January 31, 2020
Blink and how it began – Digital Insurer Interview
Source: Thedigitalinsurer.com
Paul Prendergast, CEO and co-founder of Blink tells us about how the business was founded in the below interview with the Digital Insurer.
Q.1 What was the inspiration for the founding of Blink?
When we started Blink we weren’t thinking about the insurers, we weren’t thinking about the end-user, we were thinking about the underwriter. We originally identified several use cases that combine the ubiquity of smartphones with parametric insurance products.
Leveraging these trends, we set out to automate the customer experience for travel insurance with the key features being the absence of a claims process benefits include complimentary airport lounge access, hotel booking options and instant payment when the insured’s flight is delayed more than three hours, all done seamlessly through a smartphone.
Q.2 How do you see parametric insurance evolving?
First, there is the notion that insurance is becoming “invisible”, that is, there is no claims process and the user journey is embedded in the core service. It will continue to move towards digitally deliverance and expand to other lines including parametric Agri-tech, nat-cat and marine cover. Event (named perils), motor and potentially even health insurance.. For example, our paperless service helps ease the stress of a flight delay or cancellation in real-time.
Q.3 How does Blink fit into the broader travel insurance ecosystem?
First, Blink evangelises the benefits of parametric insurance use cases. Second, Blink works with select insurers on a white label basis to design travel insurance products that include. Finally, Blink works with OTAs and airlines to optimize the distribution of our products. It’s important to emphasise that our technology sits in the background while insurers retain control and access to customer data.
Q.4 What’s next?
Ultimately, Blink is helping incumbent insurers to capitalize on the rise parametric use cases. Going forward, we will continue to expand across Asia North America, Asia and Europe. Our recent partnerships with Manulife in Canada and Pluto in the UK.
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