The cycling insurance company putting riders before premiums

Tired of the traditional insurance model, Laka aims to be fairer and easier for the customer. In fact, they’ve made it in their interest to settle a claim, writes Sean Russell

Laka co-founders: Ben Allen (Laka)

The traditional insurance model can seem fundamentally flawed. You pay a premium in advance and maybe receive a service later. But the insurer wants to keep that premium to themselves, so it’s in their interest not to pay out on a claim. Laka, a cycling insurance company, is turning the model over, with a customer-focused brand that they want, above all else, to be trusted.

“Instead of me taking your money first and giving you a service later, we go upside down,” says Tobias Taupitz, co-founder and CEO of Laka. “I don’t want any of your money up front. You keep it, and only at the end of the month, once we know how many claims happen in a month, we’ll charge everyone involved – the Laka collective, we call it.”

Every member of Laka pays a small amount of every claim. So if there were 500 claims in a month you’d pay more than if there were 100 claims. But when you join up, the amount you pay is capped based on the value of the bike or bikes you are insuring. Instead, Laka makes its money by attaching a charge to each claim – therefore they only make money when they pay out.