Penny Black's Insurance Week - 26 September 2013

Grilling the sector as part of the Competition Commission’s investigation into motor insurance, Alasdair Smith, the chair of the investigation, joked that he usually felt a twinge of embarrassment when reminding witnesses about answering honestly but, in regard to insurers, he was more than happy to jog their memory. “Given that we have all sat at the end of phone lines and been enjoined by insurance companies that we must always tell the truth, on this occasion I do not feel embarrassed about reminding you.” The truth hurts.

Meanwhile, with efficiency a major buzzword in the insurance market, Penny was surprised to hear of an insurer’s response to a member of staff who calculated the number of man-hours wasted by staff making hot drinks, including time spent filling and boiling the kettle and spillages. Said employee’s contract was not renewed, as management felt their time could have been better spent. Urns have since been adopted, though...

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