SafeShare Global, an insurance technology startup, has launched the first blockchain-based insurance solution for the sharing economy. The company, in partnership with sharing economy firm Vrumi, has developed the first fully integrated insurance product and is offering it to homeowners.

Vrumi connects homeowners with professionals seeking office space and allows them rent out extra rooms. In an interview with Business Comparison, Roddy Campbell, founder of Vrumi, had said that insurance is the biggest practical problem for the startup. This is so because traditional insurance policies do not allow homeowners to have paying guests and they may be invalid when the property is used for commercial purposes.

SafeShare's solution uses bitcoin’s underlying blockchain technology – created by Z/Yen Group to confirm counter-party obligations. Blockchain technology facilitates the delivery of a flexible and a responsive product to customers at a reasonable price.

"Insurance for the sharing economy needs to be flexible and responsive to customer needs. Our distributed ledger approach, developed by Z/Yen Group, offers the opportunity to coordinate the provision of products between counter-parties in near real-time and to radically cut the cost of this coordination”, said Alex Steinart, SafeShare Global Co-Founder states.

The product is underwritten at Lloyd's of London and offers a 24-hour claim service hotline. It offers hosts the opportunity to 'opt in' to cover, giving comfort without breaking the bank. The underlying replicated authoritative immutable ledger ensures a trusted record of insured parties is maintained.

Z/Yen is a commercial think-tank, consultancy and venture firm headquartered in the City of London. It seeks to promote societal advance through better finance and technology.

"Z/Yen's woven broadcast technology delivers SafeShare's insurance solution an undisputable record of the insured through a distributed network of proof. Built on MetroGnomo, encrypted copies of the distributed ledger are held by all parties, such as the States of Alderney who are providing oversight of MetroGnomo's integrity”, said Professor Michael Mainelli, Executive Chairman of Z/Yen.