April 3, 2025 • 28 mins
Nick van Egmond, CEO of Bicycle Broker, introduces 'Sundays' — a comprehensive insurance solution designed specifically for cyclists that covers theft and damage for all types of bikes across Canada.
Traditional home and tenant insurance typically demands a high deductible and leaves gaps in bicycle coverage. This new product provides 24/7 protection both on and off your property, with much lower deductibles. Nick also offers a few pro tips on new ways to keep your bike safe and recover a stolen bike.
Find out all about Sundays specialist bike insurance at sundaysinsurance.ca. You can also visit bicyclebroker.ca to learn more about bicycle insurance options.
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The Bike Sense podcast with Peter Ladner is produced by the BC Cycling Coalition – your voice for safer and more accessible cycling and active transportation in British Columbia.
Got feedback or ideas for future episodes? Please drop us an email at admin@bccycling.ca.
Membership in the BCCC is now FREE! The future of this podcast depends on people like you becoming members at BCCycling.ca.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Welcome to Bike Sense , the BC Cycling Coalition's
podcast, where we talk about allthings related to active
transportation advocacy in BC.
I'm your host, Peter Ladner,Chair of the Board of the BC
Cycling Coalition.
I hope you enjoy the show.
We all know somebody who'sbought a new bike and is afraid
(00:38):
to ride it, not because of anaccident that might happen, but
that it might be stolen.
When you've spent $3,000 on abicycle if you buy an e-bike, it
may be more than that this isobviously a very warranted
concern.
We talk a lot about ICBC andaccident liability, but this
whole other world of insuranceand worry from cyclists has
(00:58):
until now not been addressed.
But now there is an answer, andto give you that answer and
explain how it works, we'veinvited on the broadcast today
Nick van Egmond, who's the CEOof Bicycle Brokers, and they
have a new product that we thinkyou're going to be pretty
interested in.
Nick, welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Thank you so much, peter, excited to be here.
I'm chatting with you in March,right before the snow melts, so
this is a good time to kind oftalk about the spring cycling
season and what's new, what'savailable to help the bicycle
community.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
We're going to get into what you offer in a moment,
but perhaps you could just tellus how you got into this.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Well, it kind of started as I was racing bikes
and traveling and having someinsurance issues a lack of
availability for emergencymedical, leaving Canada at one
point and doing races to thensaying you know, that could be a
way I wind down my bike careerand like a new entrepreneurial
(01:57):
venture and something to giveback and to help my beloved bike
community.
Why don't I see what it wouldlook like to build an insurance
resource?
It seems like enough peoplehave questions or concerns and
there's not a central point.
So bicycle broker kind of camefrom that and the first thing I
started to talk about was travelinsurance, which got me
(02:18):
answering a lot of questionswith oh, I don't have something
to cover your bike.
I can cover you If you go to ahospital, you leave Canada,
there's an accident, there's anambulance, et cetera.
There was great products if youwere the broker and you knew
what to offer, but then they'relike well, what about my bike?
What if it's in transit?
(02:38):
What if it's stolen?
On this trip I've been planningand saving for for years and it
kind of irked me to go thereisn't anything great.
We can see how this worksthrough home insurance.
This is going back a couple ofyears and, yeah, I've been
working on a solution for thatsince.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
What is your solution ?
Speaker 2 (02:59):
The solution is a new brand on our platform called
Sundays, and it's actually beenoperating for the better part of
15 years around the world, inother countries, and so our
company, bicycle Broker, is nowthe conduit to bring that to
Canada.
An easy online click and reviewwithin seconds what is out
(03:22):
there for your bike and how do Icustomize a policy for my
individual needs, all the bikesin my household and how they're
covered, not just while they'rein the household, but how
they're covered 24-7 and, ifneeded, worldwide.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
So, just to be clear, this is not just for racers,
it's not just for peopletraveling, it's for anybody who
owns a bike and is concernedabout the financial loss from
damage or theft of that bike.
Is that right?
Speaker 2 (03:47):
Absolutely.
This is for all types of bikes.
Definitely.
