Sealed Brings to Market Innovative Residential Energy Efficiency Insurance Program
Market transforming product encourages homeowners to pay for upgrades with energy savings
Feb 22, 2017, 13:01 ET
NEW YORK, Feb. 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Sealed, an energy software company that empowers homeowners to pay for home upgrades like insulation, air sealing, and smart thermostats with their energy savings, announced today the implementation of a residential energy efficiency insurance policy from The Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company (HSB), part of Munich Re.
This innovative program insures the performance of Sealed's proprietary energy analytics, which both removes energy savings performance risk from homes that finance energy efficiency improvements and increases the confidence of third party capital providers.
Lauren Salz, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Sealed said, "Our innovative program brings insurance to the residential energy efficiency market for the very first time, which will allow us to lower the cost of capital and provide the best possible value to our customers."
To develop the insurance program, Sealed worked closely with E-Capital Insurance Services, an innovative energy insurance brokerage that specializes in energy efficiency insurance programs. "Through this program the obstacles to a homeowner implementing a comprehensive energy efficiency project are almost entirely removed. How can you say 'no' to improved home comfort and energy savings that are insured?" said Marshall Haimson, President of E-Capital Insurance Services.
Sealed calculates energy savings via patent-pending analytics that leverage machine-learning principles to accurately predict energy usage. These energy savings are used to finance energy efficiency improvements like insulation, air sealing, and HVAC upgrades via Sealed's HomeAdvance program in partnership with the New York Green Bank.
In addition to working with the New York Green Bank, Sealed is currently working with several utilities in New York as part of the state's Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) initiative, including National Grid, Orange & Rockland Utilities, and Con Edison. Sealed partners with local contractors to offer HomeAdvance financing to their customers. Collectively, these partners serve geographies that cover over 50% of New York homes.
HSB's Energy Efficiency Insurance product provides a financial and competitive advantage to contractors, building owners and financiers. The coverage helps reduce their technical project risk exposure and balance sheet liability, while increasing confidence in their project's ability to deliver energy savings.
"Residential insurance products must be cost-effective and scalable," said Richard B. Jones, HSB Senior Vice President for Engineering and Research." Utilizing HSB's portfolio underwriting approach to develop this new performance product, residential customers now have ready access to energy efficiency insurance that traditionally has been available only to large commercial and municipal customers."
About Sealed
Sealed is redefining energy services for homeowners. Leveraging proprietary data, analytics, and software, Sealed is the first and only company to finance energy efficiency home improvements directly with the resulting energy savings. We are overcoming traditional barriers to the residential energy efficiency market, enabling rapid growth by making energy savings a bankable asset.
SOURCE Sealed