New York-based insurance technology company Oyster has launched a new usage-based rental insurance product for businesses across the US.

The rental insurance offering will provide comprehensive coverage to merchants, rental shops, and marketplaces for protecting the rental assets that the businesses offer for rental, lease, and subscription purposes.  

Oyster’s insurance product will safeguard rental assets such as bikes, kayaks, e-bikes, and paddleboards from any accidental damage, theft, and catastrophic events while they are rented.

Coverage offered under this rental insurance product can range from a single day to over a year.

The company said that it has adopted a usage-based pricing model for the new rental insurance product to ensure that businesses and riders are required to only pay for insurance during the rental period.

The rental insurance product, which is integrated into Oyster’s platform, can be customised for different rental assets and operations.

According to Oyster, businesses can protect their rental assets on a repair and replacement basis, which starts with a $0 deductible.

Oyster co-founder and CEO Vic Yeh said: “The expanding rental market presents risk challenges for businesses due to the distinct nature of renting an item.

“Leveraging Oyster’s tech-driven underwriting platform, we are now able to provide comprehensive coverage for the rapidly growing rental market.”

Backed by several investors, including New Stack Ventures and Conversion Capital, Oyster specialises in providing a completely integrated suite of insurance products and services for consumers and merchants.

Utilising Oyster’s insurance products, merchants and businesses offer insurance to their customers at point-of-sale. It also helps merchants to enhance their operational capabilities with different software tooling.

Meanwhile, consumers can utilise Oyster’s products to get personal insurance and manage existing policies in one place.