John Lewis creates partnership with best in class experts to deliver modernised Home Insurance offer

Friday 16 October 2020

John Lewis & Partners has today announced that it has collaborated with four best-in-class experts from within the insurance industry to create a new home insurance product for its customers. The partnership includes Digital Partners, a Munich Re company, providing insurance expertise, the innovation team at Sedgwick managing claims handling, the Hood Group managing customer service and queries in the UK and ICE InsureTech delivering the policy administration solution. 

While John Lewis has an existing successful home insurance business, from early next year it plans to deliver an innovative product designed with customers that is reassuring, fairer and targeted at a much wider audience.  

Pippa Wicks, Executive Director, John Lewis, said: “As part of our new Partnership Plan, we have a big ambition to grow our financial services offering to customers over the next five years.  To support this, we’re delighted to have created a partnership with these innovative experts from within the insurance industry.  While we have offered home insurance for fourteen years, together with our new partners we will re-imagine our home insurance offer to provide our customers with reassuring and fairer cover that is more relevant to them than ever before.” 

Dr. Thomas Blunck, Member of the Board of Management, Munich Re, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with such a prestigious UK retailer.  This partnership highlights Munich Re’s continued commitment to building new insurance solutions, meeting customers’ growing demand for flexible products, immediate fulfilment and coverage.”

Neil Gibson, Chief Operating Officer, Sedgwick International UK, said: “This new partnership is an exciting venture for us. By using our centralised dedicated customer claims platform, combined with automated policy validation and settlement, we will be able to provide John Lewis customers with a reimagined digital solution that makes claims easy for everyone.”

Simon Hood, Chief Executive, Hood Group, said: “We are delighted to have been selected as the sales and service provider for John Lewis and I know that our talented team will take care of their customers.  We share their vision to transform home insurance and look forward to playing our part in making that happen. 

Andrew Passfield, Chief Executive Officer, ICE InsureTech, said: “We are delighted to be working with John Lewis and to be selected as their chosen policy administration service provider. We have extensive knowledge in the insurance, data and insurtech world and our platform and team will arm John Lewis for the challenge of reinventing the home insurance space.” 

^{*John Lewis standard home insurance is currently underwritten by RSA.  All new quotes for non-specialist home insurance policies from 1 February 2021 will be offered in partnership with Digital Partners, Sedgwick, Hood Group and ICE InsureTech. Specialist Home Insurance will continue to be offered in partnership with Covea.} 

About the John Lewis Partnership

The John Lewis Partnership owns and operates two of Britain's best-loved retail brands - John Lewis and Waitrose. Started as a radical idea nearly a century ago, the Partnership is the largest employee-owned business in the UK and amongst the largest in the world, with over 80,000 employees who are all Partners in the business. For all intents and purposes, the Partnership is a social enterprise; the profits made are reinvested into the business - for customers and Partners. John Lewis operates 42 shops plus one outlet across the UK as well as johnlewis.com. Waitrose has 335 shops in England, Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands, including 61 convenience branches, and another 27 shops at Welcome Break locations. Waitrose exports products to more than 50 countries worldwide and has 12 shops which operate under licence in the UAE. The retailer's omni-channel business includes the online grocery service, waitrose.com, as well as specialist online shops including waitrosecellar.com for wine and waitroseflorist.com for plants and flowers.

John Lewis Finance

John Lewis Finance offers customers first-class financial products and services which they can have confidence in, delivered with the expertise and customer service that John Lewis is known for. Its products include home, pet, car, foreign currency, and its Partnership Card - which enables customers to earn points every time they spend. For details of all the products and services go to www.johnlewisfinance.com