InsurTech startups are poised to transform the insurance industry, with investment and an increasing number of new businesses and collaborative partnerships creating a thriving ecosystem of start-ups, insurers, investors and innovators.

This is according to Startupbootcamp InsurTech’s 2017 trend report with PwC, which found that in 2016, just 28 per cent of insurers were exploring partnerships to leverage InsurTech, but in 2017 45 per cent are directly engaging in such partnerships.

A second wave of InsurTech startups is emerging, according to the report, tackling more complex and wide-ranging problems that are more closely aligned to the insurers’ needs. There has been a move away from the skewed focus on distribution that was initially the case when InsurTech began its rise a couple of years ago.

Sabine VanderLinden, managing director at Startupbootcamp InsurTech, commented: “As digital first personal lines platforms become more pervasive, the more complex needs of commercial lines providers will become a key focus area for start-ups, looking at technology to improve internal processes across the insurance value chain and agreeing that the digital journey and engagement remain at the core of that equation.

“Maturing start-ups will need time to prove their value in an industry where KPIs such as claims ratios can take time to be realised, insurers need to transform how they work and these collaborative models will take time to embed.”

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