Alfa Insurance acquires Western National Mutual Insurance
Alabama-based insurance carrier Alfa Insurance is expanding its non-standard auto insurance offering by acquiring subsidiaries of Western National Insurance. Through this agreement, Alfa will take over Legacy Insurance Services, Arizona Auto Insurance Co. and the Nevada general Insurance Co. All three companies write non-standard auto insurance in Arizona, Colorado and Nevada.
Allstate partners with John Hancock
Allstate announced its partnership with life insurance company John Hancock Vitality to promote safe driving. John Hancock’s Vitality Program, which combines life insurance with education and offers incentives and rewards to policyholders who lead a healthier lifestyle, will allow members to now submit proof of safe driving through Allstate’s UBI insurance program and receive a cashback reward or a safe-driving discount. This partnership is the first of its kind and comes in response to an increase in vehicle crash-related injuries.
Amazon partners with Stellantis
Amazon announced its partnership with Stellantis NV to develop software and buy electric delivery vans, and will become the first commercial customer for the new Ram ProMaster electric delivery vehicle. Amazon already ordered 100,000 of Rivian’s electric vehicles, but is clear about not being bound to any specific automotive manufacturer.
Blackrock loans Root $300M
Root Insurance finalized a $300 million term loan from BlackRock financial management soon after announcing a 300-employee layoff amid realignment. BlackRock plans to create a long-term partnership with the carrier, and talked highly of the carrier’s exclusive partnership with Carvana. Under the terms, BlackRock may have an observer attend meetings of the Root board of directors.
FloodMapp partners with Waze
FloodMapp, designed to assist in communication and visualization of flood risk data, is integrating with navigation app Waze to provide users with real-time street-level alerts of flooded roads. The app uses tidal, riverine and rainfall data to create a rapid, real-time flood inundation model, layers it with the citywide road network and gives Waze users pop-up alerts to warn them about flooded streets. The program is currently being piloted in Norfolk, Virginia.
General Motors announces new platform CarBravo
GM is launching a new platform that will elevate the experience of shopping for used cars. The platform, CarBravo, is expected to go live in spring and will help dealers sell used cars online and compete with companies like Carvana and Vroom. Cars bought through CarBravo will come with the standard warranty coverage and customers can bring their car in for service and maintenance to GM’s network of dealerships.
Hippo partners with Socotra
Home insurance group Hippo announced its partnership with Socotra, to promote the expansion of its Commercial Lines homeowners association insurance product into new markets. Socotra offers Hippo a cloud-native platform that enables the insurance product experience to cover the entire lifecycle of a HOA insurance policy, as well as provide users with accurate insurance quotes and tailored policy coverage.
Honeycomb announces plans for expansion in 10 more states
Digital insurance provider Honeycomb announced its plans to expand across 10 states this year, increasing its footprint to cover 60% of the country. Honeycomb allows for customized policies that include offering coverage for properties with Airbnb rentals, ordinance and law coverage and deductibles in risk-prone areas. It also offers a technology stack for multi-family properties that streamlines the insurance buying process for landlords and condo owners associations.
Openly announces rapid expansion
Google-backed home insurtech Openly announced that it plans to enter 16 new states in 2022 and hire over 100 people. The company saw a lot of growth in 2021, with a 240% increase in headcount and expansion into 10 states; the carrier plans to break into personal lines in the coming years as well.
Nationwide deploys CCC Mobile Appraiser Pro
Nationwide becomes the first auto insurer to use a digital-first app CCC Mobile Appraise Pro, an app designed to accelerate the claims process. The app uses photo capture technology and AI to provide real-time insight to field appraisers, allowing them to operate holistically and efficiently without a physical barrier.
Next Insurance debuts mobile app
Next Insurance launched its mobile app for existing policyholders where users can customize and share certificates of insurance, add third parties and control who can view their certificates. Aimed to make managing business insurance easier, the app gives business owners easy access to their insurance information from anywhere.
Progressive sponsors Immortals
Progressive announced an exclusive multi-year entitlement agreement with gaming and esports organization Immortals. Immortals’ League of Legends (LCS) teams will now compete as “Immortals Progressive” and is the first-ever LCS naming rights sponsorship. Through this sponsorship, the carrier will also become a presenting sponsor for a branded streaming program, participate in merch giveaways and collaborate in public Minecraft servers.
Pure Insurance is now available nationwide
Tokio Marine subsidiary Pure Insurance is now available across all 50 states. As a direct competitor of Chubb and AIG, the company focuses on high-net-worth clients and sells its products through independent brokers. PURE offers a full suite of specialty insurance products including coverage for high-value homeowners, watercraft, personal excess liability, fraud and cyber and flood.
Tesla expands insurance offering to two more states
Tesla announced that it is expanding its insurance offering to include Ohio and Arizona, increasing the manufacturer’s footprint to five states. According to the website, coverage in these two states will be based on real-time driving behavior.
Travelers launches IntelliDrivePlus
Travelers upgraded its telematics offering with IntelliDrivePlus – the app calculates a premium at each renewal by assessing changes in mileage and driving behavior and is currently available in Arkansas, Nebraska and Ohio. The carrier’s original telematics program, IntelliDrive, monitors the same behavior but only over 90 days while this new program features continuous monitoring. Customers could earn an enrollment discount of up to 12% for their first policy term.
Turo files for IPO
Turo, a marketplace that allows private car owners to rent their cars, has filed for its initial public offering for $100 million but that figure is subject to change. Turo currently has more than 85,000 active hosts and 160,000 active vehicle listings.
Volkswagen partners with Robert Bosch GmbH
Volkswagen AG announced a partnership with Robert Bosch GmbH to develop a software platform that will allow for hands-free driving functionality and directly compete with Tesla. The partnership would also allow the two industry giants to collaborate on developing battery cells as well and pave the way for becoming a global battery powerhouse and becoming leaders in the e-mobility movement.
Source: The Zebra
