Booze Allen & Hamilton’s 2001 e-Insurance study shows Australian insurance internet sites are almost two years behind their US counterparts in functionality.

The study also showed that people spend less time looking at insurance websites than they do looking at banking websites. In the US about 5 million visitors went to the top insurance sites, while 18.2 million visited the top banking sites.

But Aussie insurers do have one up on their neighbours. Booze Allen & Hamilton partner Steve Discher said that in the US you have to make an appointment to get a quote “whereas in Australia you can just make two or three phone calls. In terms of online offerings, the facility for online quotes is one area that Australian insurers have got right.”