Report highlights Covid recovery

A new report exploring how the motor claims market has been impacted by Covid-19 and including analysis of a survey of UK bodyshops is about to be released.

Emerging from Covid, by Trend Tracker, will cover several areas of focus including economy, people, motor insurance and vehicle repair.

It will also include insights from many references’ resources, such as Bank of England (28% have said that the pandemic has allowed them to increase their personal savings, with 70% planning to hold their new savings rather than spend), Which? (76% of customers had seen some reduction in their mileage as a direct result of coronavirus restrictions and 49% reported it had reduced by “a lot”) and new entrants such as By Miles (reveals that policy sales in July 2020 jumped by 75% compared to the start of the year).

Paul Sell, associate director of Industry Insights, said: “Covid-19 is accelerating change in the sector with many new insurance propositions and new entrants increasing investment, according to Willis Towers Watson, with funding during quarter one growing 180% compared to the first quarter of 2020.

“This change is hitting an industry still emerging from Covid-19, with ONS.GOV reporting the proportion of businesses’ workforce on furlough remaining at 19%, which equates to approximately 6.2 million employees, in mid-February 2021. It also confirms that 46.2% of businesses surveyed confirmed their turnover has decreased, with 31% having less than three months reserves, reducing business resilience.”

“This is of particular concern in the bodyshop industry with some declaring in the Trend Tracker survey reported volumes of 50% or less, with increased borrowings and likely redundancies.”

However, despite all that, the report found that confidence levels remain high.