Specialist underwriting agency MB Insurance is expanding into New Zealand with cover for prestige, luxury, high performance and classic vehicles after more than three decades operating in Australia.

MD Daniel McNamara says the two markets have many similarities and the expansion is a natural next step. 

“We've reached a point here in Australia where we're providing what we believe is best-in-class product and service, and we think there's room for that in New Zealand,” he told insuranceNEWS.com.cu. 

“We think we can shake things up and bring our brand of professionalism, service and quality product to the market.” 

Mr McNamara says the prestige market tends to be resilient, with customers often more affluent. Porsche, Mercedes and BMW are the top three brands covered by MB Insurance in Australia, with that likely also to be the case in New Zealand. 

In Australia competition has increased in the sector and Mr McNamara says the market has been “on the soft side” for a couple of years, but there are some signs it’s starting to turn a little. 

MB Insurance says it’s entering New Zealand with a new broker portal built to meet local legislative requirements and operational needs, with the platform eliminating traditional proposal forms and email-based quoting.  

The agency expects up to 75% of quotes will be automatically approved and it aims for same-day turnaround in the case of referrals. 

Claims are being managed in-house supported by local New Zealand partnerships including independent loss adjusters, rather than outsourcing to third party administrators (TPAs).  

"Our claims management team understand the product and understand the needs of prestige car owners, enabling them to provide service above and beyond a generic TPA,” Mr McNamara said.  

The agency, acquired by ATC Group in 2021, is backed by Lloyd’s of London capacity.