handler of the Year
Leading UK insurer Fortis has once again received continued high profile recognition from its peers in the UK insurance industry for its commitment to service and innovation.
In December the insurer was voted ‘Motor Insurer of the Year' for the sixth time at the annual Insurance Times Awards1. The award, voted by brokers, was presented to Adam Clarke, Underwriting Director, in front of over 1,200 guests from within the industry.
In November, Fortis was the first ever insurer to have been accredited Incisive Media Gold Standard for Insurance award2, presented at a ceremony hosted by Lord Hunt of Wirral at the House of Commons. This significant recognition assessed the company's performance across the five elements of trust, value, financial strength, service and its capability to conduct business well.
The Insurer also fought off powerful competition including Legal & General, HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland, winning ‘Most Promising New Product - Insurance' at this year's ifs Financial Innovation Awards3 announced at a ceremony in London on 19 November. The award was presented to Fortis for its innovative delivery of a new price comparison website, www.cheapercover.com, which was launched in March this year, designed to service Fortis' insurance partners and supersede that which already existed in the aggregator market place. The Company was also short listed for its commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility in its business operations.
Adding to the string of accolades, Fortis, the fourth largest travel insurer in the UK, was a finalist in the International Assistance/Claims Handler of the Year at the International Travel Insurance Awards. In October, the insurer's claims division was also voted ‘Insurer of Choice' by the Auto Body Professionals Club in a survey of approximately 4,000 vehicle repairers based on its relationship management, terms of agreement and overall repairer satisfaction.
Barry Smith, Chief Executive, Fortis comments: "Our insurance businesses in the UK continue to go from strength to strength and these accolades are a testament to the hard work and commitment that the team at Fortis deliver to achieve high levels of service, innovation and profitability.
"As a business we have seen some major steps forward in our strategy this year with the launch of new distribution channels and products, significant new appointments to the team, and the acquisition and maintenance of important partnerships, with recent examples including Greenbee [part of the John Lewis Partnership] and the Post Office. I'm optimistic about the opportunities we are already developing for 2009 and am proud of the team at Fortis in helping us to achieve these successes."
Sarah Godfrey, Associate Editor of Incisive Media's Financial Services Division and Chair of the judging panel of industry experts commented: "The fact that even in such turbulent financial times certain companies stand out for their commitment to treating customers fairly and the robustness of their processes, is a real indication of the enduring quality of the Gold Standard Award winners. A Gold Standard Award demonstrates that the winner commands trust, offers fair value for its products, is financially sound and delivers the highest level of service".
On judging CheaperCover.com for the ifs Financial Innovation Awards, Marc DonFrancesco, Group Head of Marketing, Towergate Partnership praised CheaperCover.com, commenting: "This has raised the bar for aggregators and provides a highly competitive process with good transparency. Highly efficient operations and a customer-friendly platform and feedback mechanism make this a clear winner."
-Ends -
Notes to editors
1 About the Insurance Times Awards - The 2008 Insurance Times took place on Friday 5 December at the Birmingham Hilton Metropole. 24 categories covering insurers, brokers, intermediaries, and service providers were presented in a gala ceremony which marked the highlight in this 12 month journey of recognising success, innovation and best practice in the industry. Four categories, including ‘Motor Insurer of the Year' were voted by brokers via independent research conducted by TNS. Fortis was also ‘Highly Commended' in the following categories: General Insurer of the Year, Commercial Lines Insurer of the Year, Personal Lines Insurer of the Year, Broker/Intermediary Innovation of the Year (CheaperCover.com), CSR Initiative of the Year, Personal Lines Broker of the Year (RIAS).
2About the Gold Standards Awards - Launched in 2003, The Gold Standard Awards aim to identify financial services companies that excel not just in service but in call five areas important to consumers of financial products and services - financial strength, capability of the company to conduct business, service, fair value and trust. No other awards consider all these elements, making the Gold Standards the hardest and potentially most sought after awards in the financial market place.
3 The ifs Financial Innovation Awards are held by the ifs School of Finance, an international organisation incorporated by Royal Charter, providing qualifications to the financial services industry since 1879. Today the ifs School of Finance has over 80,000 students in 100 countries. Now in their eleventh year, the ifs Awards recognise and support innovation in financial services.
Other recent accolades include:
- British Travel Awards Winner ‘Best Travel Insurance Company' (November 2008) - Post Office - Fortis is the sole supplier of the Post Office travel insurance account
- Green Business Awards Winner ‘Best Financial Business' (November 2008) - The Green Insurance Company - Fortis is the sole supplier of the Green Insurance motor policy.
- British Insurance Awards Winner ‘Claims Initiative of the Year' (July 2008) - Fortis motor claims
- British Insurance Awards ‘General Insurer of the Year' (Finalist July 2008, Winner July 2007) - Fortis
Photos are available on request.
Key facts on Fortis:
- Insures in excess of 6.7 million customers
- Approximately 2,900 employees
- Customer clients include Marks & Spencer, Age Concern, Post Office, Greenbee, Kwik Fit, AA
- 3rd largest private car insurer in the UK, based on volume
- Reported Profit Before Tax & Interest period ending 30 June 2008 was £43.3 million, Gross Written Premiums were £375.3 million
About Fortis
Fortis (Insurance UK) is a leading provider of award-winning personal and commercial lines insurance solutions in the UK. Insuring in excess of 6.7 million customers and working with a range of partners, Fortis is recognised for delivering consistent and high-quality customer experiences. It employs 2,901 people as of 31/12/07 with a head office based in Eastleigh and others in Belfast, Bournemouth, Gloucester, Haywards Heath, London, Redditch, and Stoke-on-Trent. In 2007, its profit before tax and interest (excluding impact of weather related events) was £92.2 million and its GWP was GBP 757.8 million.
Fortis (UK) Limited, its subsidiaries, and Fortis Life UK Limited are part of Fortis Insurance International. Fortis Insurance International is present with fully owned subsidiaries in UK, France, Hong Kong, Luxembourg (Non-Life), Germany, Turkey, Russia, Ukraine and with joint-ventures in Luxembourg (Life), Portugal, China, Malaysia, India and Thailand. Fortis Insurance International reported on 30 June 2008 a balance sheet total of EUR 26.6 billion and a total equity of EUR 1.6 billion. Gross inflow was EUR 2.8 billion for the consolidated companies (the fully owned subsidiaries and the joint venture in Portugal) and an additional EUR 1.6 billion for the joint ventures consolidated following the equity method. Funds under management of the Life business within the consolidated companies were EUR 21 billion.