Ageas has unveiled new app-based insurance cover for ‘millennials’ to protect their possessions and experiences.
With no annual contract, Back Me Up enables customised, all-in-one cover when simply uploading a photo and choosing the description of an item, with users able to switch possessions in and out whenever they want, as well as leave whenever they want, with no penalty fees and charges to pay.
For a flat fee of £15 per month, Back Me Up’s Core Cover protects three items against accidental and malicious damage, loss and theft, with a claims limit of up to £3,000 in total each month – switchable at any time by uploading a photo.
It offers annual mobile phone screen repair, regardless of whether the phone is one of the three items or not, as well as worldwide and UK travel cover for lost items, cancellations and medical emergencies.
Back Me Up’s Core Cover also includes up to £1,500 for replacement car or house keys and locks, if keys are lost or users are locked out.
Users can also build their own cover, adding modular ‘bolt ons’ from £3 per month, which range from landlord conflict cover to adventure sports. Back Me Up insures a range of items – from laptops and phones, to jewellery, tennis rackets and designer handbags – and is supported by an online community.
Ageas says that currently five million (35%) 18–34s have no home contents cover and 2.3 million (18% of those travelling overseas) go abroad without travel insurance, highlighting the massive market potential for flexible, affordable and relevant cover.
Mobile phones are the most valued possession by young people, yet 48% admit their phone isn’t insured. With an average replacement cost of £445, this equates to a combined cost of £3.1 billion. 28% of 18-34s who have phone insurance say have claimed in the last 12 months.
Laptops and computers are the second most valued belonging but 44% are uninsured. A specific item of clothing completes the top three, 63% of which are uninsured.
Paul Lynes, managing director at Back Me Up, said: “People want to protect the things they value and the lifestyle they enjoy, and Back Me Up provides flexible, relevant cover that’s designed by the very people who will use it. It’s an ‘all-in-one’ lifestyle product that puts people in control by letting them decide to insure what’s important to them, not the other way around.
“There’s a huge gap in the market for an entirely new type of insurance, to meet the needs of young, independently-minded people. Until now, Millennials have had to engage with the insurance industry on its terms – but all that is now set to change.”