Norwich Union’s Price Check Brings Price Comparison In-House

Following on from Norwich Union’s decision to withdraw from price comparison sites the Aviva company has now announced the launch of Price Check; it’s in-house car insurance comparison service.


If you request a car insurance quote from Norwich Union via its website or over the phone they will now provide you will alternative quote from other car insurance providers, even if they are cheaper than their own.

The move is certainly a unique one, there are very few businesses who will actively promote its competitors services.

The reactions seen in Norwich Union’s TV campaign to promote Happy’s Price Check reflect this extremely well.

Whether or not this offer strikes the right note with customers remains to be seen. It should also be interesting to see if any other insurers decide to follow suit and what impact (if any) this has on price comparison sites operating in the UK motor insurance market.

First reactions would suggest several price comparison sites are unimpressed with the Price Check service; gocompare.com, confused.com and insurancewide.com all had interesting views.

Will this move pay off for Norwich Union? Do price comparison sites have anything to fear or is this just some flash in the pan? We’d love to hear your thoughts about Happy’s Price Check.


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Norwich Union Car Insurance Boycotts Price Comparison Sites

Insurance giant Norwich Union has taken the decision to pull its motor insurance policies from car insurance comparison sites. This means you can only get a Norwich Union car insurance quote directly from norwichunion.com

In a move that mirrors the stance taken by Direct Line if you search for car insurance on one of the UK's many price comparison sites you won't be able to see quotes from Norwich Union and compare them against other insurance companies.

Director of Marketing at Norwich Union, David Tyers, said: "We think direct should mean direct. As a brand with 200 years behind it, we think that customers trust us."

Given the continued success of price comparison sites this is a bold move. Not being visible to people who use these services is not without risk. On the upside Norwich Union will avoid having to pay fees for customer referrals. In a time when the global credit crunch is biting any saving a company can make will be welcomed. Whether or not this turns out to be a good decision, only time will tell.

The move has, unsurprisingly, received criticism from some price comparison sites including confused.com, gocompare.com and insurancewide.com.

All this arguing aside the only point that really matters is how this affects car insurance customers. We all want a policy that offers a sensible level of cover but we don't want to pay over the odds.

If more insurance companies join Norwich Union and Direct Line in boycotting price comparison sites it means more time spent shopping around to find quotes, making it more difficult for customers to find the best deals.