PRESS RELEASE
ActiveQuote.com, the UK’s first true price comparison website for private health insurance, has officially launched. As well the revolutionary price comparison service it provides to consumers, ActiveQuote is expected to transform the way IFAs and intermediaries source health cover by making it much easier for them to search the entire market, examine benefits, generate and compare quotes and therefore find the best policy for their clients.
Richard Theo, Director of ActiveQuote, says: “For the first time ever, we’re offering intermediaries the chance to view the entire private health insurance market in a simple web-based process. Easier, quicker and more thorough, our ActiveQuote Pro offering will revolutionise the health insurance market for intermediaries.”
Active Broker racing to get his ActiveQuotes to his customer
The new, completely independent website, www.activequote.com, quotes all leading UK health policies and offers intermediaries two specific, easy-to-operate services which fall under the ‘ActiveQuote Pro’ tag.
The ‘Introducer’ service is designed for intermediaries who are not authorised to sell PMI or who are authorised but would prefer to outsource PMI sales. Intermediaries introduce leads to ActiveQuote via the ActiveQuote.com website where they can then track the progress made on leads and see the commission they have earned.
The ActiveQuote Pro ‘Expert’ service is for IFAs or Intermediaries who wish to sell PMI themselves. ‘Expert’ intermediaries need to be FSA Authorised to sell PMI/General Insurance and need agency agreements with all the insurers whose policies they wish to offer. Otherwise they need to be a member of a network or commission club through which they can buy PMI as an Appointed Representative or Registered Individual.
Richard comments: “The ActiveQuote Pro services empower the busy IFA to sell PMI where previously they couldn’t or wouldn’t. We provide rapid all-of-the-market quote generation, benefit comparison and our system even pre-fills the insurer’s own PDF application forms with the customer’s information and selections to reduce ever growing administrative burden on IFAs. Through our ActiveQuote Pro portal intermediaries can manage their leads and quotations, see a full audit history and get a full status report.”
ActiveQuote.com presents up to 75 health insurance quotes drawn from all leading UK health policy providers. Unlike other systems which start with the cheapest option, ActiveQuote presents the best available options around the customer’s budget or renewal premium including “switch quotes.”
Richard says: “As most IFAs and other intermediaries will tell you. The cheapest policy isn’t always the best, especially when dealing with something as critical as health insurance. Also our ability to provide accurately priced switch quotes means that brokers are not limited to finding new customers but can confidently approach customers with existing PMI cover offering the option to change insurer without loss of cover for pre-existing conditions.”
Intermediaries can tailor each quote according to their client’s preferences with an instant price update. For example they can adjust the excess, choose a different hospital list, select the most suitable discount scheme, add or remove options such as dental cover and much more. Equally, they can refine the search by specifying which policy benefits are critical and, true to its ‘active’ name, the system automatically removes quotes that don’t match. This is ideal if an advisor is with a client and wants instant results there and then.
Richard adds: “As an optional extension to the ‘Expert’ service, we also offer a facility to easily add a ‘get quotes’ page on the IFA’s own website with the quote generation function handled by ActiveQuote.”
Unlike other health insurance comparison sites, www.activequote.com is an independent FSA Authorised Broker and is completely impartial.
Richard says: “We’re not biased towards any insurer, we have no vested interest, and our commitment is to making health insurance more accessible. With the recent decline in the loans and mortgages market, IFAs are increasingly looking for other financial services products and ActiveQuote unlocks the potential of PMI for them.”
The launch of the site has come at the right time. ABI figures published earlier this year show that the number of people covered by private medical insurance continued to rise. In 2008, 6,224,000 people were covered by either personal or corporate PMI, an increase on 2007 of 3.7%. Also, a study in August by Lloyds Banking Group showed that 25% of directors are prepared to put an end to all forms of employee benefits.
Richard adds: “A large number of staff are losing the benefit of a company health insurance scheme and are faced with having to find their own policy. They need to protect their family and don’t want to get it wrong, that’s why they turn to their IFAs. ActiveQuote simplifies things, helping the IFA quickly zone in on the option that’s right for their client.”
For a free trial with ActiveQuote Pro please visit www.activequote.com or speak to an adviser on 0800 8620373.
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For more information, to request images or to arrange an interview, please contact:
David Barrett, david@energypr.co.uk, 01993 823011
Or
Louise Findlay-Wilson, louise@energypr.co.uk, 01993 823011
© ActiveQuote Health Ltd. 2009