Broker relationships are the backbone of Hollard Insure’s business model, so it is gratifying to win a prestigious industry award – voted for by brokers – for the corporate short-term insurer of the year.
Hollard Insure this year shares the Financial Intermediaries Association (FIA) Award for Short-Term Insurer of the Year: Corporate with Santam. The award was announced at a fun-filled event in Sandton on 1 August 2019.
“It’s great to win, and fantastic to share the award with Santam – we respect the competition,” said Hollard Insure CEO, Willie Lategan immediately after the win was announced.
The FIA Awards, which recognise the best of the best among South Africa’s insurers, are always hotly contested. They are decided by vote with an in-depth survey conducted for the FIA by independent research firm Ask Africa. The survey rates brokers’ experience of product quality, service quality and overall satisfaction.
Ask Africa CEO Andrea Rademeyer said the 2019 survey was notable because all the category winners showed improvement in product offering and broker relationships. Maintaining a winning position is “extremely hard” in today’s insurance landscape, so actually improving is exceptional, she said.
Lategan said Hollard Insure views the Ask Africa survey as an important review mechanism and the company will work with the FIA to see where there is room for improvement. Hollard Insure has won several FIA awards over the years, and this year’s win continues the trend but is no reason for the company to rest on its laurels, he said.
Hollard Insure Managing Executive Distribution, Nash Omar said the company is “very excited” to win and to share the award with Santam. “We are two organisations that have a lot of traction in the corporate insurance environment.”
Nash said winning in the corporate insurance category is particularly gratifying because it is a “very challenging” sector at present. This is because the cost of corporate insurance has risen abruptly in the wake of unusual incidents such as the massive fires that swept through the Knysna region in 2017, and a recent general reduction in reinsurer capacity.
Pierre Geyer, Managing Executive Operations, said the award is “great for business spirit” for Hollard Insure. “It’s great recognition for our team. We have a lot of momentum and vision in our team, and this will have a snowball effect.”
