Do loyal policyholders pay more?

Insurance companies in the United Kingdom and Ireland raise their premiums more for loyal customers than they do for policyholders who change their provider frequently. Finansinspektionen (FI) will now look more closely at what happens in Sweden for home and auto insurance customers.

Almost everyone in Sweden has home insurance. The contracts are valid for one year at a time, and in most cases the premiums are renewed automatically. The supervisory authorities in the United Kingdom and Ireland have noted that insurance companies raise their premiums more for loyal customers than they do for policyholders who change their provider frequently. This has often had a negative impact on older consumers and consumers with a low level of education.

Insurance companies must treat each policyholder fairly and ensure that the products to the policyholder meet their needs. FI will therefore conduct an in-depth analysis to review whether loyal customers in Sweden pay higher premiums. The analysis will focus on customers with home and auto insurance.

"My own, and FI's, expectation, is that every policyholder should be treated fairly. Given that, we assume that the insurance premiums for a loyal customer are not higher than for other customers in the same risk group," says Åsa Larson, who is the executive director of the Insurance section.

The analysis is expected to be completed before the summer.