Update on Goosehead Insurance

Goosehead Insurance Inc., an insurance technology business, will introduce a web-based service geared at customers shopping for personal coverage online on Wednesday, expanding its reach beyond the traditional agents. They now use the system, according to company management.

Goosehead, which went public in 2018 and aimed to write $1.5 billion in total premiums this year, announced that it had retooled its professional platform, which now allows more than 2,000 corporate and independent franchise agents to search quotations from more than 140 carriers swiftly.

Brian Pattillo, a vice president of Goosehead, told Reuters, "We've re-skinned the platform and targeted it at consumers." Goosehead, based in Westlake, Texas, intends to tackle an issue consumers encounter when looking for insurance online by delivering accurate prices, not teaser rates, and not selling user data as they move from site to site, according to industry experts.

According to a Reuters investigation, several websites collect personal information and offer options from various insurers. Other sites that import user data ask more questions before delivering a quote and direct customers to an agent are linked to the alternatives.

According to Piper Sandler analyst Paul Newsome, who has seen a demo of Goosehead's "Digital Agent" platform, buyers may quickly see numerous estimates and terms and buy through an agent.

He acknowledged that the platform might not significantly impact Goosehead's earnings for a year or two. Still, He said that "if it's even a tiny bit successful, it's essentially additive to Goosehead's business," which is already lucrative.

The administration of policies is handled by operation centers, allowing Goosehead agents to focus on earning revenue by finding new clients rather than servicing existing policies.

Goosehead made $18.8 million on $117 million in revenue last year. According to Refinitiv, revenue has nearly doubled since 2016, the most recent data available. Due to increased spending from expanding offices and investing in the platform failed analysts' expectations in the second quarter.

Goosehead's expanded use of its existing profitable technology is lauded by Newsome, who points out that many other insurance tech companies are losing money.

The following are the highlights of Goosehead Insurance's second-quarter performance, which ended on June 30, 2021:

Organically, total revenues increased by 28% to $38.2 million.
The net income for the second quarter was $3.1 million.
The total amount of written premiums placed grew by 46% to $399 million. The number of policies in force increased by 48% year over year to 872,000. Total agency franchises climbed by 59 percent year over year to 1,801 units.