Driving for Broke: The Underserved Insurance and Auto Loan Opportunity

In the United States, there are approximately 198 million insured vehicles on the road today. Among those, approximately 53 million vehicles are insured by low- to moderate-income (LMI) — often known as underserved — consumers. In addition, 145 million vehicles — about 73% of cars on the road today — are financed and not owned outright. For the underserved, access to reliable transportation is particularly critical, whether to get to a job interview, to work, or to earn income via ride-sharing apps such as Uber or Lyft.

High insurance costs and high costs of borrowing can make owning and driving a vehicle especially challenging for underserved consumers. Consequently, there is great opportunity to innovate in auto insurance and lending in order to better serve these consumers and get them on the road to improved financial health.