Zego awarded insurance licence
The insurtech, which is based in London, is the first company of its kind in the UK to be granted its own licence
This represents a major milestone for Zego, which will now be able to build and sell its own insurance products. The insurtech still plans to work closely with its network of partners in the insurance industry, but in practice the license means that the company will be able to create new policies and implement changes to products in 24 hours or less, if necessary. The company will also now be able to develop automated pricing technology based on its vast stores of raw data, analysing the respective risk levels of its customers and offering specific pricing on an individual basis.
Founded in 2016, Zego primarily focuses on building insurance coverage options for the gig economy, though it has also expanded into areas such as ride hailing, ride sharing and car rental. It offers policies of varying lengths, some on a minute-by-minute basis, some on an annual basis, recognising that flexibility is a key requirement for its customer base.
Swiss Re is one of the major insurers backing Zego, and its Market Head for property and casualty in the UK and Ireland, Simon Welton, said: “[We] are very pleased to have been able to support Zego with our risk knowledge and reinsurance capacity. We have been impressed with Zego’s innovative and passionate approach to creating new insurance products which meet the changing needs of customers. We look forward to continuing to work with Zego in the future and supporting its growth plans.”
Earlier this year, Zego raised $42 million in a Series B funding round, one of the largest such funding rounds for a startup based in Europe.