General Insurance Article - UK insurers accelerate hiring and technological innovation

 • The general insurance industry sees the acceleration of transformational change as the biggest opportunity to come from Brexit.
 • The biggest risk (87%) is potential changes in access to EU markets.
 • A third (33%) of the UK’s general insurers haven’t analysed the impact leaving the EU will have on their staff.

 Insurers are responding to the uncertainty surrounding the future of passporting rights and access to EU markets by focusing on customers.

 Jonathan Howe, UK insurance leader at PwC, commented: “Much of the insurance industry is more focused on domestic markets than, say, investment banking so while business uncertainty is still very much a concern for insurers, it is not as pressing as in other areas of financial services.”

 “However, London is a global centre for insurance so it is reassuring to see UK companies say they intend to increase employment in the wake of the referendum result. However, it is surprising that a third of the industry has not yet taken steps to understand how the UK leaving the EU will impact its people. The sooner firms understand the potential impact, the sooner they can reassure staff and concentrate on making the most of the opportunities ahead.”

 “It seems insurers accept that uncertainty in the UK market will continue for the foreseeable future and, as a result, they are planning to up their game. Investing in technology and talent has been a trend for some time now and insurance firms are thinking outside the box for transformational change in a post-Brexit world.”