Cover Genius launches Shake Shield with Palomar E&S and Swiss Re capacity
Cover Genius has launched a parametric solution for earthquake exposure aimed at QuickBooks customers with primary capacity from Palomar’s new E&S carrier reinsured by Swiss Re, which also developed the product with the insurtech.
The product will be made available through Cover Genius’ XCover distribution platform. Other commercial insurance product offerings are expected to follow in the new collaboration between Cover Genius and Intuit, the owner of QuickBooks.
The Shake Shield offering is described as a first-of-its-kind parametric insurance solution built by Cover Genius and Swiss Re to provide quick payments to help businesses get back on their feet after a qualifying earthquake.
In a release today, New York-based Cover Genius said it has teamed up with Intuit to offer the solution to clients of the accounting software firm’s QuickBooks product. The offering is initially available in California.
In the statement, the insurtech said QuickBooks will have access to the first API-based parametric insurance platform that fully automates claim assessments and payments.
No physical inspections are required, with payments made quickly into a designated bank account following a successful claim submission, based on real time processing of US Geological Survey data.
Commenting on the launch, Cover Genius COO for the Americas Mitch Doust said: “Over the past few years we have all experienced natural catastrophes like the Coronavirus pandemic, earthquakes, wildfires and floods which highlight the need for businesses to receive timely financial support from their insurance companies.”
“We are thrilled to team up with Intuit, a Fortune 500 company that is committed to a technology-first approach to insurance that drives better outcomes for small businesses. We are also excited to expand the collaboration into additional commercial insurance products down the line,” he added.
The Insurer comment
Swiss Re is among a number of supporters of the MGA and programs space that has talked about growing demand for products by utilizing new avenues of distribution.
This summer, the company told this publication its Solutions team in the Americas was eying opportunities in what it is terming strategic partnerships with program administrators or corporations with large customer bases
By teaming up with Cover Genius and Intuit, it is accessing insurtech distribution and a large potential customer base of QuickBooks users.