Lazada Malaysia and insurance company AIG Malaysia are partnering to provide a seamless insurance service online.

“We are all digital natives now so it is our natural behaviour to look for products and services online among other things,” says Lazada Malaysia CEO Hans-Peter Ressel. “So selling insurance, as unlikely as it may be, was the next step for us.”

Incidentally, the e-commerce company’s office is in the same building as AIG Malaysia.

Lazada says the collaboration has been an ongoing discussion for two years, with regulatory approval needed from Bank Negara Malaysia.

Only about 2 per cent of Malaysians have insurance, compared to 3 to 4 per cent in developed markets.

AIG Malaysia CEO Antony Lee says insurance is more important now with people taking more risks and travelling to remote places.

He says his company is keeping its initial offerings on Lazada simple before exploring more complex policies, like motor insurance. At present, its dedicated AIG shop-front on Lazada Malaysia offers travel, snatch-theft, active lifestyle and purchase protection coverage.

Consumers can buy any of the insurance packages by supplying their personal details in a follow-up activation email from AIG.

Apart from Malaysia, says Ressel, Lazada is looking to sell insurance products to other countries in the region.