Briefing: Everyone talks about claims excellence – but what does it mean?

Everyone in insurance says that claims matter.

Ask brokers what defines a good insurer and claims service will almost always feature near the top of their list. Ask insurers how they differentiate and many will point to the quality of their claims proposition.

Yet, despite this, the UK general insurance (UKGI) market still lacks a consistent way to define – or measure – what good claims service actually looks like. This presents a growing challenge.

Claims performance has become far more visible in recent years – particularly as brokers place greater emphasis on customer outcomes, insurer accountability and long-term trading relationships.

But while claims excellence is frequently discussed, UKGI often relies on and measures itself based on anecdotal feedback, isolated experiences and reputation – rather than clear, comparable evidence.

Part of the problem is that the claims experience itself is difficult to standardise.

For some brokers, speed of settlement is the defining factor. Others place greater value on communication, technical expertise, fairness of outcome or consistency throughout the claims journey.

Customers, meanwhile, may judge the experience entirely differently again.

An insurer may settle claims quickly, but frustrate customers through poor communication. Another may provide strong support during the process, but struggle with delays caused by supply chain pressures or operational complexity.

The result is a market where a good claims service can be defined differently depending on who is being asked.

Historically, this ambiguity has often been masked by the strength of trading relationships.

Broker experience, market reputation and personal trust have long shaped perceptions around insurer claims performance – and these factors remain important. But they are increasingly being tested by rising expectations around transparency and accountability – from both brokers and end customers.

Consumer Duty, introduced in July 2023, has accelerated this shift.

The regulation itself is, of course, not specifically about claims handling standards, but it has intensified the focus on customer outcomes across the insurance distribution chain.

In practice, this is forcing both brokers and insurers to think more carefully about how claims experiences are evidenced and understood.

What equates to excellent?

Increasingly, broad statements around ‘excellent claims service’ are no longer enough on their own.

This is one reason why initiatives such as Intact Insurance’s claims charter, which launched on 12 May 2026, are significant.

While the charter does not solve the wider issue of market-wide consistency, it reflects a growing recognition that insurers are under pressure to articulate more clearly what brokers and customers should expect from the claims experience.

That willingness to define standards publicly matters.

For years, claims performance has often been treated as something understood implicitly through market familiarity and relationships. But as scrutiny increases, the industry is gradually moving towards a more transparent and measurable approach.

There is still some way to go, however.

Compared to underwriting performance or financial strength, claims service remains relatively difficult to benchmark consistently across the market. Available data is often fragmented, subjective or focused on isolated metrics that only tell part of the story.

This is one of the reasons why my recent work for Insurance DataLab has focused on developing our Insurer Performance Index – to create a more rounded and evidence-based view of insurer performance across claims, complaints, solvency and underwriting.

Claims performance sits at the core of that index, drawing on data from the regulator alongside broker and customer feedback, as well as including insights from our Commercial Lines Claims Pulse report, which analysed more than 800 claims experiences across the commercial lines market.

Against this backdrop, the insurers that are most likely to stand out are not necessarily those making the loudest allegations about service quality, but those able to demonstrate consistency, transparency and clarity around how they handle claims in practice.

Ultimately, UKGI’s challenge is not simply improving claims service.

It is creating a clearer and more consistent understanding of what good claims service actually means.

Because while everyone agrees claims matter, the industry still lacks a consistent understanding of what good actually looks like.