VoIP for Insurance Brokers in the UK
Insurance broking is an FCA-authorised activity. That means the telephone system a broker uses is not simply a business convenience — it is part of the firm's compliance infrastructure.
The FCA does not mandate call recording for general insurance brokers in the way MiFID II does for investment firms. But the direction of regulatory travel, particularly since the Consumer Duty came into force in July 2023, makes recorded calls effectively necessary for any broker that wants to evidence how it treats customers.
This guide covers what VoIP can do for insurance brokers, which features matter for compliance, and how VoIPninjas plans are structured for broking firms of any size.
The Regulatory Context
ICOBS and Suitability
ICOBS — the Insurance Conduct of Business Sourcebook — governs how FCA-authorised brokers deal with their customers. It requires brokers to give customers information that is clear, fair, and not misleading, to take reasonable steps to ensure customers understand the products they are being sold, and to document that they have done so.
When a customer calls to discuss a policy, or an adviser calls to conduct an annual review, that conversation contains the evidence of suitability. File notes can be disputed. Recordings cannot.
Consumer Duty
The Consumer Duty came into force in July 2023. It requires firms to demonstrate good customer outcomes across four areas: products and services, price and value, consumer understanding, and consumer support.
The consumer understanding outcome is directly relevant to telephone conversations. The FCA expects firms to show that customers understood the key features of their product — including exclusions, excesses, and the scope of cover — before they committed to it.
A call recording gives a broker a verifiable record of what was said and how the customer responded. Without it, the firm relies on file notes, which are harder to produce in a complaint or FOS referral and easier for the other side to challenge.
Complaints and the FOS
Insurance complaints frequently turn on what a customer was told. The Financial Ombudsman Service handles thousands of insurance disputes each year, and a significant proportion involve disagreements about what was and was not explained at point of sale or renewal.
Was the exclusion mentioned? Was the excess stated clearly? Did the adviser explain what the policy covered and what it did not?
If a broker has a recording, the FOS adjudicator can listen to it. If the broker has only a file note, the adjudicator weighs conflicting accounts. Recordings resolve disputes faster and with greater certainty.
The Operational Case
Beyond compliance, there are practical reasons insurance brokers need a properly configured phone system.
DDI per Adviser
Each adviser should have a direct dial number. That number belongs to the firm, not the individual. When an adviser leaves, the number stays with the firm. Client relationships are not disrupted. The client calls the same number and reaches whoever has been assigned to that account.
VoIPninjas provides DDIs on all paid plans. Numbers port in from existing providers. If your advisers have used the same numbers for years, those numbers come with you.
Ring Groups and Overflow
Insurance advisers are often with clients or already on a call. Ring groups allow inbound calls to overflow automatically to a colleague when the primary adviser is unavailable. No enquiry goes unanswered because one person is occupied.
Ring groups are configured through the VoIPninjas portal. You can define overflow sequences, set time limits before the call moves to the next available person, and route to voicemail with an email notification if nobody picks up.
Auto-Attendant
A broker with separate teams for personal lines, commercial lines, claims, and renewals needs a way to route callers without putting every call through a receptionist.
An auto-attendant handles this. Press 1 for personal lines. Press 2 for commercial. Press 3 for renewals. Press 4 for claims. Clients reach the right team directly. Staff handle only the calls relevant to them.
Renewal Volume Spikes
Insurance renewals cluster. A commercial broker with a large block of motor fleet policies renewing in the same month will see a sharp rise in inbound call volume. The same applies to household books, professional indemnity portfolios, and travel insurance at seasonal peaks.
VoIPninjas operates on 28-day rolling terms. There are no annual contracts. If you need additional seats during a renewal spike, you add them and remove them on the next billing cycle. You do not pay for capacity you do not use year-round.
Mobile App for Field Advisers
Many insurance advisers conduct annual reviews at the client's premises — a home visit for a private client, a site visit for a commercial account. During these visits, calls made from the adviser's mobile should still display the firm's number and be recorded within the firm's compliance infrastructure.
