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Summary
In 2020, the insurance brokerage market continued to evolve under the influence of various factors, including increased digitization, regulatory changes and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although exact numerical data beyond 2020 is not provided in the text, past trends indicate that the market was facing intensifying competition, a shift towards niche segments and the need to adapt to digital platforms. Insurance brokers, faced with the pressure of shrinking margins and market consolidation, were exploring specialized niches such as pet insurance, collectors' insurance and unpaid rent insurance in order to maintain profitability.
Regulatory changes, in particular the impending Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD), would reshape the landscape by imposing self-regulation, increasing transparency of remuneration and imposing more stringent requirements on advice.
The pandemic also loomed as a challenge, likely to affect brokers' revenues due to its economic repercussions, which could have an impact on premiums indexed to customer sales. Despite these challenges, brokers, who represent a significant share of the intermediary market, must continue to navigate this dynamic to remain competitive and meet changing customer needs.
Trends and dynamics in the insurance brokerage market
In France's booming insurance market, brokers have experienced a period of heightened competition, exacerbated by the maturing of the market and the increasingly important digital shift. With insurance premiums showing minimal growth, the pressure on insurance brokers has increased, driving them to explore niche markets more aggressively to sustain growth and profitability.
An important facet influencing market demand is the rise of digitalization, with entities such as Trèfle Assurances revolutionizing the offering by providing fully dematerialized insurance products. Against this backdrop of digital upheaval, brokers are forced to adapt to the changing landscape by creating online platforms, or risk being overtaken by nimble competitors exploiting internet-based models.
The French insurance market has seen moderate expansion, with annual premium growth of around 2.5%, to reach values of between 215 and 225 billion euros. Sectors showing dynamic growth are mainly health and personal accident insurance, with an average annual growth rate of over 4% over the past five years. Against this backdrop, certain segments present striking contrasts. Life insurance, for example, while representing the largest expense, is showing limited progress, with an average annual growth rate of around 2%.
at the other end of the spectrum, health and personal accident insurance are growing steadily. The importance of insurance intermediaries in these segments varies considerably, with banks also playing a key role in premium collection in specific markets such as France and Italy.
This competitive and evolving market is subject to strict regulatory oversight, with mechanisms such as the Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD) designed to refine practices and promote transparency. Brokers are now required to join professional associations and are subject to a self-regulation regime to ensure compliance with industry standards. While generalist brokers still account for the lion's share, with sales of over 400 million euros for the leading companies, the market is segmented into several players, including specialists and online brokers.
A notable trend is the growing presence of hyper-specialized brokers in niche markets - such as pet insurance and unpaid rent insurance - enabling them to maintain considerable profit margins and strategic differentiation.
Overall, the insurance brokerage market in France presents a complex and nuanced landscape. With the rise of digital offerings and the emergence of specialized niches, the market structure is constantly being redefined. As each market segment reacts differently to these changes, the landscape for brokers is both challenging and full of opportunities for those who manage to navigate.
Leading insurance brokers in the French market
The French insurance brokerage market is characterized by a variety of key players, each serving distinct segments and employing different strategies to meet their customers' needs. Among them, some companies stand out for their specialized services and in-depth knowledge of the sector.
- Gras Savoye is a leading general broker, offering a wide range of insurance solutions to a broad customer base. Recognized for its comprehensive services, Gras Savoye is a major player in the French brokerage landscape, drawing on its extensive network and expertise to meet the varied insurance needs of its customers.
- Verspieren is another major player in the general brokerage category, maintaining a strong market presence. Verspieren prides itself on offering tailor-made insurance packages that meet the changing demands of businesses and individuals.
- SPB Group is carving out a niche by focusing on specific insurance markets, with specialized offerings that align with distinct customer needs. This focus on specialized segments enables SPB Group to offer a depth of service that is difficult to match in the more generalist sphere.
- Cbp, which demonstrates prowess in the sectors it chooses to serve. Cbp's specialist knowledge and consultative approach enable it to design insurance products that are finely tuned to the unique risks and challenges faced by its customers in their respective fields.
- Assurpeople. As an online broker, Assurpeople harnesses the power of technology to reach its customers where they are most active - online. This access to digital convenience resonates with modern consumers, particularly those who are comfortable managing their insurance matters via digital platforms.
Each company in this multi-tiered market brings a unique approach to insurance brokerage, ensuring customers get the right coverage, whether they need general insurance solutions or highly specialized policies. Together, these key market players contribute to a dynamic and complex landscape, responding to the diverse and changing insurance needs of the French population.
- These market leaders - Gras Savoye, Verspieren, SPB Group, Cbp, and Assurpeople - have positioned themselves effectively by grasping the complexities of the French insurance brokerage sector. Their personalized approaches and customer-centric solutions continue to shape the future of insurance brokerage in France.
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Inforamtion
- Number of pages : 30 pages
- Format : Digital and PDF versions
- Last update : 09/11/2021
Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Definition and scope of study
An insurance broker is a merchant who acts on behalf of his clients (companies or individuals). His or her role is to determine the most suitable insurance, in terms of price and coverage, for the needs of his or her clients. It's a matter of advising them, but also of supporting them through regular follow-up. unlike insurance agents, insurance brokers enjoy a certain neutrality , since they do not act on behalf of an insurance company.
