A good one in five insurance contracts is now concluded digitally – and the trend is rising. According to the industry association GDV, 19.1 percent of contracts were concluded digitally last year, 16.7 percent in 2022 and 15.3 percent in the year before. While the GDV speaks of significant growth, the broker association BVK comes to the conclusion that internet sales have only increased slightly.
Digital insurance sales in Germany are showing a “remarkable development,” said Jörg Asmussen, CEO of the German Insurance Association (GDV). It follows the general trend of digitization of everyday life and consumer behavior, said Asmussen.
The results come from a special survey conducted by the GDV among its member companies, which, according to their own statements, account for around 80 percent of premium income. Only private customer business was taken into account. The GDV defined digital transactions as those that are made without human support or advice – for example via a website, a comparison portal or an app.
Source: GDV
The fact that insurance can be taken out without advice is regularly criticized by the Federal Association of German Insurance Agents (BVK). BVK President Michael Heinz has been traveling around the country for several years with the slogan “No sales without advice!”
In a statement sent by the BVK on Wednesday just a few hours after the GDV report, Heinz stressed that the sales channel via insurance brokers remains dominant, despite a trend towards digital insurance. Around 80 percent of all insurance policies are “concluded through qualified advice and mediation by insurance agents,” according to the BVK. In addition, internet sales have increased “only slightly.”
But despite the BVK’s differing assessment of online growth, the insurance association GDV is keen to praise the value that insurance brokers have for the industry. “Personal advice and support remain crucial,” says Berlin. With a share of around 80 percent of new contracts, this “continues to have a high priority.” Consumers rely on advice, particularly when it comes to protecting themselves against existential risks or for pension products such as life insurance, reports the GDV. In this segment, the share of digital contracts has stagnated for years at just under three percent.
The already strong online sales in motor insurance have increased again
A somewhat more dynamic picture emerges in the property/accident liability sector – here the share of new business from contracts concluded digitally was 15.5 percent in 2023 – which corresponds to an increase of 2.5 percentage points compared to 2022. Examples of insurance policies in this segment that are particularly frequently concluded digitally are so-called embedded insurance policies such as equipment protection insurance or extended warranties. “Such policies are often purchased at the same time as expensive consumer goods are purchased online,” comments GDV General Manager Asmussen.
The proportion of digital contracts is also traditionally high for motor vehicle insurance: around a quarter (24.4 percent) of contracts in this segment are concluded over the Internet. The proportion has been at this level for years, and has increased slightly compared to 2022 (23.9 percent). However, this is not a problem for the BVK broker association: “Only in the motor vehicle sector with its annual cancellation option and for small-volume contracts such as international health insurance and supplementary health insurance are the proportions of digitally concluded contracts slightly higher at around 25 and 30 percent respectively,” says Bonn.
Because Germans like to take out supplementary health insurance online, a mixed picture emerges in the health insurance sector: While private full health insurance is rarely taken out without personal advice, the share of contracts concluded digitally in the entire sector is now 29.4 percent – an increase of 2.8 percentage points compared to 2022, as the GDV reports. Measured by the premium volume, however, the share of digital contracts is only a good ten percent in 2023, since supplementary health insurance and international health insurance policies tend to involve manageable sums.
Author: Lorenz Klein
