Little partners with Pioneer, Minet to boost Kenya’s Insurance penetration

The drivers on the app will receive Ksh.3,000 per day for ten days in any case of a car accident to compensate for income lost while the car is under repair.

“We recognise that many Kenyans are turning to gig works as traditional jobs are getting hard to come by, taxi-hailing business has proved to be a stable source of income in Kenya’s gig economy employing thousands,” noted Sammy Mudhui, CEO Minet.

“The partnership will seal income disruption loopholes, for instance in cases of accidents and any other eventuality which may keep the drivers off the road for a long period of time,” he added.

The product has been integrated into the little app platform allowing drivers and partners to select payment options which are staggered into flexible installments. In case of accidents, the drivers are offered cash to speed up repair from the mechanic of choice.

Other benefits include a complimentary valuation voucher, free political violence and terrorism cover, digitized onboarding, and certificate issuance among others.

Speaking during the launch event, Pioneer Insurance Chief Executive Officer Milka Kinyua noted the low uptake of insurance products in the country saying the trend exposes many to financial drawbacks from unforeseen eventualities.

Insurance uptake in Kenya remains low compared to other key economies with the insurance penetration coming in at 2.4% as of FY’2023, according to the Q4’2023 Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) and the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) 2024 Economic Survey. 

The low penetration rate, which is below the global average of 6.8%, according to Swiss RE institute, is attributable to the fact that insurance uptake is still seen as a luxury and mostly taken when it is necessary or a regulatory requirement.

“In the insurance history, what the underwriters and brokers do is to cook products in their own kitchen, but this is different because we have brought in three partners together to ensure seemless process throughout,” she said.