UK Motor Market Report for 2026
9 June, 2026
Shorter Cycles, Lower Peaks: The New Shape of UK Motor Insurance
After a record-breaking 2025, the UK motor market is entering a new phase.
With use of our UK Motor Market Model™, our latest analysis points to a more stable environment, with shorter pricing cycles and more disciplined pricing behaviour. However, profitability is expected to fall as lower premiums earn through and claims costs rise.
We forecast:
- Combined ratio increasing to 95% in 2026
- Market profit falling to £1.3bn
- Continued pressure from inflation and claims severity
About the authors
Tony Sault, Partner. Tony is a Partner at Oxbow Partners, with a focus on the Retail, Personal and Commercial Lines markets, advising insurer and broker clients on strategy and transformation. Tony started his career over 30 years ago at RSA (now Intact) before moving into consultancy where he spent almost 20 years at EY.
Paul De’Ath, Head of Market Intelligence. Paul leads the Oxbow Partners Market Intelligence team. Prior to joining Oxbow Partners Paul spent nine years as an equity research analyst covering all aspects of insurance across the UK and Europe. He started his career as an accountant and also spent time in industry at Standard Life.
The authors would like to acknowledge contributions to this piece from Tanvi Gondkar and Selena Wei, Consultants in the Oxbow Partners team.
