Table of Contents
1. Executive Summary 2
1.1. Market summary 2
1.2. Key findings 2
1.3. Critical success factors 2
2. Market Context 8
2.1. Introduction 8
2.1.1. The PII market 8
2.2. The size of the PII market has remained stable 8
2.3. Underlying demand for PII remains saturated among traditional professions, with greater growth in miscellaneous occupations 10
2.3.1. Regulatory, financial, and competitive pressures have driven consolidation, leading to stagnant or declining business numbers in the legal and financial advice sectors 10
2.3.2. Consolidation has impacted demand in the small- and medium-sized accountancy sector, while the number of audit firms continues to decline 10
2.3.3. Growth in the number of architecture and engineering firms has outstripped other areas of traditional PII 11
2.3.4. Consolidation has put pressure on professional indemnity insurers, while sole traders have required a different approach 13
2.3.5. While growth in traditional PII policyholder numbers may be slowing, turnover has continued to rise, indicating greater risk exposure for professional indemnity insurers 14
2.3.6. Much of the growth in underlying demand is occurring among non-traditional professions and SMEs 15
2.3.7. Technology, management consultancy, and contractors are all areas of growth 16
2.3.8. PII is believed to be fairly saturated among larger risks, with most new business emerging among SMEs 17
2.4. Premium rates remained under significant pressure in 2017, but signs of a turnaround are on the cards 18
2.4.1. Strong competition has placed unsustainable pressure on premium rates in recent years 18
2.4.2. There have been some indications that the market may be about to turn, with less willingness to reduce rates in 2017 18
2.4.3. Pockets of rate rises were in evidence in 2017 as a result of sector-specific dynamics 18
2.5. Profitability has reached unsustainable levels 19
2.5.1. The major factors causing a drag on profitability have been persistent rate reductions and an increase in claims frequency and severity 19
2.6. The issues facing the wider market are brought into sharp relief in the solicitor space 20
2.6.1. Solicitor PII rates have continued to fall, with highly competitive October 2017 renewals 20
2.6.2. Profitability challenges mean rates are expected to increase in 2018 20
2.7. Higher growth is expected in the PII market over the next couple of years 21
2.7.1. Rate increases are expected in many areas of the market in 2018 21
2.7.2. Demand for PII will continue to grow, but will be countered by the economic slowdown 21
2.7.3. UK PII GWP will show healthier growth in 2018 and beyond 21
2.7.4. While predictions for future economic performance are fraught with uncertainty, there are some concerning indications for the PII market 23
2.7.5. Sectoral issues could also impact the future growth of the overall market 24
2.8. Cyber remains a key emerging issue 25
2.8.1. Cyber-related PII claims continue to grow 25
2.8.2. Silent cyber risks are a focus for the PRA, although insurers feel clear about coverage 25
2.8.3. Duplication of cover and clarity on sales messages remains an important issue 25
3. Professional Indemnity Insurance And Smes 26
3.1. Introduction 26
3.2. Just under a third of SMEs providing advice do not hold PII 26
3.3. Having purchased professional indemnity cover, 10% of SMEs find it difficult to understand 28
3.4. Brokers remain the most popular channel for purchasing PII, but other channels are snapping at their heels 29
3.5. The internet is the favored platform for SMEs buying PII 30
3.6. Over half of SMEs with PII could be described as price sensitive 31
3.7. The majority of SMEs with cyber cover also have PII 32
4. Competition 34
4.1. Introduction 34
4.1.1. AIG and Zurich were the leading company market PII insurers in 2015 34
4.1.2. Insurers have withdrawn from certain sectors in recent years, with signs of a capacity contraction meaning more such announcements are likely 34
4.1.3. Travelers, QBE, and AmTrust lead the way in solicitors PII 35
4.2. AXA and Hiscox fight it out as SMEs' most selected insurer for professional indemnity cover 35
4.3. Hiscox was the favored insurer for PII placement among brokers in 2017 37
5. Appendix 38
5.1. Abbreviations and acronyms 38
5.2. Definitions 38
5.2.1. SMEs 38
5.3. Methodology 39
5.3.1. Primary and secondary research 39
5.3.2. GlobalData's 2017 UK Commercial Broker Survey 39
5.3.3. GlobalData's 2017 UK SME Insurance Survey 39
5.4. Bibliography 40
5.5. Further reading 41
List of Tables
Table 1: UK PII GWP (£m), 2013-17e 9
Table 2: Number of businesses by size in key traditional professional indemnity professions, 2013-17 13
Table 3: UK PII GWP (£m) and growth (%), 2013-21f 23
List of Figures
Figure 1: UK PII GWP has grown slowly since 2013 9
Figure 2: Growth in the number of employers within traditional PII professions has generally not kept pace with the wider economy 11
Figure 3: With the exception of financial advice, growth in the number of sole traders within traditional PII professions typically outpaced the wider economy until the start of 2017 12
Figure 4: Since 2013 average turnover has increased notably faster among traditional PII profession employers than among private sector employers 15
Figure 5: Tech and management consultancy businesses are growing faster than the private sector as a whole 17
Figure 6: Premium rate rises will counter slower economic performance and lead to higher rates of growth for UK PII GWP 22
Figure 7: PII penetration generally rises along with company size 27
Figure 8: The majority of SMEs providing advice without PII do not think they need it 28
Figure 9: Small enterprises find PII hardest to understand 29
Figure 10: Brokers are the most popular channel among SMEs for purchasing PII 30
Figure 11: While loyalty is high, scrutiny of provider is greatest among larger businesses 32
Figure 12: Penetration of cyber insurance rises in line with business size 33
Figure 13: Hiscox and AXA are the UK's largest SME professional indemnity insurers 36
Figure 14: Hiscox and Lloyd's are SMEs' favored professional indemnity insurers 37
