Gocompare.com defends comparison websites
Date: 22/01/2008 11:41:39
Comparison website Gocompare.com is rallying against claims by the British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA) that such sites base their quotations on "assumptions".
Earlier this month, research by BIBA discovered that the majority of insurance buyers do not understand the differences between policies offered on comparison sites, while 93 per cent of consumers feel that the portals should be regulated in the same way as insurance intermediaries.
BIBA chief executive Eric Galbraith called for the Financial Services Authority to consider developing appropriate regulations for websites to ensure that consumers are protected.
"All the major insurance comparison sites are already authorised and regulated by the FSA, as are the insurance companies and the brokers who appear on them," responded the website.
GoCompare.com added that comparison sites have been "a force for good" by allowing consumers to check their premiums against those offered by other firms while also providing plenty of information about the products.