The Co-op Group’s insurance arm is among the businesses signing up for Amazon’s new price comparison venture, Insurance Store.
Co-op Insurance says customers will be able to purchase its policies on Amazon’s UK platform “alongside products they may need for their home like gadgets, electrical items, books and household items”.
Charles Offord, managing director or Co-op Insurance, said: “We’re committed to ensuring that our customers and members have access to home insurance that is fairly priced and offers total peace of mind, no matter where they chose to shop.
“We’re incredibly excited to be one of the first participating insurers for the Amazon Insurance Store. Our market-leading products will soon be available to more people than ever before, ensuring customers across the UK can enjoy unrivalled levels of cover.
“The way people are buying insurance is evolving and we want customers to feel empowered to purchase our products on the channel of their choice and in a way that suits them best.”
Amazon, which has also partnered with insurer Ageas UK and LV= General Insurance – formerly part of LV= Mutual until its sale to Allianz in 2020 – on the launch, says it will offer “like-for-like quote comparisons that customers can trust, a streamlined and simple quote questionnaire, and a checkout experience integrated with amazon.co.uk”, with its roll out starting this week and available to all customers by the end of the year on amazon.co.uk/insurance and the Amazon UK mobile app.
It added: “Each company has been carefully selected using a number of customer-focused criteria, including reasonable time frames for claims handling and resolution, and delivering on Amazon’s high-bar for customer service. Amazon will add more insurers to the Amazon Insurance Store early next year, giving customers even more selection.”
The Group’s previous deals with Amazon and other controversial tech giants like Deliveroo and Ubereats have prompted criticism from unions and platform co-op activists.
But for the Group, these platforms offer the scale it needs for its online expansion; last year, defending its home delivery deal with Amazon from critics, it said the tie-in would allow it to grow “our Co-op footprint, in a capital-light manner” and was part of a strategy to deliver commercial success to underpin its values.
- This article was amended on 10 November; it originally stated that LV= Mutual was partnering with Amazon, rather than LV= General Insurance
