Key Topics Digitalization Industries Industry & Commerce Insurance Policies Business & Property Liability

"We think like our customers"

Our world has long since entered the digital age. But have the insurance options for companies kept pace with this? How can start-ups find their way through the insurance jungle? And what added value do the innovative solutions offered by deas provide our digitally oriented customers, in order to achieve the best for them? Christoph Bergemann has been responsible for the New Markets division at deas since the beginning of 2023, and explains the topics he is currently dealing with.

New Markets: What does this term mean?

“One of our core competencies is that we have a good understanding of our customers' digital and innovative business models and, based on this, can offer good coverage options,” explains Bergemann. The process begins with the team of experts identifying the customer's risks, which are just as individual as the business models. ‘We objectively identify these risks,’ says Bergemann. “The company's risk philosophy then determines which risks should be hedged and which should possibly be borne by the company itself.” Once the risk roadmap has been drawn up, phase two begins with a review of whether there are suitable products on the market to hedge these risks. ‘And if not, then we at deas can work with the insurers to develop something that meets the customer's needs,’ explains the expert. So the journey doesn't necessarily end in failure if the market turns you down.

The trials and tribulations of young start-ups

A glance at the traditional insurance market shows that every company is familiar with the classic business liability insurance, which covers operational business and so-called third-party damage. However, digital companies need more specialized protection – and standard liability insurance often excludes IT damage. “This is of course counterproductive for software providers, which our customers include, if their product is, for example, IT services and there is no cover for it,” says Bergemann. However, the insurance market has thought ahead here and developed a special IT professional liability cover that is particularly interesting for SaaS companies. There are insurers on the market that specialize in this. “With deas' decades of expertise, we are ideally placed to provide support because we know the providers, we know what they do and who best suits the needs of our customers,” says the digital expert, outlining the strengths of the industrial broker. Recently, payment service providers have also often faced the problem of not having IT liability coverage. In the past, however, deas has often been able to ensure that these companies also receive protection. “Open and transparent dialog with insurers is crucial,” says Bergemann, explaining the pain points of risk carriers. ‘We explain the risks to insurers in a clear and understandable way, as well as our customers’ business models. This enables us to increase the understanding of risk on the insurer side and negotiate coverage that both parties can be satisfied with.”

How do deas and start-ups fit together?

“Our approach is to act as an outsourced insurance department for young, fast-growing companies,” is how the insurance expert describes the role of deas. ”In this early stage after founding, those in charge are not thinking about professionalizing the topic of insurance; the focus is on growth and the further development of the business model. In this phase, everything is taken care of except insurance.” But that's where deas comes in, with both the resources and the know-how – the customer doesn't have to worry about a thing. ”This is also in line with our own claim: we work like start-ups: dynamically, quickly and with a focus on solutions. This is how we match the way start-ups work and achieve the best results at this common level.” This is also visible in the way administrative work is handled. deas customers do not use paper, but the in-house tool ‘ecconnect’, which was developed by the parent company Ecclesia Group. “The customer experience is top-notch and at the cutting edge,“ says Christoph Bergemann. ‘Our customers have access to all policies, premium overviews and statistics in their ’digital files' at all times, without having to pick up the phone and call their customer advisor.” This paperless alternative is not only a great advantage in terms of environmental protection.

Another important fact is that the New Markets unit is based in Berlin – right at the heart of the digital innovation melting pot and therefore always at the cutting edge of this fast-paced industry. Christoph Bergemann adds: “We not only offer customized solutions to start-ups, but can also provide suitable coverage products to investors in the digital industry.”

Tessa Rölert