Direct Line launches campaign against price comparison services

One of the UK’s best known car insurance companies, Direct Line Insurance, has launched a campaign against price comparison websites that help consumers to find that they claim is the cheapest insurance for their needs.

Price comparison websites require consumers to input a number of details, and then use these details to find the cheapest deal on car insurance cover. However, this is only from their database of insurers and not from every major insurance company in the UK.

According to research carried out by Direct Line over 40 percent of consumers that had used price comparison services to find cheaper vehicle insurance had thought that all major insurance companies would be included in the search.

The research also goes on to indicate that over 90 percent of those that have bought their vehicle insurance cover through a price comparison site feel that there should be some sort of warning so that consumers know right away that not all insurance companies are part of the database.

The Royal Bank of Scotland owns Direct Line, as well as Churchill and Privilege, and will not provide any quotes for customers through price comparison websites. An advertising campaign has now been launched by Direct Line to make consumers aware that price comparison sites do not represent all leading insurance companies in the UK.

One Direct Line spokesperson stated: ‘Consumers are confused about price comparison websites and our research shows many believe they provide an independent, public service designed to ensure consumers get the best deal on their insurance. Unfortunately this is not the case, as these websites are really just on-line middlemen who make money out of commissions on insurance sales, just like a traditional high street broker.’

Tom Smith
1st July 2007

Tags: compare, search, sites, market, Insurance, all, comparison, home, cheaper, car

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