The electric vehicle compared to its Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicle counterpart, sees a fraction of moving parts, but has more complexity to its functioning. In fact, while from the outside both the vehicles look identical and function similarly, each comes with its own set of benefits and challenges.
Compared to a breakdown or an unfortunate accident of an IC vehicle versus an EV, requires a different approach. While diagnosing and repairing a traditional vehicle requires comparatively more of mechanical and electronics knowledge versus a combination of hardware and software knowledge in an EV.
On the insurance front, while there are policies that cover EVs, they have not been specifically designed and developed keeping their unique nature in mind. Zuno (formerly Edelweiss General Insurance), as part of its future plans, is gearing up to launch, what could be India’s first motor insurance policy specifically designed for the electric vehicles segment.
Shanai Ghosh, MD & CEO, Zuno shares that while EVs are getting insured under motor insurance policies and have add-ons like extended coverage on battery life, motor, etc, the business case is still not very clear. It is expected that Zuno will launch an EV-specific motor insurance policy in Q2 FY2024.
Drive better pay less policy
Zuno claims to be the first company in India to embrace digital adoption and introduce many industry-first features such as – a switch-off policy when the vehicle is not in use, an AI voice bot for automated motor claim registration, on-demand mobile telematics-based insurance policy, pay as-you drive and out-of-network cash advance among others.
Ghosh says being a fintech company it aims to establish a transparency factor not only for its customers but also for the way it functions. Sharing an interesting anecdote, it was revealed that the company’s work-from-anywhere policy sees around 90 percent of its employees opting to work remotely. This not only fosters better connections within the team but also helps creativity flowing, which helps the company introduce new products.
Among the latest product for the motor insurance policy introduced by Zuno is a ‘Drive less, pay less, drive better, pay less’ usage-based policy. How does it work?
Once a customer takes the new policy, he/she will be directed to download a mobile app, which after signing in, will track the user’s driving patterns. Using the smartphone’s gyroscopic and other sensor data, the app will give out a driving score after each drive. This will help the users improve their driving behaviour and motivate them to follow safe driving patterns, which will in turn help reduce the EMI.
Zuno depending on the driving pattern will offer in-app rewards, which can be redeemed towards their premium.
Driving growth through safe driving
Ghosh explains that the idea for the innovative policy is to reward people who use their vehicles safely. At present, the premium for most policies is determined by a fixed set of parametres like – make, model, variant; age; location; cover; add-ons; No Claim Bonus (NCB), and deductibles among others.
Rakesh Kaul, Chief Distribution Officer, Zuno says, that the fintech’s idea is to ensure that its customers are better equipped to know their driving behaviour, which will help reduce unsafe driving, in turn, helps reduce the potential of accidents, which in turn helps the company’s growth.
Interestingly, the company claims that overall it has a 60 percent retention rate, with the exception of motor insurance products, where overall customer loyalties towards an insurance provider are less. But it expects, by providing advanced data, it will be able to further drive sustainable growth.
