French startup Koala closes €1.6m seed round led by Insurtech Gateway

Paris based insurtech Koala announced an investment of €1.6 million led by London based incubator and fund Insurtech Gateway alongside Playfair Capital, Techstars Ventures and private investors. Koala is reinventing travel insurance. Their data-driven products proactively alert travelers to any disruption and pay-out instantly, no forms, no exclusions, no questions asked.

As countries start to tentatively open up their borders, holidaymakers face some big decisions. With COVID-19 travel has never been so unpredictable. Now, with Koala, there is finally some reassuring certainty. Tracking all journeys in real-time, Koala instantly informs passengers as disruption occurs and issues cash compensation on the spot, whatever the cause of the delay might be.

Ugo Weyl, Co-Founder and CEO at Koala said: “Every year, hundreds of millions of passengers suffer flight disruptions and face an uphill battle to claim compensation. Travellers face antiquated claims procedures, with only 15% of customers receiving a pay-out. We felt this was unfair, a delay is a delay and customers should be compensated 100% of the time. We are very excited to have Insurtech Gateway joining the Koala family, bringing their unique insurance expertise to the team. We are looking forward to having their support as we launch our product at Falcon 9 speed and scale internationally.” 

Airlines are also suffering, with flight disruption costing the industry €4 billion every year – an average of 5% of their total operating costs. Koala’s products benefit both operators and consumers. Their win-win solution is already in high demand across the travel industry and over the next 3 months, will go-live in the booking journeys of 2 airlines and 4 travel agencies.

Peter Davies, CEO and investor Airline Management Group and former CEO of four airlines including Air Malta, Caribbean Airlines and Brussels Airlines said: “Koala offers a unique way for airlines to save money and overcome one of their most significant customer service challenges, while at the same time offering an excellent experience to their travellers. Watch this space, Koala is on the way to becoming the next travel essential.”

Stephen Brittain, Co-Founder of Insurtech Gateway said: “We had seen several flight disruption startups before Koala. Their positioning to work directly with the airlines was bold, different and clearly learned the hard way. We’re excited to support them as they launch their beta product and to be a part of their future success. They are going to be one to watch.” 

This raise will be used to support Koala’s rapid growth plans, team expansion and new product development. Flight disruption insurance is just the beginning. Koala is dreaming big, going way beyond insurance, to become the ultimate travel companion from the moment you leave your front door to the moment you safely arrive back home. 

“We want to bring travel insurance into the 21st century, removing uncertainty and providing the invisible but ever present layer of protection that today’s consumers demand. With Koala you never fly alone,'' added Koala Co-Founder and CEO, Ugo Weyl.

insurtechgateway.com

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