John Muir, Managing Director of Technical & Operational Practices, GB, Willis Towers Watson urges the London Market to get on board with electronic placement to improve efficiency and customer services.
The introduction of electronic placement through Placing Platform Limited (PPL) is both a huge responsibility and opportunity for the London Market. Our position as the epicentre of the global insurance market means that the wider industry looks to London for leadership on change. We gave it to them with contract certainty, and we have a responsibility to do the same by driving inefficiency from our market to improve our services to clients.
And the opportunity for us all is huge – to really grow our market. We all talk about being more appealing in Birmingham, Alabama, but rather closer to home Birmingham in the Midlands offers some pretty good potential clients. Being easier to do business with can only increase our attractiveness across the board, and PPL is key to that.
And PPL works. It’s not perfect but we have successfully bound over 400 risks – that is 900 underwriting lines. We have thoroughly kicked the tyres. Willis Towers Watson, Marsh and Aon are all throwing our weight behind the system.
And even old brokers like me can see how easy it is to use. I have been through several demos and it is no more complicated than online shopping – and it takes less than an hour to get trained on the system. Don’t listen to market rumour or someone else’s opinion – go and see it for yourself.
When the Underground introduced oyster cards, they never envisaged taking payment by phone. All technology is about a journey – I would urge you to get on board with PPL or risk us all being left behind.