Mumbai-based iGear Financial Services Pvt. Ltd, which runs an insurance comparison and aggregation portal MyInsuranceClub.com, has secured funds from unnamed angel investors. This is the site's second round of angel funding. Details of the funding were not disclosed. The website was launched in 2009.
The funds will be used for enhancing its platform, with features such as real-time rates, assistance and a service called Ask an Expert for insurance related queries.
"Almost all general insurance companies have enabled online payments for retail products like health insurance and car insurance and we see a large number of online term insurance and ULIPs being launched. This has helped the cost structure of the insurances companies as they can do away with the intermediaries and save on the commission costs, which sometimes run throughout the term of the policy. Customers too stand to benefit whether they are purchasing online or offline; they can expect unbiased, simple-to-understand comparison services before making a purchase," said Deepak Yohannan, Founder and CEO, MyInsuranceClub.com.
The site currently has a database of 1.5-2 lakh users and its revenue stream comes from charging insurance companies Rs 75- 100 per lead.
MyInsuranceClub.com ranks itself as the second largest insurance comparison website in India after PolicyBazaar.com by InfoEdge. Other sites include the Sequoia Capital and JAFCO Asia backed ApnaPaisa.com, i-Save, InsuranceMall.in, ApnaInsurance.com, Peacock Financial Advisors Pvt. Ltd's Getmeinsure.com, Click2Insure, Insurancepandit.com by A & M Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd etc.
"With more insurance companies launching operations, the need for comparison and better understanding has increased. It is very difficult for customers to check and compare a large number of policies by themselves and this is where MyInsuranceClub.com bridges the gap and helps customers with their decision-making process," said Manoj Aswani, COO, MyInsuranceClub.com.
It's not just people in metros searching for insurance. Tier 2 and 3 inhabitants are also looking for online information and comparison, said Yohannan.
iGear will also offer online training to insurance agents in an attempt to bring structure into the fragmented insurance ecosystem. "Insurance firms train agents in silos. Huge investments go into training but they are then left to fend for themselves. Many agents juggle two jobs and do not receive further training. Also, usually the training is only on one product and they dont have a source that trains them on all products. We will offer them assistance and inputs that will help them make better pitches and serve customers well," said Yohannan.
