VERO SME INSURANCE INDEX

Women SME Decision Makers

This third issue of the 2018 Vero SME Insurance Index uncovers important insights about female Small Business Enterprise (SME) decision makers and identifies valuable opportunities for brokers and advisers to add value for customers and provide the best possible service and advice.

This report explores some of the differences between male and female SMEs and outlines various challenges and concerns amongst this group.

Some key insights we explore:

• 55% of female SMEs are more likely to be part owners or managers (compared to 39% of men) and are significantly more likely to be younger than males. 63% of females in small business are under 50, compared to only 39% of males.
• A notable challenge for female decision makers is lack of time, with 26% of female SMEs saying they have no time for themselves or their families, compared to 19% of male SMEs.
• Female SMEs who do use Brokers understand and appreciate the value they bring, however the uptake on Brokers is lower with female SMEs, why?

Over 900 SMEs across New Zealand have voiced their opinion in the Vero SME Insurance Index this year. The findings show several areas where brokers and advisers can target their offering to add value for SME customers. Vero will work with our business partners in using this research to identify opportunities to target their offerings and provide the right kind of value to customers.

For this research, a SME has been defined as per Statistics New Zealand - a business that employs between 1 and 19 people (including sole traders). The survey has been run in Australia for the last five years, but this is the first time it has run in New Zealand.