E-bikes are a big demographicfor us and whether you're a
commuter with a couple hundreddollar bike right up to it's
replaced your car and you'vebought the highest end bicycle
that is out there Like, we wantto chat with you and show you
(04:09):
what's what's available toprotect your investment and your
beloved bike.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
I've always operated.
I have house insurance.
I don't know how people whorent have house insurance, If
that's also something they have.
I know you can get insurancefor your furniture and so on,
but I always thought that wouldsort of cover it.
Am I wrong if my bike wasstolen from my home?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
No, not wrong.
I mean, that's been the bestavailable option in Canada for
decades, right, if you have thatconversation with your home
insurance broker and you kind oftreat your bike the same way
you would a piece of jewelry,some fine art hey, I bought
something expensive.
If it goes missing from myhouse, um, you know what's, how
(04:54):
does your home insurance respond?
And so a very similar, whetheryou rent or own a home, a very
similar piece, right, it's it'skind of boxed in where it's just
treated the same as yourtelevision set, or so if your
home burns down or if there's aburglary and your bike is
vandalized, if your bike isstolen off of the property,
that's kind of all we had.
(05:14):
And so the thing for us is,well, that doesn't really cover
the full spectrum of how you useyour bike.
Your exposure is back to 24 7.
You know what happens if thebike is stolen while it's at my
office, while I'm at the coffeeshop.
And then, to take it a stepfurther, what about damage to
(05:36):
the bike?
With the rise of the values ofbikes we have e-bikes, as you
mentioned in the intro three,five, five.
I mean we're helping customerswho are buying $20,000.
Beautiful bicycles.
So the damage that could happenin a crash that doesn't fall
under warranty can bedetrimental financially.
(05:57):
So how do we offer anall-encompassing coverage?
Every single quote you wouldlook at on Sundays has damage
and theft across canadaautomatically in the base policy
, and then from there you'remaking some custom tweaks which
go back to that question of isit just for racers?
No, you have to actually likeclick a button and pay a little
(06:18):
bit more to cover yourself inraces and big events like grand
fondos.
Um, and the same thing with thebasic policy will cover you
across canada, because noteverybody, especially with an
e-bike right now, we're reallynot set up to fly with them.
You know you got to probablyleave your battery at home and
then see about trying to eitherpurchase or rent one when you
travel.
So we're not there yet.
(06:38):
Um, so you can click a buttonto kind of take your policy
worldwide and there's just acouple more buttons Like I.
I'd say, go through the websiteis a good way to educate
yourself with what are thesedifferent functions and you need
to compare it more like carinsurance on your bike than than
what you did previously, whichwas like a home insurance
(06:59):
dynamic of just your personalproperty.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Could you give us an example of the gap you're trying
to fill between what ICBC willcover, say, you have an accident
, your bike is banged ordestroyed by a car or truck on
one side, and what the houseinsurance will cover for theft
on the other side?
What's missing and how are youhelping out on that?
Speaker 2 (07:25):
Well, I think in that dynamic we want to and this
flows through to how you need tolook at this new type of
bicycle insurance is it doesn'thave anything to do with your
house insurance and isolatingthat can give you a lower
deductible.
So if you have to make a claimout of pocket on your home
insurance, you could have a$1,500 bike and a $1,000
(07:48):
deductible.
And if the only thing thathappens is, yeah, during some
type of commuting accident, yourbike is damaged, and then you
have that mathematical scenarioyou end up not making a claim,
your bike is damaged and youjust have to absorb that cost,
whereas with our new program,yeah, your deductible is between
(08:09):
$150 and a maximum of $350.
So it's good in that respect,the fact that it's separate from
your home insurance and you'renot calling them is a positive.
And then there are a lot ofdynamics to where, yeah, icbc is
not going to respond to thedamages to a bicycle right.
(08:29):
In a no-fault system, those areoftentimes part of the claim
that gets left out.
It's more about pain andsuffering than it is about the
loss of a piece of property.
It would fall back on thatindividual who's riding the bike
to have some other type ofinsurance, and so it fills that
gap.
You don't have to have ICBC.
