February is Insurance Careers Month with 2.8M U.S. employed in the industry  February 2nd 2023

Top insurtech funding rounds, Jan. 2023

There were more than 20 funding events in the insurtech sector between Jan. 1 and Jan. 31, 2023, according to a review by Digital Insurance. What follows is a selection of these, focusing on those in the P&C and life insurance sectors that are part of the venture-capital financing model. (Other funding events, such as private-equity infusions, are included in the overall count.)

This includes one round of $25 million and two rounds over $15 million.

A portion of the data was sourced from Crunchbase. Other information, including quotes from investing VCs, comes from company announcements. These updates will continue monthly.

Alacrity Solutions Announces Strategic Investment from BlackRock Alternatives’ Long Term Private Capital

Alacrity Solutions Group, LLC (“Alacrity Solutions” or the “Company”), a recognized leader in providing insurance claims management services in North America, today announced that BlackRock Alternatives, through its Long Term Private Capital (“LTPC”) strategy, has acquired a majority interest in the Company. Alacrity’s prior majority investor, Kohlberg & Company (“Kohlberg”), and management team will retain a significant minority interest in the Company.

Alacrity Solutions is a market-leading, technology-enabled diversified provider of outsourced solutions to U.S. insurance carriers, providing essential services across the claims lifecycle, including field and desk adjusting, temporary housing, specialty and auto solutions, managed repair services and desktop review. The Company has a national presence in all 50 states and processes over 2.8 million claims annually on behalf of more than 300 carrier clients.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with BlackRock LTPC, and continuing our partnership with Kohlberg, for our next chapter of growth,” said Jim Pearl, CEO of Alacrity Solutions. “BlackRock LTPC has an exceptional reputation as a collaborative partner to the management teams of its portfolio companies, and I am looking forward to working with them to expand the capabilities we provide to our valued clients. BlackRock LTPC is the ideal partner to accelerate Alacrity’s position as the preeminent platform for outsourced insurance claims solutions in North America given our shared vision and alignment. Likewise, Kohlberg has been a terrific partner for Alacrity over the last four years, having helped us execute on a number of strategic initiatives, including the expansion of our services across North America and continued technology innovation, and I am pleased to have Kohlberg’s continuing support.”

Waller Helms acted as financial advisor to Alacrity Solutions in connection with this transaction

Arbol more than doubles parametric premiums written to $170m in 2022

Arbol, a technology-led underwriter of parametric risk transfer, climate and weather insurance or reinsurance business, has reported a more than doubling of its gross premiums underwritten for 2022, with the total rising to $170 million for the year.

The impressive growth represents a more than doubling of the $70 million in parametric GWP the firm transacted in all of 2021.

As we reported earlier this year, Arbol had already written over $100 million in gross written premium (GWP) in the first half of 2022.

The company has also reported that it ended 2022 cash-flow positive, for the second year in its history, while profitable underwriting was also delivered.

“The end-to-end ecosystem Arbol has built to address climate risk across balance sheets, supply chains, and operations has experienced tremendous growth and scale over the past few years,” explained Sid Jha, Founder and CEO of Arbol.

Trucking insurer Cover Whale in Nexar dash cam partnership

Commercial trucking insurer Cover Whale is teaming up with Nexar, a video telematics company, to provide the firm’s AI-powered dash cameras for its insured customers.

Nexar’s dual-facing cameras can detect behavioural risks behind the wheel including hard braking, sharp cornering, and rapid acceleration and deceleration. It can also use artificial intelligence (AI) to provide context to each event.

Cover Whale says the new technology will help to reduce the need for insurance claims and reduce fleet operators’ exposure to risk. The average long-haul truck driver in the US covers around 125,000 miles per year, and as a result 12% of fatal crashes involve at least one large truck or bus. Statistics also show that the trucking industry faces more ‘nuclear verdicts’ as a result of civil litigation than other industries – defined as a jury verdict worth at least US$10mn – meaning a single accident can bring down an entire fleet.

High Definition Vehicle Insurance Launches Second Generation of its Proprietary Telematics-Based Shift™ Product

High Definition Vehicle Insurance (HDVI), a technology-first commercial auto insurance provider, will launch the next generation of HDVI Shift™, the first usage-based, dynamically priced insurance product for commercial truck fleets in select states for policies effective Feb. 1 or later. The next evolution of Shift gives fleets more control over their insurance costs, including an opportunity to increase monthly premium savings.

"During the first 18 months of Shift, customers had 40% fewer predicted crashes than industry averages, affirming that incorporating telematics data into our insurance product successfully drove safety improvements and reduced risk," said HDVI Chief Insurance Product Officer Todd Witte. "After talking with fleet operators and assessing months of data, we've enhanced Shift to be more responsive to factors fleets can control, and deliver customers greater immediate savings and deeper discounts for safety improvements in 2023."

Hippo Expands its Fastest-Growing Channel with Launch of Hippo Builder Insurance Agency

New agency leverages Hippo’s proprietary tech, allowing small and medium-sized builders to partner with leading insurtech at no cost

Hippo (NYSE: HIPO), the home insurance group focused on proactive home protection, today announced the expansion of its fastest-growing channel with the launch of the Hippo Builder Insurance Agency (HBIA). The new agency leverages Hippo's proprietary technology to allow builders of any size to partner with HBIA and generate a predictable revenue stream.

Builder participation by sending leads to HBIA does not require significant allocation of resources or any investment, and eliminates the cost and risk often associated with insurance agency operations. HBIA pays for each lead regardless of whether the homeowner closes on the property or purchases a policy through HBIA.

“Lennar customers benefit from exceptional service and coverage tailored specifically to their new homes.”

Distribution tech personal lines insurance investment

We say it often here at SMA – the personal lines segment frequently leads the insurance industry with deploying new innovations, particularly within distribution. Over the next five years, insurers focused on personal lines will likely continue to spearhead the distribution revolution through new technologies and channel strategies. Where insurers invest today to support distributors will set the stage for their channel partnerships in the future, either building solid bonds with agents/brokers and others or deemphasizing some channel partners.

SMA's new research report, "Distribution Technologies for Personal Lines: Carrier Plans in 2023 and Beyond," details findings from a survey of executives on the current state of digital capabilities offered to distribution partners, an assessment of the challenges and barriers to deploying new capabilities, and carriers' plans to put new digital sales and servicing capabilities into the market.

Appian Releases Connected Underwriting to Equip Insurers with Speed and Precision

Appian (Nasdaq: APPN) today announced the availability of Appian Connected Underwriting. Built on the Appian Platform, Connected Underwriting empowers insurers to accelerate the underwriting process and improve customer experience. The solution uses Appian's process automation, data fabric, and low-code architecture to rapidly unify data from disparate sources, optimize workflow, and reduce the time to quote new policies.

"Carefully leveraging data and technology supports underwriters in making better, more intuitive decisions. Appian Connected Underwriting provides insurers with a cohesive solution that enhances speed and precision. We're excited to be working with Appian to bring Connected Underwriting and its automation technology to the firm's insurance clients," said Michael Cook, Partner, PwC UK. "For those moving into digital distribution, establishing a careful balance between speed and accuracy is vital. The process of receiving an inquiry, assigning it to an underwriter, assessing the risk, and delivering a quote back to the potential customer relies on a wide array of data and technology."