Audience research
Part of Why the broad market label fails, and how to research insurance buyers in five steps
A reproducible checklist for researching insurance competitors, from permissions to panels
Research business insurance competitors serving England with a reproducible checklist for legal entities, permissions, panels, cover and service.
Competitor research should explain how another service works for a defined business risk. It should not copy marketing claims into a league table. For each insurer, broker, comparison site or affinity service aimed at England, use the same dated evidence fields and leave unknowns visible.
What to take away
Score evidence completeness separately from the customer proposition. Report who was included, why, when each record was checked and which fields could not be compared. Ask what unmet task the research reveals, then confirm it with actual or likely users.
- Keep one dated evidence row per competitor, with the source URL and the document version you checked.
- Record unknowns as clearly as confirmed fields, and avoid ranking a service where a key field is missing.
- Treat the research as reproduciblea second person should be able to follow the same steps and reach the same record.
Identify the accountable organisations
- Record the trading brand and exact legal entity.
- Check the entity and current permissions on the FCA Register.
- Identify insurer, intermediary, principal and appointed representative where stated.
- Save the source URL, document version and check date.
- Distinguish the seller from the firm handling adjustments, complaints and claims.
A brand footer is a lead, not the conclusion. Follow legal and regulatory disclosures until the parties in the journey can be mapped.
Map the accountable parties
- Trading brand and exact legal entity
- FCA Register entity and permissions
- Insurer, intermediary, principal, appointed representative
- Save source URL, version, check date
- Separate seller from claims handler
On the FCA Register, copy the exact 'Firm reference number (FRN)' and 'Status' fields into your evidence row. A sample row might look like this:
| Field | Entry | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal entity | Name from FCA Register | FCA Register | YYYY-MM-DD |
| FRN | Six-digit number | FCA Register | YYYY-MM-DD |
| Status | e.g. Authorised | FCA Register | YYYY-MM-DD |
| Permissions | e.g. Insurance distribution | FCA Register | YYYY-MM-DD |
Define the audience and route
- Record eligible trades, sizes, locations and excluded activities.
- State whether the route is direct, advised, non-advised, comparison or introduction.
- Name the insurer panel or note that it was not disclosed.
- Capture online, telephone and assisted-access routes.
- Test only with a truthful, authorised research scenario.
The FCA's SME insurance broker guidance tells businesses to establish whether a broker advises, uses a fair personal analysis or a limited panel, and how commission and premium finance affect cost. These questions provide a consistent research frame without ranking one model automatically above another.
Define audience and route
- Eligible trades, sizes, locations, exclusions
- Routedirect, advised, non-advised, comparison, introduction
- Insurer panel named or not disclosed
- Online, telephone and assisted-access routes
- Test with truthful authorised scenario
Compare products on matched facts
- Use one business description and effective date.
- Capture policy wording, summary, insurer and product version.
- Record covers, limits, excesses, definitions, exclusions and conditions.
- Separate a live quotation from an example or "from" price.
- Include fees, instalment cost and optional add-ons.
- Note questions or evidence that changed the outcome.
Do not submit fabricated personal data, accept a contract or generate operational cost for a competitor. If a reliable comparison requires a genuine customer quotation, obtain permission and redact the resulting record.
Examine service and commercial influence
- Trace document delivery, amendments, cancellation, renewal and claim notification.
- Record stated response times without presenting them as tested performance.
- Identify fees, commission descriptions, lead payments and sponsored position.
- Separate editorial order from commercial order.
- Collect complaint and correction routes.
FCA Handbook ICOBS 4 contains the applicable disclosures. ICOBS 4.4 covers status and service scope, while ICOBS 4.6 covers remuneration, including the commercial-customer commission provisions that give a right to request disclosure, subject to the rule text and application. Qualified review should decide what applies to each competitor and to the proposed publisher.
Assess product-governance evidence
FCA Handbook PROD 4.3 addresses distribution arrangements, target-market information and value for affected insurance distributors. Public pages may not expose all internal governance, so mark unavailable evidence as unavailable rather than inferring compliance or failure.
Turn observations into a decision
The decision log should end with a testable research question, an owner and a review date rather than a claim that the market has a gap.
Have a second reviewer check close calls, especially statements about advice, panel breadth, authorisation or who underwrites the policy. These fields affect how readers interpret the service and deserve more than a quick scan of a landing page. If the evidence remains ambiguous, omit the ranking and publish the limitation.
Before you act
- Check the entity and current permissions on the FCA Register.
- Use one business description and effective date for every comparison.
- Separate a live quotation from an example or from price.
- Do not submit fabricated personal data or accept a contract.
- Mark unavailable governance evidence as unavailable rather than inferring compliance.
- Have a second reviewer check close calls on advice and authorisation.
Common questions
How should I handle evidence that is not publicly available?
Public pages may not expose all internal governance, so mark unavailable evidence as unavailable rather than inferring compliance or failure. If the evidence remains ambiguous, omit the ranking and publish the limitation instead of guessing.
What should the decision log contain at the end?
The decision log should end with a testable research question, an owner and a review date. It should not claim the market has a gap, because competitor activity proves a route exists but not demand or fair value.
When should I repeat the competitor review?
Repeat the review on a planned schedule and after a material product or entity change. Preserve the earlier snapshot rather than overwriting it, so comparisons do not mix dates. Where a provider corrects a record, update the current finding and retain a note explaining the change.