(08:51):
You don't have to have ICBC.
You don't have to have homeinsurance If the most important
thing to you is your bike.
You just have to have aSunday's policy and then that
takes primary spot.
You deal with us and we walkyou through the claim process.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
Can you give us a rough idea of how much a cyclist
might be paying to get thenecessary minimum of insurance
coverage for this gap you'vejust described?
Speaker 2 (09:20):
I can.
I think it comes up on the sitewithin seconds and it is based
on the purchase price of thebike.
So, said a different way, Imean we're definitely helping
people that are paying less than$10 a month on an entry-level
bicycle to to have that extralevel of peace of mind and go
and ride more, um.
(09:41):
But on the opposite end, likeyeah, we, we work with families
that have a collection ofbicycles and e-bikes um, you
know that could have $50,000 ofvalue in their garage, just a
bicycles, right?
So it's full spectrum with us.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
So if I were to shift from my house insurance to your
product, would I get adeduction in my house insurance?
Would it cost me less?
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Great question.
I would absolutely think thateveryone should have that
dialogue of if Sundays makesense and you purchase one of
those on one or all of yourbicycles, you would want to
contact your home or yourrenter's insurance, because if
you're paying extra to coveryour bicycles on the home policy
(10:29):
and then you've got extracoverage with Sundays, you want
to eliminate what's on your homepolicy and try and negotiate a
lower price.
Absolutely Like don't doubleinsure yourself.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
So you mentioned to me that you don't just insure
the bike but you could alsoinsure the I don't know a helmet
that got broken or some partsof the bike that were damaged,
or if somebody was carryingsomething on a bike.
Is that covered by insurance?
Just get into a little bit ofthe range of what would be
(11:02):
covered that a cyclist might beworried about.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
Yeah, certainly, because this is an insurance
designed by cyclists to make itas comprehensive and useful as
possible.
It thinks about what we all dowith our bikes.
Some of us put it on anairplane so the policy can
respond to while it's in transit.
Some of us buy pretty fancyaccessories a helmet, nice
(11:27):
cycling kit.
We deal with a lot of head.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Sorry if my Garmin computer got wrecked, fell over
and it smashed.
Is that the kind of thing thatwould be covered?
Speaker 2 (11:36):
As long as it's triggered by damage or theft to
the whole bicycle, and that is apart of the claim.
Absolutely Right.
So you've, your bike, is intransit in your car and
unfortunately it gets stolen.
Someone steals a nice helmet, apair of shoes and and a garment
and you've added accessoriesonto your policy.
You're going to get covered forthe bike and those accessories.
(11:59):
So it's a very quick, easywebsite and dynamic.
To just add that and then I canexpand on a little bit more.
Like I said, it really thinksabout cyclists on on.
You know an entry level rightup to.
If you're listening to this andyou've got that collection of
bikes and you've been riding fora long time, you know a lot of
us sometimes have a second setof wheels.
(12:21):
You might have this pair that'sreally fancy and you only use it
on big rides, or you might haveone that's got fast wheels to
get you to work and then somebigger fat tires for the weekend
so you can go play in the dirtand you can click and add a set
of wheels.
Bicycle Broker works a lot withbike retailers.
(12:41):
Most of our business is thebusiness insurance side of the
cycling industry and one thingwe work together on is how do we
make this an easy process toput in front of people on new
bike day and one of the ways weincentivize that is, if you have
one of these policies on a bikewithin the first 60 days of
(13:03):
purchase, you're able to click abutton on our website and
eliminate depreciation.
So, as long as you have aSunday's policy, if you put it
on there when the bike is new,that's just another
functionality of it to kind ofincentivize people to look at
one of these policies seriously,because depreciation can happen
(13:23):
very quickly on a bicycle.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Could you describe your company's relationship with
Project 529 and tell peoplewhat that is?
Speaker 2 (13:34):
company's relationship with Project 529
and tell people what that is.
Yeah, most definitely so.
We're in a position to.
We're kind of at the end right.
I'm covering through insurance,worst case scenario Bike is
very damaged, stolen, et cetera.