The VoIPninjas mobile app does exactly this. The adviser calls from their personal mobile, but the call presents the firm's DDI to the recipient, is recorded, and is accessible in the same portal as desk calls. The recording is part of the firm's records, not sitting unmanaged on the adviser's personal handset.
International and the Lloyd's Market
Insurance brokers dealing with overseas clients, firms operating across multiple jurisdictions, and Lloyd's market participants need international calling capability as standard.
The VoIPninjas Shogun plan includes calls to 55 countries at no additional per-minute charge. International numbers can be provisioned where required. Lloyd's brokers and firms with clients in Europe, North America, or Asia will find the Shogun plan covers the destinations they call most frequently.
UK Data Sovereignty
VoIPninjas is a UK-based provider. Call data and recordings are held in UK infrastructure. For FCA-authorised firms, that matters. You are not relying on a provider whose data processing arrangements are unclear or whose infrastructure sits outside the jurisdiction.
Plans for Insurance Brokers
Three plans are available, all on 28-day rolling terms with no minimum contract.
Ronin — £5.99 per user per month No call recording. Suitable for administrative and back-office seats where staff are not giving advice or having regulated conversations with customers. Reception, accounts, post-room, and other non-advisory roles.
Samurai — £14.99 per user per month Call recording, auto-attendant, ring groups, DDI, voicemail-to-email, mobile app, 750 inclusive UK minutes. This is the appropriate plan for any adviser or client-facing member of staff who discusses insurance arrangements with customers.
Shogun — £24.99 per user per month Everything in Samurai, plus unlimited UK minutes and calls to 55 countries. Right for brokers with international clients, commercial accounts with overseas operations, Lloyd's market activity, or advisers who make a high volume of outbound calls.
Most broking firms will run Samurai for advisory and client-facing staff, with Ronin for purely administrative roles. Shogun suits the international desk or any adviser whose book includes overseas clients.
Number Porting
If your firm has existing DDIs that clients already know — numbers on business cards, renewal letters, and correspondence — you can port those numbers to VoIPninjas. Porting typically completes within 10 to 15 working days. Your numbers come with you.
Start your free 14-day trial — no card required. VoIPninjas is a direct UK VoIP provider based in Christchurch, Dorset. No resellers, no middlemen, no contracts. Plans from £5.99 per user per month on 28-day rolling terms. Most businesses are live within 10 working days. Call us on 0330 043 2388 or go to voipninjas.co.uk/get-started/ to get started.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Consumer Duty require insurance brokers to record calls?
The Consumer Duty does not explicitly mandate call recording for general insurance brokers. However, it requires firms to demonstrate good customer outcomes — including that customers understood the products they purchased. Call recording is the most reliable way to evidence that conversations were conducted appropriately. In practice, most compliance professionals advising FCA-authorised brokers treat call recording as effectively necessary for any adviser seat.
What evidence does the FCA expect for insurance advice conversations?
The FCA expects firms to demonstrate that advice was suitable, that customers received clear information, and that they understood key features such as exclusions and excesses before committing to a policy. This can be evidenced through file notes, but recordings are a stronger and more verifiable form of evidence — particularly in the event of a complaint or FOS referral, where the adjudicator can listen to the conversation directly.
Can I keep my existing broker number when switching to VoIPninjas?
Yes. VoIPninjas supports full number porting. Your existing DDIs and main numbers transfer across. Porting typically completes within 10 to 15 working days, and your existing lines remain active throughout the transition period. Clients and insurers continue to reach you on the same numbers.
How does the mobile app support adviser compliance?
The VoIPninjas mobile app allows advisers to make and receive calls from their personal mobiles while presenting the firm's number to the recipient. Calls made through the app are recorded and stored in the firm's account alongside desk calls. Adviser activity during client visits, site reviews, or any off-site meeting is captured within the firm's compliance infrastructure — not left sitting on the adviser's personal device outside the firm's control.