Why Does The Post Office Remain a Popular Choice?

This article takes a look at the Post Office and its extraordinary rise in popularity through diversification in to travel insurance.

Travel insurance is an unlikely product for the Post Office to provide when considering its illustrious royal heritage. Given that the origins extend as far back to 1516 when Henry VIII began using mail in an elemental form.

Much has developed since then, and a key change occurred in 1986 when the functions were broken in to letter deliveries, parcel deliveries, and most relevant for us; the retail arm which evolved to offer travel insurance.

The last decade has seen revenue growth thanks to the repositioning of the brand; less about postal services and much more as a financial services provider. Not only for travel, but other types of insurance products also.

So why is their product so popular with travellers, despite there being cheaper competing alternatives?

To answer that we first have to look at the behaviour of consumers. On the whole they do like familiarity and easy access. Whilst some may consider buying cover with an internet start up as risky, others are willing to vote with their wallets and go with the many cost effective online-only providers.
The Post Office has a trump card in that it is a time honoured institution which people are comfortable with. Plus, the thousands of physical branches make for a highly accessible outlet network.

A final consideration for popularity is the absolutely huge advertising spend! Smaller insurance companies simply cannot compete with this mega institution in terms of splattering the brand before us on a daily basis. However, this does not mean to declare that it is the best business model, since regular annual losses have been experienced year on year.

Further Information

Post Office Travel Insurance Review - Comprehensive look at the product in detail, including customer experiences and analysis of cover.



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Why The Post Office Travel Insurance Is So Popular

The Post Office demonstrated fantastic ability to spout money recently in a bid to build their brand awareness due to the expansion of products to include travel insurance.

In 2007 the advertising spend reached 10 million and customers will recall TV and radio broadcasts depicting the celebrity interactions in a typical Post Office (PO).

The adverts drew criticism for being too simplistic and condescending in the attempt to reach a mass audience. Further efforts targeted the over-50 market with a radio campaign the following year.

Yet, it is exactly this huge reach which places the competition at a disadvantage especially online start ups with a miniscule budget. In this situation it is difficult to compete with the PO's strong brand, leaving price the only variable.

And for this reason the PO are not the cheapest in the market, meaning other companies must attract holidaymakers by offering the best deal, while the PO draws in customer flows who sometimes circumvent research and simply trust in the strength of the brand.

One major advantage which the Post Office holds over competing travel insurance companies, is the cross-selling of product lines to existing customers acclimatised to the time-proven staples of stamps and finance.

The next unique feature is the accessibility because a staggering 94 per cent of UK residents are within a mile of a Post Office branch.

Related Articles

1. Post Office Travel Insurance Review - An in-depth examination of the product's pros and cons.

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Travel Insurance Reviews – Update

At Travel Insurance Insider, we are continually casting an independent eye over providers and the best deals on offer. But what customers also need to know, is how cooperatively their insurer performs when dealing with a claim. See our thorough reviews of the major insurers, below.


Questions for consideration:

• If there is a parent company, who owns the insurer?
  

• Is the insurance policy provided by another company?
  

• What kinds of travel insurance are covered in the review?
  

• Are there any medical travel insurance requirements or restrictions?
  

• What kind of customer feedback has the insurer received recently?
  

We look at these issues raised and give a helpful guide through the specific policy small print, informing readers of some pertinent clauses. Useful research which is important for differentiating one insurer from the next, and helping consumers to judge the level of travel insurance cover being provided.

Here are some major insurers, already reviewed:


Post Office Travel Insurance Review - Find out about this popular insurer, winner of the British travel awards, and provider of travel documents. But is it good value for money?


Tesco Travel Insurance Review - Tesco are gaining a reputation among some of their customers; discover if it is a good one or not. Travel Insurance Insider exposes Tesco's small print regarding sports activities cover, and required medical criteria.

Columbus Direct Travel Insurance Review - Gain clarity defining: What is a valuable? Columbus Direct also has a peculiar cut-off age for children, but do offer insurance cover for many extra activities, in addition to their backpacker, business, single and annual trip policies.


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Post Office Review

What makes the Post Office unique compared to other travel insurance providers? Well, consumers can also get official travel documents and currency exchanged too.

Although, the main focus of this review is the Post Office's travel insurance product. Investigating why this nationally popular product achieves the reach it does, what experiences consumers have reported, and specifically what the policy insures.

Post Office Travel Insurance

Looking in-depth at the crucial elements of the product on offer; listed below are the maximum values for which the policy insures:

Medical expenses - £10 million (£10,000 in UK)
Personal liability - £2 million
Personal accident - £30,000
Legal expenses - £25,000
Cancellation / curtailment - £5,000
Personal belongings - £1,500 (single item limit £300)
Missing departure - £1,000
Delayed departure - £300
Money - £500 (£250 cash)
Lost passport - £250
Baggage delays - £250

The Post Office spends huge amounts on mainstream advertising, and this is both a pro and a con, because the brand awareness is high, however the cost of running such campaigns is ultimately served by the consumer, and this is reflected in their pricing.

Many competitors point out this pricing position in the current travel insurance market:

• Insure and Go
  
  
• Travel-Insurance.net
  
  
• Easyjet 4 Insurance
  

When comparing the above headline grabbing quotes, do ensure the comparison is like for like. As always; caveat emptor. Time invested acquainting with the small print will result in useful knowledge gained.

Customer’s Experiences with The Post Office’s Travel Insurance

• Review Centre - Post Office
  
  
• Ciao - Post Office
  
  
• DooYoo - Post Office
  

Firstly, do take in to account the date of some published reviews. For example, the underwriter in 2001 was Aon Risk Services Ltd, but today it is actually Fortis Insurance Limited. Consider such changes in context.

Customers seem content with the level of service they have received from purchasing the Post Office’s travel insurance. Often with fast claim procedures, customers report swift conclusions if they have had to claim.

However a minority of customers are unhappy with situations where the Post Office has refused their claim, and investigating further, this is often actually the result of the customer not understanding precisely the terms and conditions of the insurance policy they have taken out. In which case the Post Office are absolutely right to refuse customer’s over-zealous claims.

British Travel Awards

Travel Mole.tv ran this video about the integrity of the British Travel Awards. It is an acclaimed award which the Post Office has received several times, in a number of different categories:

• In 2007 it was selected for its foreign exchange and travel insurance.

There follows a PR response to that, here.

• It also won the award for travel insurance in 2006.

Review Summary

To summarise this review, the Post Office offers a decent travel insurance product with a strong brand association, resulting in a higher price to the consumer than other competitors mentioned in this article. The Post Office is a popular choice and continues to demonstrate consistent levels of award-winning performance.


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