But we work as closely as we canwith anybody who's proactive
with bike theft, and so registryof a bike is super key to that
(13:58):
Part of our process.
Even if you buy one of thesepolicies, the second you
complete the sale, your documentsent to you via email, if you
haven't already done it,register it on the Project 529
platform.
So if it does get stolen, 529 isI treat it like a VIN number on
a car and if that bike isrecovered after a theft, most
(14:20):
likely by a police station,they're able to log into a 529
platform which is shared betweenevery owner of the bike who's
registered their bike and policestations and police officers
across all of North America tothen track that recovered bike
back to its original owner.
That's huge to reduce thefinancial effects of a bike
(14:45):
theft and to reunite the bikewith its owner.
It's a beautiful, beautifulprogram that we fully support.
It's integrated into ourprocess, not mandatory, but
really, um, really pushed by byour team, in the same way that
we're starting to to work a lotwith and promote bicycle
(15:08):
trackers.
Um, just today in the UKthey're looking at legislation
to bring bicycle trackers moreto the forefront because bike
theft there is like, yes, it'sabsolutely a problem in Canada,
but the UK is seeing numbersthat are astronomical just with
(15:30):
the volume of bike thefts.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
And how does a bike tracker work?
Speaker 2 (15:34):
just with the volume of bike thefts.
And how does a bike tracker work?
So a bike tracker would bewhether you're using, if you
think about the Apple, airtag,or a lot of them now have a
proprietary piece of hardwareand software.
So when we talked earlier aboutbike registry, you're kind of
doing the same thing.
You're registering your tracker, which is a little piece of
(15:55):
hardware that can be hidden onthe bicycle, and then if it is
stolen, imagine it has a gps airtag, if you will, and that
proprietary software is how youcan connect and contact police,
track the bike and aid therecovery.
You know it's not to govigilante and chase down bike
(16:19):
thieves and you know do thatyourself, but it is to aid the
recovery of your stolen bike.
And then again you would kindof take one of those trackers
and definitely utilize 529 tokind of complete that piece, not
without the other piece of thiswhich we have to touch on.
And as we evolve our program,the more expensive your bike,
(16:41):
the more we would want to see abetter lock used.
So we are developing a kind ofCanada-wide approved lock system
just for the promotion ofbetter quality locks and how to
lock and speak about thatthrough our blogs and our
communication and training.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
So would you require your customers to have one of
your approved locks and or atracking chip in their bike and
or registration with Project 529?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Um locks are required in certain scenarios to prevent
your claim being declined,which is let's use the example
that a lot of us know would be Iride my bike to a coffee shop.
You need to lock it outside.
You know, we we do have, like,there's pretty intense wording
(17:32):
around the likelihood of gettingyour full claim paid if you're
not even locking up your bikewhile it's outside.
Um, so that one is, yes, it isa prerequisite.
The bike trackers andregistries no, they're.
I mean, I don't know if you'vepersonally, or the listeners out
there, have gone through a biketheft.
It is mentally it really tough,and so just how nice would it
(18:02):
be to get your bike back.
Speaker 1 (18:03):
So we have to promote that, we have to talk about it,
but it's not mandatory, no,Speaking of getting your bike
back in Project 529, what canyou tell us about their success
in retrieving stolen bikes?
I know I've registered.
I can't even remember if I paid.
I don't think I did, but I'mnever sure if that's going to
make a difference if my bikedisappears and it would have to
(18:26):
be found by the police who lookon the registry of 529.
Is that how it works?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
Yeah, correct.
I mean, in the case of anytheft right over a certain
amount, you're going to call thepolice and have that police
report.
And if you can add to thepolice report, my bike is
already registered on five tonine and a lot of people do it a
little reactively of I just hada bike stolen and then they
(18:54):
post it on social media and talkto their friends.
I watch those posts all thetime and one of every two
comments is if you haven'talready done it, register it on
529.
So that is kind of commonknowledge amongst cyclists.
But go ahead.
Speaker 1 (19:10):
You can register after the theft.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Absolutely, you can do that reactively.
