Roost, a leader in Home Telematics for property Insurance carriers and creator of the Roost Smart Battery and the Roost Smart Water Leak and Freeze Detector solutions, today announced it has closed a $10.4 Million Series B funding round. The new funding includes investments from three Insurance companies led by Aviva Ventures, with participation by Desjardins Insurance and Fosun RZ Capital. Existing investors also participated in the round, bringing Roost's total funding to date to $17 Million.
"As a corporate venture fund, we look for innovative businesses around the world that will shape the future of insurance and we are delighted to be entering the US market with this investment in Roost," said Aviva Ventures' Managing Director, Ben Luckett. "Roost has great technology and a strong team. In the UK, we have been offering Roost Smart Batteries to our home insurance customers and I am excited about how this investment supports our ambition to empower our customers to prevent bad things from happening, rather than fixing it when something goes wrong."
"The launch of our Alert program in March, enabled by Roost's Smart Water Leak and Freeze Detector, has contributed in driving policyholder engagement and loyalty," said Boris Collignon, Vice President Strategy, Innovation and Strategic Partnerships for Desjardins Insurance. "Our policyholders can take advantage of this free solution to quickly mitigate water leak situations before damage occurs and to avoid this type of stressful situation as much as possible."
"We are very excited to have the participation of three major insurers in our latest investment round," said Roel Peeters, co-founder and CEO of Roost. "This commitment is a strong validation of Roost's value proposition as a leader in the emerging Home Telematics Insurance segment. The new funding will be used to continue our product development efforts as well as expand new product services for our insurance partners."
Property Insurance companies are recognizing that affordable smart home solutions which provide early warnings of danger or property damage are key to improving home safety and consumer peace-of-mind. In addition to reducing the cost of fire and water perils, Roost partners are also discovering higher levels of engagement, brand affinity and improvements in customer retention.
About Roost
Roost is a technology company headquartered in Sunnyvale, CA. As creators of the Roost Smart Battery and the Roost Smart Water Leak and Freeze Detector, Roost has developed a unique, patented, connected platform of data sensors that deliver the ultimate in installation simplicity and the most affordable way for insurers to provide Home Telematics solutions. Roost's primary go-to-market approach is through Insurance companies deploying directly to their policyholders. The effect is a reduction in claim cost expenses (fire and water perils costing $20B per year in the US), as well as driving policyholder engagement through a content rich, digital mobile app experience, impacting retention and customer acquisition. For more information, please visit www.getroost.com.
About Aviva Ventures
Aviva is the leading insurer in the UK, serving one in every four households and has strong businesses in selected markets in Europe, Asia and Canada. Aviva Ventures is Aviva's corporate venture capital fund aiming to invest £100m by 2020 in early stage businesses. It targets investments in digital and technology companies operating in four areas: 'the internet of things', for example in connected homes, health and cars; data and analytics; innovative customer experiences; and distribution, for example new 'sharing economy' platforms. For more information about Aviva Ventures, please visit https://www.aviva.com/about-us/aviva-worldwide/aviva-ventures/
About Desjardins Insurance
A subsidiary of Desjardins Group, Desjardins General Insurance Group (DGIG) is Canada's third largest provider of property and casualty insurance. The company distributes insurance under the Desjardins Insurance, The Personal, and State Farm Canada brands. DGIG is also a leader in Canada in white label distribution.
About Fosun RZ Capital
Fosun RZ Capital, founded in 2013 and formerly known as Fosun Kinzon Capital, is a leading venture capital backed by Fosun Group. It has offices in China, US, and India. RZ Capital invests in Angel to VC and growth stages, with focus on Internet application on Industries and frontier technologies, specialized in finance, education, healthcare, insurance, B2B, automotive related, consumer, and business services.