Web Secret 531: Lemonade

Say you're a young Millenial. Maybe in your first job.

And you rent an apartment. And you are required to have renter's insurance.

It's 2018. What do you do?

You download the Lemonade app. Here is Lemonade explained:



What makes Lemonade special in the insurance world? It's cheap. Really cheap. A studio apartment in a doorman building could cost as little as $11.00 to insure.

As one article explains, Lemonade promises “world record claims handling” in only three seconds with “25% of claims paid in 3 seconds.” And you can “get insured” in only 90 seconds. And with its “Zero Everything” option, the customer is promised “zero deductible, zero rate hikes, zero worries.”

Nothing is too small to report stolen under a renter or homeowner’s policy, including flip-flops. The website actually says flip-flops are covered.

Here is how it works. Someone steals flip-flops out of your apartment. Use the Lemonade App to record a video of yourself explaining what happened, what the flip-flops look like and what you think they are worth, say, $10. Send it to Lemonade, and its “AI runs 18 anti-fraud algorithms,” which is basically the computer deciding whether you might be lying. If it believes you, the “AI will pay you in 3 seconds” and send $10 to your bank account. If the AI thinks you might be lying, you get diverted to a human to process the claim.

If life gives you lemons...