This isn't like insurance whereyou need to have the policy
active before the theft or thedamage.
For anybody listening here whomight very recently or in their
network, be involved in a biketheft, if you have your proof of
purchase, serial numbers, somedescriptions, maybe a recent
photo, you're able to upload allof those on 529 and aid the
(19:38):
recovery of your bike.
Absolutely Right, because, likethe scenarios that are out
there are, you know, let's usedowntown Vancouver as an example
.
That's where the bike theftbegins, but it's generally moved
as quick as possible to anothertown, to another province, or
it starts a worldwide tour.
(19:59):
It could get recovered inanother country and 529 is a now
global safety net for recoveredbikes that can slowly get that
back to you, right?
I mean a bike could end up inMexico from Vancouver very
easily.
I mean the stats on the 529site are pretty alarming.
Two million North Americans peryear are involved in bike theft
(20:23):
.
You know that's including thebig population of the United
States, two million cyclistswe're talking about victims, not
thieves.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Correct, okay.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
Yeah, it might be tough to count the amount of
thieves, but, yeah, two millionvictims of bike theft and the
market itself for the blackmarket of bicycles is half a
billion dollars annually.
That's staggering numbers,right?
So that's why we talk so muchabout these proactive measures.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
I thought that when bikes get stolen, they get taken
apart and the parts get sold.
Is that not the case?
Speaker 2 (21:00):
I mean, that's a question for a criminal.
No, that is the case.
I mean the way we look at it is, if the bike is recovered,
great, there's still most likelygoing to be a claim on your
insurance because the bike couldbe spray painted or some of
these nice parts could have beentaken off and swapped with
(21:22):
lesser parts, devaluing yourbike or treat it as vandalism.
And so every bike that isrecovered, we push our
policyholders to please go intoyour trusted local bike shop,
have your mechanic do anassessment so that we know for
sure that you know is there aclaim?
(21:43):
How do we make you whole again,right?
How do we get that bike back tothe same condition it was at
before it was taken?
Speaker 1 (22:02):
Nick, you mentioned that this is a common type of
insurance in other countries inthe world.
Why has it taken so long tocome to Canada and how prevalent
is it and how popular is it inother countries?
Speaker 2 (22:11):
I mean, I look to the UK as my North Star.
It tends to be the home ofinsurance.
You know, people know, maybelike Lloyd's of London or it's
where there's new products aremade, and so if we look at this
type of specialist bikeinsurance, the standalone kind
of coverage that we're doingthrough Sundays in Canada if we
(22:33):
were on this podcast in the UKwe would have more than a dozen
options for cyclists to look at,to go.
I want to compare this bikeinsurance company versus that
one.
Who's got better rates?
Who's got better coverage?
Am I a part of a club or doesmy local retailer have some type
(22:54):
of deal and discount?
It's a big infrastructure.
Or another way to look at it isyou're a cyclist in the UK and
the insurance on your bicyclecomes from a special insurance
policy for bicycles.
They're a decade past thinkingabout my bike is insured under
my home.
Those days are gone.
(23:15):
There's been a polar shift.
Right, the bike insurance rules.
It's that, or people just riskit and they pay out of pocket if
something happens.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
Well, it sounds pretty exciting and I'm excited
for you because I know this is awhole new chapter in your life
and this product is nowavailable and we're going to put
all the links up on our shownotes.
Is there anything else youthink people need to know about
(23:45):
the gaps that this fills or theproducts that you offer that we
haven't already talked about?
Speaker 2 (23:53):
I think the best thing for the public is to, yeah
, visit our websites, because itdoes link to a live team of
Canadian brokers.
We all ride bikes and we'rehere to answer those questions.
There's a toll-free number setup, live chat email.
We're actually looking forfeedback from the public, right?
This is a brand new type ofinsurance and that's not always
(24:16):
easy for people to get, so we'rehere to answer questions.
If you're challenged with howit works, give us a call.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
Does it apply equally to all places in BC?
What if I'm in some smallercommunity?
Will I get the same service?
Speaker 2 (24:35):
We are currently operating and offering this
coverage, which is identical toall residents of british
columbia, alberta, ontario.
