Insurance Happy Hour

There's an elephant in the room (and apparently a sugarcane field). Becky and Laird discuss this week's news of Zywave's acquisition of ITC. Plus, GM's entrance into auto insurance (and Laird's real concern with UBI) and an announcement.

Zywave Acquires Insurtech Frontrunner ITC, Becomes Only Provider to Offer Front-Office Solutions for Independent Insurance Agencies Across All Lines of Business

General Motors Debuts Usage-Based Auto Insurance Supported by OnStar Vehicle Data (Carrier Management)

Adorable Baby Elephant Gets Caught Eating Sugarcane, Tries To Hide Behind A Narrow Light Pole

It's a rabbit hole of Laird's unexpected tweet shower this week. Everything from speeding tickets to shiny new technology syndrome to what keeps him up at night.

Follow Laird on Twitter.

Home insurance customers – the most valuable group of customers to P&C carriers. How can agents attract them? Plus, Lemonade’s struggle to convert their renter customers into home customers and the fuel that powers this podcast.

Home Insurance Customer Service and Reputation—Not Price—Drive Lifetime Customer Value, J.D. Power Finds

What is the number one insurance brand in the world? Becky and Laird discuss that brand plus other top 100 global brands, including what makes them great and how the pandemic has affected some of the top brands.

The number one insurance brand across the world is… (Insurance Business America)

“We don’t really know where this goes — and I’m not sure we really care.” ~ Bob Ross

From random holidays to bad gifts. Sources of weird inspiration and secret societies. Plus, Happy Boss's Day!

Insurance Agent App

Credit scores are not really an indicator of someone's driving behavior and risk. Yet a person's credit score is used to price their auto insurance. Not for one company. Plus, who is the smartest in the room?

Drop credit scores from insurance rate pricing (Root Insurance)

Becky and Laird streamline the show to its essence.

Car insurance start-up Root hires Goldman Sachs to lead IPO (Reuters)

Two carriers; two different announcements. One is making an acquisition to diversify and better serve their market. One may be looking to sell off part of their book to better focus on what they do best. Plus, a rant from Laird (Shocking, I know) and Becky laments a loss caused by the pandemic.

In a First, State Farm to Acquire Texas Nonstandard Auto Insurer GAINSCO (Insurance Journal)

Amazon is selling auto insurance in India! So? Becky and Laird talk about why it's time to stop the hand wringing and start actually doing something. Plus, we have an announcement.

Amazon's entry into auto insurance holds valuable lessons for agencies (Insurance Business America)

Elon Musk is recruiting actuaries to be part of his "revolutionary" insurance company. Will Tesla actually revolutionize insurance? Plus, it was Becky's birthday this week and Laird gives a behind-the-scenes look at how his brain works.

Biggest Insurance Disruptor: Lemonade or Tesla? (Strategy Meets Action)