View this article online: https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2016/03/29/403382.htm
Slice Labs Inc., an instech startup set to launch an on-demand platform to sell insurance to participants in the on-demand economy, said it has secured $3.9 million in seed funding led by Horizons Ventures and XL Innovate.
The Slice on-demand insurance platform, which has not yet launched, will allow participants to buy insurance when they need it and not have to commit to an annual policy. Slice’s first product launched on the platform will be a proprietary pay-per-use policy for Uber and Lyft drivers that covers the driver from the time they turn on the rideshare app until they turn it off.
Slice is headquartered in New York City and is currently licensed to conduct business in California, Connecticut, Iowa, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington, although it s not yet known where the online agency will begin selling.
The Slice founders include Timothy Attia and Ernie Hursh, both formerly of Bolt Solutions, a successful digital distribution platform for property/casualty insurance carriers.
“Insurance today is anything but transparent and it is hard to get the coverage you need when you need it,” says Attia, CEO and co-founder of Slice. “The on-demand platforms have changed the game. Insurance must be truly frictionless and as seamless as transactions on these platforms.”
A recent survey by the RideShare Guy shows that only about one-in-five rideshare drivers currently carry appropriate commercial insurance coverage, while 40 percent are considering buying it.
XL Innovate, launched last April, is financially backed by insurer XL Catlin Group and invests in companies developing new capabilities in the insurance sector.
“We are very impressed by both the insurance and technical knowledge of the Slice founders whom we have tracked since the company’s inception,” says Tom Hutton, managing partner at XL Innovate. “Slice is addressing this need with a unique solution that incorporates both software technology and insurance. This is truly an insurance technology solution.”
Horizons Ventures, the private investment arm of Li Ka-Shing, has invested in Facebook, Waze, Spotify, Siri, DeepMind, Friendsurance and Blockstream.
“We believe there’s significant market opportunity for a company like Slice to create new products for the on-demand economy,” said Frances Kang from Horizons Ventures.