Later this spring we will openmanitoba and nova scotia.
Going into next year the hopeis to be across all of canada.
But yeah, it's the same.
There's just difference oftaxation in.
(24:55):
Yeah, it's the same.
There's just difference oftaxation in your province.
That's it.
Otherwise, same product.
So this podcast could gonationwide.
I hope it does.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
And you're sitting there in the Sunshine Coast
masterminding all this.
Do you have a network ofbrokers around?
Let's just talk about BC.
Does it matter where they'relocated?
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Well, our brokers are all located relatively close to
Vancouver and they're alllicensed to work with any
resident of British Columbia, soit doesn't really matter.
We promote back totransportation even within the
company.
It's a work from home, digitalright, so you're not going to a
bicycle broker office to buy aninsurance policy.
(25:42):
You're dealing with over thephone, um or or through our
website communications.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
If I remember of a biking club, would there be an
opportunity for the whole clubto get some kind of a discount
deal with you?
Speaker 2 (25:59):
That's where I want people to connect directly with
myself through the website.
We are, this summer, startingto release partnership programs
for larger organizations, clubsand a retailer program.
Most definitely, yeah, sothat's all coming soon.
You can use our website.
There's a contact atbicyclebrokerca email address
(26:23):
and just subject linepartnerships.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
Well, nick.
Thank you so much for fillingus in on this.
It's a pretty exciting newdevelopment which I hope will
make life easier for cyclistsand make more people more
inclined to not just buy a bikebut actually ride it and not be
so terrified of having it stolenor damaged.
We really appreciate yourparticipation and we will put
(26:48):
all the necessary links up onthe show notes.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
No, thank you so much to the BC Cycling Coalition all
of your listeners.
It's a pleasure interactingwith you.
I'll be at your trade shows andlook forward to the feedback.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (27:10):
You've been listening to Bike Sense, an original
podcast from the BC CyclingCoalition.
An original podcast from the BCCycling Coalition.
If you like the podcast, we'dbe grateful if you could leave
us a rating.
On whatever platform you use,you can also subscribe so you
don't miss future episodes.
If you have comments orsuggestions for future episodes,
(27:31):
email me at peterladner atbccyclingca.
Email me at peterladner atbccyclingca.
You can help us amplify BCCycling Coalition's voice by
simply becoming a free member atbccyclingca.
Thank you.
Welcome to Bike Sense , the BC Cycling Coalition's
podcast, where we talk about allthings related to active
transportation advocacy in BC.
I'm your host, Peter Ladner,Chair of the Board of the BC
Cycling Coalition.
I hope you enjoy the show.
We all know somebody who'sbought a new bike and is afraid
(00:38):
to ride it, not because of anaccident that might happen, but
that it might be stolen.
When you've spent $3,000 on abicycle if you buy an e-bike, it
may be more than that this isobviously a very warranted
concern.
We talk a lot about ICBC andaccident liability, but this
whole other world of insuranceand worry from cyclists has
(00:58):
until now not been addressed.
But now there is an answer, andto give you that answer and
explain how it works, we'veinvited on the broadcast today
Nick van Egmond, who's the CEOof Bicycle Brokers, and they
have a new product that we thinkyou're going to be pretty
interested in.
Nick, welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Thank you so much, peter, excited to be here.
I'm chatting with you in March,right before the snow melts, so
this is a good time to kind oftalk about the spring cycling
season and what's new, what'savailable to help the bicycle
community.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
We're going to get into what you offer in a moment,
but perhaps you could just tellus how you got into this.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Well, it kind of started as I was racing bikes
and traveling and having someinsurance issues a lack of
availability for emergencymedical, leaving Canada at one
point and doing races to thensaying you know, that could be a
way I wind down my bike careerand like a new entrepreneurial
(01:57):
venture and something to giveback and to help my beloved bike
community.
Why don't I see what it wouldlook like to build an insurance
resource?
It seems like enough peoplehave questions or concerns and
there's not a central point.
