PolicyGenius

PolicyGenius
Industry Insurance
Founded 2014
Founders Jennifer Fitzgerald, Francois de Lame
Headquarters New York City
Area served
 United States
Products Life, Renters, Long-Term Disability, Pet
Website www.policygenius.com

PolicyGenius was founded in 2014 by two former McKinsey consultants,[1] Jennifer Fitzgerald and Francois de Lame.[2]

PolicyGenius clients have access to advice through the company's insurance quoting platform. The platform provides personalized quotes, as well as side-by-side comparison of insurance policies from dozens of the country's insurance providers.

According to a LIMRA report, 132 million Americans rely on life insurance to protect their financial security,[3] but the country is still facing a $20 trillion life insurance[4] gap due to four key issues: lack of insurance understanding, overestimating the cost of insurance, lack of access based on an aging broker workforce[5] and lack of online tools and an economic shift to a freelance workforce.[6] Adding to the issue the Federal Reserve found that 47% of households couldn't cover an emergency expense of $400.[7] Additionally, 62%[8] of all personal bankruptcies were attributed to medical costs according to a Harvard study. Although many of these financial hardships could have been avoided with proper insurance, only 44% of individual American households have life insurance.[9]

Insurance tech companies have made a big splash for their efforts to disrupt the insurance industry recently. CB Insights[10] claims insurance tech companies have raised $2.12B between 2010 and 2015 to tackle this issue.

History

PolicyGenius officially launched in July 2014 by co-founders Jennifer Fitzgerald and Francois de Lame.[11] Leveraging their multi-product platform,[12] consumers are able to review advice,[13] research and compare quotes for life, long-term disability, renters and pet insurance.

As McKinsey consultants, Fitzgerald and de Lame advised insurance companies on growth and marketing.[14] They quickly noticed a pattern: all of the companies struggled with how to engage online with self-directed consumers.

Funding

PolicyGenius was part of the FirstGrowth Winter 2013 batch. In July 2014, PolicyGenius announced the completion of a seed round[15] with investors Brendan Wallace, Paul Arnold, and Pen King.

The company raised its Series A in June 2015, about a year after graduating FirstGrowth. The $5.3 million round[16] included investments from Karlin Ventures, Susa Ventures, MassMutual Ventures, Transamerica Ventures and AXA Strategic Ventures. The round was aimed to expand marketing efforts and target new channels.

The company raised a $15 million Series B[17] announced on January 14, 2016 from returning investors Karlin Ventures and Susa Ventures, and new investor Revolution Ventures led by Steve Case, former CEO of AOL.

References

  1. ↑ Blattberg, Eric. "McKinsey vets launch PolicyGenius to make insurance shopping less terrible". VentureBeat. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  2. ↑ "A Site That Opens Up The Black Box Of Insurance Shopping". Co.Exist. Retrieved 2016-02-04.
  3. ↑ "Facts from LIMRA Life Insurance Awareness Month, September 2015" (PDF): 2. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  4. ↑ "Americans underinsured by USD 20 trillion, says new Swiss Re publication". Swiss Re. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  5. ↑ Bronson, Caitlin. "One in four insurance agents will be gone by 2018". Insurance Business. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  6. ↑ Fisher, Anne. "The curious case of the missing Millennial workers". Fortune. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  7. ↑ "Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2014" (PDF). www.federalreserve.gov. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  8. ↑ Himmelstein, David; Thorne, Deborah; Warren, Elizabeth; Woolhandler, Steffie. "Medical Bankruptcy in the United States, 2007: Results of a National Study" (PDF). www.pnhp.org. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  9. ↑ "Facts About Life 2010" (PDF). limra.com. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  10. ↑ "Funding To Global Insurance Tech Startups Has Already Tripled In Growth This Year". www.cbinsights.com. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  11. ↑ "Meet The Small Business Hoping To Shake Up America's Insurance Industry". Forbes. Retrieved 2016-02-04.
  12. ↑ Parker, Tim. "How PolicyGenius.com Makes Buying Insurance Easier". Investopedia. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  13. ↑ Pinola, Melanie. "PolicyGenius Compares Insurance Rates, Doesn't Violate Your Privacy". Lifehacker. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  14. ↑ Miller, Zack. "Francois de Lame of PolicyGenius on how to build a digital-first insurance brand". www.tradestreaming.com. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  15. ↑ "PolicyGenius Obtains $750,000 Seed Funding". Xconomy. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  16. ↑ Chernova, Yuliya. "Online Insurance Agent PolicyGenius Nabs $5.3 Million Series A". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  17. ↑ Fairchild, Caroline (14 January 2016). "Inside The Deal: PolicyGenius Claims Revolution Ventures Largest Investment To Date". LinkedIn Pulse. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
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