AXA has launched a blockchain-based insurance product that automates the payment of late flight compensation for air passengers.
The product, called ‘Fizzy’ is being trialled for air passengers between Paris Charles de Gaulle airport and the United States and is expected to come to the UK early next year.
The insurance premium and agreements are all detailed on a smart contract and the flight is tracked in real time through global air traffic databases. Fizzy automatically pays compensation into the customer's bank account if the flight arrives more than two hours late. Compensation of a loss is not based on a customer claiming for it and insurance experts assessing the loss, but on data stored on the AXA blockchain.
Laurent Benichou director of R&D at AXA GIE says: "Through Fizzy, the independent smart contract, rather than the insurer, triggers consumer indemnification. I believe this is a new element of insurance architecture that will become mainstream in future offers”