So bicycle broker kind of camefrom that and the first thing I
started to talk about was travelinsurance, which got me
(02:18):
answering a lot of questionswith oh, I don't have something
to cover your bike.
I can cover you If you go to ahospital, you leave Canada,
there's an accident, there's anambulance, et cetera.
There was great products if youwere the broker and you knew
what to offer, but then they'relike well, what about my bike?
What if it's in transit?
(02:38):
What if it's stolen?
On this trip I've been planningand saving for for years and it
kind of irked me to go thereisn't anything great.
We can see how this worksthrough home insurance.
This is going back a couple ofyears and, yeah, I've been
working on a solution for thatsince.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
What is your solution ?
Speaker 2 (02:59):
The solution is a new brand on our platform called
Sundays, and it's actually beenoperating for the better part of
15 years around the world, inother countries, and so our
company, bicycle Broker, is nowthe conduit to bring that to
Canada.
An easy online click and reviewwithin seconds what is out
(03:22):
there for your bike and how do Icustomize a policy for my
individual needs, all the bikesin my household and how they're
covered, not just while they'rein the household, but how
they're covered 24-7 and, ifneeded, worldwide.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
So, just to be clear, this is not just for racers,
it's not just for peopletraveling, it's for anybody who
owns a bike and is concernedabout the financial loss from
damage or theft of that bike.
Is that right?
Speaker 2 (03:47):
Absolutely.
This is for all types of bikes.
Definitely.
E-bikes are a big demographicfor us and whether you're a
commuter with a couple hundreddollar bike right up to it's
replaced your car and you'vebought the highest end bicycle
that is out there Like, we wantto chat with you and show you
(04:09):
what's what's available toprotect your investment and your
beloved bike.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
I've always operated.
I have house insurance.
I don't know how people whorent have house insurance, If
that's also something they have.
I know you can get insurancefor your furniture and so on,
but I always thought that wouldsort of cover it.
Am I wrong if my bike wasstolen from my home?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
No, not wrong.
I mean, that's been the bestavailable option in Canada for
decades, right, if you have thatconversation with your home
insurance broker and you kind oftreat your bike the same way
you would a piece of jewelry,some fine art hey, I bought
something expensive.
If it goes missing from myhouse, um, you know what's, how
(04:54):
does your home insurance respond?
And so a very similar, whetheryou rent or own a home, a very
similar piece, right, it's it'skind of boxed in where it's just
treated the same as yourtelevision set, or so if your
home burns down or if there's aburglary and your bike is
vandalized, if your bike isstolen off of the property,
that's kind of all we had.
(05:14):
And so the thing for us is,well, that doesn't really cover
the full spectrum of how you useyour bike.
Your exposure is back to 24 7.
You know what happens if thebike is stolen while it's at my
office, while I'm at the coffeeshop.
And then, to take it a stepfurther, what about damage to
(05:36):
the bike?
With the rise of the values ofbikes we have e-bikes, as you
mentioned in the intro three,five, five.
I mean we're helping customerswho are buying $20,000.
Beautiful bicycles.
So the damage that could happenin a crash that doesn't fall
under warranty can bedetrimental financially.
(05:57):
So how do we offer anall-encompassing coverage?
Every single quote you wouldlook at on Sundays has damage
and theft across canadaautomatically in the base policy
, and then from there you'remaking some custom tweaks which
go back to that question of isit just for racers?
No, you have to actually likeclick a button and pay a little
(06:18):
bit more to cover yourself inraces and big events like grand
fondos.
Um, and the same thing with thebasic policy will cover you
across canada, because noteverybody, especially with an
e-bike right now, we're reallynot set up to fly with them.
You know you got to probablyleave your battery at home and
then see about trying to eitherpurchase or rent one when you
travel.
So we're not there yet.
(06:38):
Um, so you can click a buttonto kind of take your policy
worldwide and there's just acouple more buttons Like I.
I'd say, go through the websiteis a good way to educate
yourself with what are thesedifferent functions and you need
to compare it more like carinsurance on your bike than than
what you did previously, whichwas like a home insurance
(06:59):
dynamic of just your personalproperty.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Could you give us an example of the gap you're trying
to fill between what ICBC willcover, say, you have an accident
, your bike is banged ordestroyed by a car or truck on
one side, and what the houseinsurance will cover for theft
on the other side?
