SOCAR said on the 23rd that it signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MOU) with AXA General Insurance for data-based insurance product development and new business cooperation.
Under the agreement, SOCAR will offer AXA General Insurance products, including driver insurance and travel insurance, directly in its app. Users will be able to access the insurance they need from vehicle reservation through driving without moving to a separate platform. The two companies plan to sequentially expand the product lineup with a goal of launching the service in the second half of this year.
This partnership is the first execution case of the growth strategy "The Next," which SOCAR released in May. SOCAR has presented a strategy to evolve beyond its existing car-sharing business by expanding subscription services and vehicle commerce, and by combining insurance and financial services to become a "full-stack mobility" platform that covers the entire process of vehicle use.
Insurance is regarded as a key pillar of this strategy. Because insurance services are essential across vehicle use, SOCAR prepared the groundwork for entering related businesses by adding 12 business purposes, including "insurance agency and brokerage," to its articles of incorporation through an extraordinary shareholders meeting on the 4th.
Going forward, the two companies will also work on developing customized insurance products using SOCAR's driving data for about 25,000 vehicles and safe-driving scores. With the arrival of the autonomous driving era expected to change liability for accidents and coverage structures, they also plan to pursue joint research on next-generation insurance models.
Park Jae-uk, CEO of SOCAR, said, "Because insurance is an indispensable area in the process of using a vehicle, we focused on making it more convenient for customers to use," adding, "By combining SOCAR's mobility data with AXA General Insurance's expertise, we will provide insurance that better fits customer driving patterns more easily and reasonably, and we will also prepare together for new insurance models for the Autonomous Driving era."