Overall, the insurance sector is in good shape. Eetween 2017 and 2021, for example, worldwide life and non-life insurance premiums rose by 10% and 73% respectively. In terms of total contributions, France ranks 6th in the world. It is important to note that France saw a 20% drop in contributions in 2020 compared with 2019, returning to the same level as in 2014. The figures for 2021 and 2022 then showed an upturn in business dynamism, and even posted record contributions, as for life insurance, for example. [FFA]
In 2023, there will be 37,340 brokers in France. [ModelesdeBusinessPlan]. With this number rising steadily since 2014,competition is intensifying between the various players, all the more so as the digitalization of the sector is forcing changes in practices (Trèfle Assurances, for example, offers a completely dematerialized package). Brokers are positioning themselves in niche segments, which offer greater growth prospects.
The insurance sector is particularly dependent on regulatory changes. The entry into force of the DDA (Insurance Distribution Directive) and future decrees, which are set to regulate the business by imposing self-regulation on brokers, are bound to profoundly alter their activity. The health crisis has inevitably had an impact on the sector, even if brokers have managed to reap the benefits, for example by strengthening their customer relations, but since 2021 the market has been recovering.
List of charts
- Countries with the highest life and non-life insurance premiums
- Share of insurance brokers among intermediaries
- Life and non-life insurance premiums
- Global market rankings by insurance premiums
- Market share breakdown by distribution channel for the Life and Non-Life sectors
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Latest news
April in talks with DLPK to expand its savings business - 08/12/2023
- The KKR fund acquired the April broker eight months earlier.
- April is preparing a major acquisition with the DLPK Group.
- April acquired the Magnacarta network of asset managers in 2022.
- With DLPK, April could manage around 15 billion euros in financial assets.
- The size of these assets would be close to that of the total assets of Groupe Cyrus and Maison Herez.
- The KKR fund bought April for a valuation of almost 2.4 billion euros.
- DLPK has 250 employees and sales of 135 million euros in 2022.
- DLPK currently has around 12 billion euros in savings assets.
- The BlackFin fund owns 34% of DLPK, and acquired a stake in 2018.
Acheel: The crisis and neo-insurance - 27/10/2023
- Start-ups in the online insurance sector, known as insurtechs, have seen venture capital funds become more cautious and financing more scarce over the past eighteen months.
- After its launch, insurtech Acheel passed the 100,000 contract mark.
- Acheel has been profitable since the end of 2022, and claims 350,000 contracts representing 135 million euros in premiums.
- In-vehicle insurance will account for over $700 billion in premiums by 2030, or 25% of the total global market.
- Luko is an online insurance start-up
- According to "L'Argus de l'assurance", the British Admiral Group, which owns L'olivier Assurance in France, has decided not to acquire the start-up
- Luko has raised over 100 million euros.
- Lovys reduced its workforce by 40% between January and July 2022.
HLD acquires Vilavi - 02/08/2023
- Investment group HLD Europe plans to acquire the Vilavi group, one of France's leading insurance brokerage firms.
- Vilavi's main insurance partners include the French entities of Allianz, Generali, Swiss Life, MFA and Wakam.
- 1,500 employees and 550,000 insured customers.
- Vilavi, founded in 1975, has 320 branches, online platforms and a wholesale broker.
- It generated sales of almost 150 million euros last year.
Premium becomes a savings giant - 31/07/2023
- Blackstone, the world's leading private equity firm, will invest 400 million euros in Premium, including 300 million in debt. Following the transaction, Blackstone is expected to hold around 10% of Premium's share capital.
- The Barings fund will contribute 300 million euros of debt to Premium.
- After the double operation, Premium will be valued at 1.15 billion euros, a record amount for an independent asset management group in France. Premium's valuation in 2021 was 290 million euros.
- Premium manages 8.5 billion euros in savings assets.
- Premium's sales are expected to rise from 30 million euros in 2018 to 263 million euros in 2023
- Premium employs 275 people and has 1,100 agents.
- Premium plans to work with 5,000 independent agents in five years' time.
- The company is looking to expand into Italy, Spain and Belgium.
- Some forty new acquisitions are being considered for Premium in France.
Insurance: broker Verlingue gains a foothold in Italy | Verlingue invests in Italy. - 12/07/2023
- French broker Verlingue expands into a fifth country with the acquisition of Inser.
- This is Verlingue's seventh foreign acquisition.
- Inser, with 8 offices and 160 employees, is an Italian company representing over 10% of Verlingue's capital.
- Inser, a Top 15 player in the Italian market, places 130 million euros in annual premiums and generates sales of around 20 million euros.
- Verlingue aims to become a major European broker, independent and family-owned, following in the footsteps of the leading French player Diot-Siaci , in which the Burrus family is the leading shareholder, ahead of financial partners.
- By 2022, Verlingue's business had grown by 9% to 338 million euros.
"Mastering the distribution of Afer contracts" - Abeille Assurances' objective. - 05/07/2023
- Abeille Assurances manages almost all of Afer's 55 billion euros in assets under management.
- The acquisition of Bureaux de l'Epargne by Abeille Assurances is the company's third such operation since last year.
- Following this acquisition, Abeille Assurances will control two-thirds of the networks that marketed Afer products.
- The Bureaux de l'Epargne contribute 4.5 billion euros in assets, in addition to the 16 billion euros of Epargne Actuelle
- 753.000 members are currently registered.
- The aim is to attract 20-30,000 new members a year. Les Bureaux de l'Epargne employs 39 people and Epargne Actuelle 120.
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