So Moneysupermarket? Comparison site is on track for a “record year”
It looks like the men in hotpants are working for Moneysupermarket.com, whose chief executive said today it is on track for a "record year".
The figures
The company's main site, MoneySupermarket.com, reported revenues of £76m in the three months to the end of September, up 13 per cent on the same time last year.
That was pushed up by a 12 per cent rise in insurance revenues, which hit £42.5m, and a 44 per cent jump in home services revenues, which rose to £13.9m. Its money arm (which provides advice on credit cards, savings accounts and loans) was flat, at £19.6m.
Meanwhile, demand continued to be strong at its MoneySavingExpert.com site, where revenues rose eight per cent to £9.1m.
Things were less impressive at TravelSupermarket.com, where earnings fell five per cent to £6.9m.
Group revenues rose 12 per cent to £84.9m.
Why it's interesting
Insurance comparison is a competitive market – the opera guy and the meerkats are going head to head with the dancing men in hotpants for your money.
But people are clearly worried about getting the best deal, because Moneysupermarket.com chief executive Peter Plumb said, with strong growth in insurance and high single digit growth in credit cards and loans, the company is in for a "record year".
There was one fly in the ointment, though: the cut in interest rates to 0.25 per cent, which it said "significantly depressed" the number of people switching their savings accounts.
At least the company has got its new chief executive ready to go, mind: after Plumb announced in August he was planning to step down, last week it appointed Mark Lewis, currently the retail director of John Lewis, as his successor, to take the reins in May next year.
What Moneysupermarket.com said
Plumb said:
The group is on track for a record year, insurance is back to strong growth and MoneySavingExpert's latest collective energy switch was the biggest ever; helping over 180,000 households cut their annual energy bills.
Moneysupermarket is well placed to lead the market in helping many more households save more money on their household bills in the years ahead.
In short
An optimistic view from one of the UK's biggest comparison sites – although with interest rates falling, Brexit could yet harm it.