Munich Re recently won the bid to underwrite on-demand insurance platform Trov in the U.S. starting 2017.
Trov founder and CEO Scott Walchek planned to announce the partnership on Thursday, at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference in New York City.
Munich Re Head of Digital Partners Andy Rear told
Forbes that the reinsurer’s new venture was designed with companies like Trov in mind.
Trov’s application allows consumers to insure individual belongings (such as laptops, smartphones, other gadgets, etc.) and to choose when they want the coverage to be active. This allows, for instance, musicians to activate coverage for their guitars while on tour, and then turn it off when their instrument is sitting back at home.
The application, according to Walchek, offers a solution for those who want to choose when to protect singular items while keeping costs low. Although standard homeowners and renters insurance policies cover personal property, some items (such as smartphones and laptops) are not valued at more than $500-$1,000—the lowest deductibles policyholders can choose from.
Trov seeks to offer financial protection for belongings that fall in that coverage gap. Users can select either to pay rates per day or monthly for the application’s “micro-duration policies”. The rates will be based on the item being insured and the deductible consumers choose. Once an item is signed up to the application, users can activate coverage for the item instantly with the swipe of a finger. Claims may also be filed through the Trov application.
“This has enormous implications, not just to the protection of things,” remarked Walchek. “If you think about the world today, life is being measured in ever decreasing increments. It puts a new twist on measuring risk. Risk has a denominator: time.”
Trov previously launched its insurance service in Australia earlier this year, through a partnership with Suncorp.
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