Ando Insurance: Everything you need to know
Founded: 2015
Types of services: Personal and business insurance
Employees: 150+
Over 59,000 insurance policies written as of 2019
Offices: Auckland, Tauranga, Christchurch
Ando Insurance is a relatively new player in the New Zealand insurance market, having established itself in 2015 to address the growing gap between the insurance sector and the demand for a modern, customer-centric market.
The business is centred around using technology to deliver better customer experiences, and utilises tech services such as Take Live Assessment - a New Zealand-first technology which aims to reduce claims and processing times, and facilitate better engagement with customers.
Ando Insurance is majority-locally owned, and it works with New Zealand’s local broker groups to distribute its products. It is also the general insurance partner to Kiwibank, through which it offers home, contents and car insurance via Kiwi Insure.
Ando is a Lloyd’s coverholder and also partners with Hollard, a global financial services company with operations in Australia, Africa, Europe, India, China and the United States.
Ando Insurance in the news
2015: Former Lumley CEO John Lyon launches a new insurance business with a group of ex-Lumley colleagues, calling it Ando Insurance.
2016: Ando Insurance officially opens its doors for business.
2018: Ando Insurance sponsors the Kiwibank FinTech Accelerator programme, an online service that helps freelancers do their taxes and provides professional pay-as-you-go insurance.
2018: Ando becomes one of the sponsors for New Zealand’s first Dive In Festival.
Key people as of 2019
John Lyon – CEO
Lyon is the founder and CEO of Ando Insurance, and has built up a team of over 150 staff over the course of the insurer’s three years in operation. Lyon had previously served as CEO of Lumley General Insurance (NZ) for just over six years, and prior to that had spent 17 years in insurance services at Vero. Lyon is a highly active member of the insurance industry, and regularly speaks at industry conferences and events.
Dean Edwards – Head of Broker Relationships
Edwards has over 25 years’ experience in broking and underwriting, having moved to Ando after 13 years spent at Lumley General Insurance (NZ), where he acted as General Manager – Broker Distribution. At Lumley, Edwards led the development and implementation of its broker distribution strategy.
Brett Cowley - Head of Partner Channel
Cowley works with Ando’s business and corporate partners to bring technology-driven insurance products to customers. He was previously the Head of Distribution Development at Crombie Lockwood and has been with Ando since its beginning. Cowley led the winning pitch that resulted in Ando Insurance being chosen as Kiwibank’s insurance partner.
Mike Gardner – Chief Information Officer
Gardner began his career at the Commonwealth Bank in Australia before moving into the insurance sector, holding roles at QBE and Lumley before moving to Ando Insurance. Gardner has specialised in insurance-related tech for over 15 years, and has held consulting roles with Mercantile Mutual, Zurich and Royal & Sun Alliance.
Culture
Ando Insurance is an active insurance industry player, and its key people regularly support industry conferences, events and workshops. Its key sponsorships include the following.
Banqer: A financial education platform for students from Years 2-8 which focuses on income, expenses and budgeting and introduces them to savings, interest, KiwiSaver, tax, real estate and insurance.
Dive In: A global festival by Lloyd’s of London which aims to get the insurance industry “fit for the future” by focusing on a range of diversity and inclusion issues. Ando CEO John Lyon spoke at New Zealand’s first Dive In Festival in 2018, and was joined by mental health advocate Mike King and Dr Jennifer Whelan to discuss mental health in the workplace.
Rescue Run: An annual event which raises funds for New Zealand’s emergency response units including Surf Lifesaving, Coastguard, LandSAR (search and rescue), Fire Services, St John and Lifeline.
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