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Assurant (AIZ), LEVC Tie Up for Enhanced EV Warranty Plan

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Assurant, Inc. (AIZ - Free Report) recently entered into a warranty partnership with The London Electric Vehicle Company (LEVC). The alliance, which is aimed at offering enhanced warranty solutions for LEVC’s electric commercial vehicles, will help Assurant to reinforce its foothold in the automotive service contract space. Shares of the company lost 2% on Jan 22, replicating the declines in the broader markets.

Notably, LEVC has been a leading U.K.-based vehicle manufacturer, which keeps on rolling out cutting-edge automotive solutions for upgrading its vehicles. With the aid of integrated EV technology and enhanced materials, LEVC is equipped to build electric commercial vehicles. These vehicles are powered with zero-emission and higher passenger accommodating capabilities. Its EV product portfolio primarily comprises LEVC electric TX black cabs and VN5 electric van models. Notably, the new warranty plan devised by Assurant augurs well for the same.

Named as LEVC One, the warranty plan provides coverage for over 4,000 LEVC’s EVs that are plying on roads across the U.K. Being the first warranty product for EVs, LEVC One has a standard warranty of five years and 150,000 miles for the vehicle, which can be further expanded.

Its worthy of mentioning that the partnership seems to be a win-win situation for both the companies. On one hand, the tie-up is likely to bolster Assurant’s product portfolio for offering solutions to protect vehicles and offload expensive repairs. This, in turn, is likely to provide a boost to the company’ automotive business. On the other hand, the new plan will enable LEVC to intensify focus on its core operations as Assurant will be taking care of its claims management on a day-to-day basis through its customer service expertise.

Shares of Assurant have gained 5.4% in a year against the industry’s decline of 0.2%.

Moreover, the latest tie-up seems to be time opportune as the U.K. government has planned to ban the sale of new diesel and petrol cars, and vans from 2030. This announcement is in line with the nation’s constant efforts to reduce vehicle emissions as internal combustion engine vehicles pose significant threat to environment. With an increasing demand for EVs, the time is apt for Assurant to tap the prevailing scenario by devising warranty plans similar to the latest one.

Furthermore, the company has been relying on acquisitions and partnerships for boosting capabilities and diversifying areas of operations. Last month, it acquired EPG Insurance, Inc. (EPG), addition of which is likely to boost the company’s service contract offerings.

Notably, the company has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

Stocks to Consider

Some better-ranked stocks in the insurance space are CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO - Free Report) , Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (FNF - Free Report) and The Travelers Companies, Inc. (TRV - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

CNO Financial, Fidelity National and Travelers have a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 39.09%, 30.48% and 15.47%, on average, respectively.

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