Overview 1
Catalyst 1
Summary 1
Table of Contents 2
Table of figures 3
Table of tables 4
Market Context 5
Introduction 5
UK motorcycle insurance GWP grew slightly in 2006 but contracted in 2007 due to falling premium rates 5
Slow growth in bike numbers and lower premium rates resulted in only a slight increase in motorcycle GWP in 2006 5
Competitive pressure on premium rates resulted in an estimated market contraction of 1.0% in 2007 5
Premium rates fell again in 2007, while vehicle numbers continued to slowly increase 6
Premium rates declined for motorcycle risks in both 2006 and 2007 6
The motorcycle parc has continued to expand, bolstering the size of the market 7
The motorcycle parc has become older, though new registrations have not fallen much since 2004 8
Approximately the same number of new bikes were registered in 2006 as in 2005 8
Almost half of all motorcycles on Britain's roads were first registered more than five years ago 10
The motorcycle market remains bifurcated, with the largest and smallest models the most popular 10
The Suzuki GSXR 1000 became the most sought after motorcycle in 2007 12
Green bikes may rise in popularity in the future 12
Casualty and theft rates influence the claims bill for motorcycle insurance 13
Claims involving personal injury continued to drive claims inflation due to high medical and legal costs 13
Casualty rates are down, which should result in lower claims frequency for insurers 13
The pass rate for motorcycle tests have fallen slightly over the last decade 15
Theft rates also influence the motorcycle claims bill 17
Competitive Dynamics 20
Introduction 20
Few of the top motorcycle insurers managed to increase market share in 2006 20
Only two top 10 insurers, Equity Red Star and QBE, increased their market share in 2006 20
The majority of the top 10 motorcycle insurers lost premium income and market share in 2006 20
Some insurers began recording motorcycle premium income for the first time in 2006 21
Distribution is dominated by a few specialist brokers 24
Specialist brokers Carole Nash, Bennetts and Devitt dominate the distribution of motorcycle insurance 24
Carole Nash, now part of Groupama, is the largest motorcycle insurance broker in the UK 25
Bennetts is the second largest broker in the UK distributing over 200,000 motorcycle policies a year 25
Devitt, which is owned by RBSI, focuses on distributing insurance through motorcycle dealers 25
Motorcycle dealers and manufacturers have long been a key route to market for motorcycle insurance 26
Brokers advertising via the press dominated motorcycle insurance advertising in 2006 26
The amount spent on motorcycle advertisement increased in 2006 and brokers dominated the top 10 26
Press advertising in trade publications dominated the spend of the top advertisers 28
Future Decoded 31
Introduction 31
Motorcycle insurance GWP is forecast to increase in the near term before contracting again 31
A number of factors influence future GWP growth in the motorcycle market 31
Motorcycle GWP is expected to grow in most of the forecast period as competitive pressure lessens 31
APPENDIX 34
Supplementary data 34
Definitions 34
Premium income measures 34
Earned premiums 34
Gross Premium 35
Net Premium 35
Written premiums 35
Other definitions 35
Channel 35
Direct insurer/writer 35
Brokers 35
Bancassurers 35
Brandassurers 35
Platform 35
2005-06 definitions for line of business 36
Motor 36
Total private motor 36
Private motor comprehensive 36
Private motor non-comprehensive 36
Motorcycle 37
Pre-2005 definitions for lines of business 37
Motor 37
Methodology 37
Primary and secondary research 37
Market size 38
Changes in market size information 38
Market size methodology 38
Lloyd's players and underwriting result figures 38
Competitor data 38
CIS 38
GWP versus GEP reporting 38
Home-Foreign, overseas and facultative reinsurance business 39
Advertising statistics 39
Further reading 39
Ask the analyst 39
Datamonitor consulting 39
Disclaimer 39
List of Tables
Table 1: UK motorcycle insurance GWP, 2002-07e (£m) 6
Table 2: Motorcycle parc in Great Britain by body type, 2002-06 (000s) 8
Table 3: Motorcycles registered for the first time in Great Britain by body type, 2002-06 (000s) 9
Table 4: Motorcycle parc by age of first registration by body type, 2006 (000) 10
Table 5: Motorcycle parc by engine size and body type, 2002-06 (000s) 11
Table 6: Top 10 new motorcycle registrations by brand, year to date, November 2007 12
Table 7: Road traffic casualties in Great Britain, 1996-2006 15
Table 8: Number of motorcycle tests and pass rate in Great Britain, 1997/98-2006/07 17
Table 9: Theft of and from motor vehicles in the UK, 1996-2006/7 19
Table 10: Top 10 motorcycle insurers by market share, 2002-06 23
Table 11: UK motorcycle insurance competitors by premium income, 2002-06 (£000) 24
Table 12: Policy numbers and market share of top three UK motorcycle insurance brokers, 2007 26
Table 13: Top 10 motorcycle insurance advertisers, 2005-06 (£) 28
Table 14: Top 10 motorcycle insurance advertisers by media, 2006 (£) 30
Table 15: Key variables affecting motorcycle insurance GWP, 2007e-12f 31
Table 16: UK motorcycle insurance GWP forecast, 2002-12f (£m) 33
Table 17: Licensed motorcycles in Great Britain by taxation class as a proportion of total vehicle stock, 2002-06 (000s) 34
Table 18: New motorcycle registrations in Great Britain by taxation class, 2002-06 (000s) 34
List of Figures
Figure 1: Motorcycle GWP declined in 2007 after a slight increase in 2006 6
Figure 2: Bike numbers are growing, but at a slower rate than in previous years 7
Figure 3: The number of new bike registrations have remained almost flat since 2004 9
Figure 4: Bikes over 500cc, touring and superbikes, have dominated the market over the last five years 11
Figure 5: Motorcycle casualties as a proportion of total road casualties have fallen since 2003 14
Figure 6: Motorcycle test pass rates have fallen between 1997 and 2006, but increased in the last year 16
Figure 7: Theft of and from motor vehicles continued to decline in 2006/7 18
Figure 8: The market leader, Equity Red Star, increased its market share in 2006 22
Figure 9: The RBSI broker Devitt spent the largest amount marketing motorcycle insurance in 2006 27
Figure 10: Advertising in the press was the favored medium for motorcycle insurance providers in 2006 29
Figure 11: UK motorcycle premium income is forecast to increase slowly through most of the forecast period 32