Soul wins £2.9m NFU Mutual task

Soul has won the &£2.9m NFU Mutual account, after a shoot-out against incumbent agency Cogent and Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy.

It is understood that there are plans to increase ad spend to about &£12m as the mutual – the UK’s ninth-biggest insurer – tries to win new customers outside its core farming audience.

NFU Mutual was founded 90 years ago, as part of the National Farmers Union. Unlike other mutuals, including leading building societies and insurers, its management has refused to consider turning it into a public company. All policy holders are required to agree to donate any “windfall profits” to an NFU charity, should demutualisation occur.

It is understood that the mutual wants to change its strategy to also appeal to affluent individuals with second homes in the country and those with a general interest in rural life. NFU Mutual’s marketers have acknowledged that outside its core farming audience, where brand recognition is almost total, it is little-known.

Soul is also tipped to be about to pick up a campaign for the Greater London Authority, aimed at getting more recruits for the Metropolitan Police. It is understood the business is worth between &£1m and &£2m.