What's missing and how are youhelping out on that?
Speaker 2 (07:25):
Well, I think in that dynamic we want to and this
flows through to how you need tolook at this new type of
bicycle insurance is it doesn'thave anything to do with your
house insurance and isolatingthat can give you a lower
deductible.
So if you have to make a claimout of pocket on your home
insurance, you could have a$1,500 bike and a $1,000
(07:48):
deductible.
And if the only thing thathappens is, yeah, during some
type of commuting accident, yourbike is damaged, and then you
have that mathematical scenarioyou end up not making a claim,
your bike is damaged and youjust have to absorb that cost,
whereas with our new program,yeah, your deductible is between
(08:09):
$150 and a maximum of $350.
So it's good in that respect,the fact that it's separate from
your home insurance and you'renot calling them is a positive.
And then there are a lot ofdynamics to where, yeah, icbc is
not going to respond to thedamages to a bicycle right.
(08:29):
In a no-fault system, those areoftentimes part of the claim
that gets left out.
It's more about pain andsuffering than it is about the
loss of a piece of property.
It would fall back on thatindividual who's riding the bike
to have some other type ofinsurance, and so it fills that
gap.
You don't have to have ICBC.
(08:51):
You don't have to have ICBC.
You don't have to have homeinsurance If the most important
thing to you is your bike.
You just have to have aSunday's policy and then that
takes primary spot.
You deal with us and we walkyou through the claim process.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
Can you give us a rough idea of how much a cyclist
might be paying to get thenecessary minimum of insurance
coverage for this gap you'vejust described?
Speaker 2 (09:20):
I can.
I think it comes up on the sitewithin seconds and it is based
on the purchase price of thebike.
So, said a different way, Imean we're definitely helping
people that are paying less than$10 a month on an entry-level
bicycle to to have that extralevel of peace of mind and go
and ride more, um.
(09:41):
But on the opposite end, likeyeah, we, we work with families
that have a collection ofbicycles and e-bikes um, you
know that could have $50,000 ofvalue in their garage, just a
bicycles, right?
So it's full spectrum with us.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
So if I were to shift from my house insurance to your
product, would I get adeduction in my house insurance?
Would it cost me less?
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Great question.
I would absolutely think thateveryone should have that
dialogue of if Sundays makesense and you purchase one of
those on one or all of yourbicycles, you would want to
contact your home or yourrenter's insurance, because if
you're paying extra to coveryour bicycles on the home policy
(10:29):
and then you've got extracoverage with Sundays, you want
to eliminate what's on your homepolicy and try and negotiate a
lower price.
Absolutely Like don't doubleinsure yourself.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
So you mentioned to me that you don't just insure
the bike but you could alsoinsure the I don't know a helmet
that got broken or some partsof the bike that were damaged,
or if somebody was carryingsomething on a bike.
Is that covered by insurance?
Just get into a little bit ofthe range of what would be
(11:02):
covered that a cyclist might beworried about.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
Yeah, certainly, because this is an insurance
designed by cyclists to make itas comprehensive and useful as
possible.
It thinks about what we all dowith our bikes.
Some of us put it on anairplane so the policy can
respond to while it's in transit.
Some of us buy pretty fancyaccessories a helmet, nice
(11:27):
cycling kit.
We deal with a lot of head.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Sorry if my Garmin computer got wrecked, fell over
and it smashed.
Is that the kind of thing thatwould be covered?
Speaker 2 (11:36):
As long as it's triggered by damage or theft to
the whole bicycle, and that is apart of the claim.
Absolutely Right.
So you've, your bike, is intransit in your car and
unfortunately it gets stolen.
Someone steals a nice helmet, apair of shoes and and a garment
and you've added accessoriesonto your policy.
You're going to get covered forthe bike and those accessories.
(11:59):
So it's a very quick, easywebsite and dynamic.
To just add that and then I canexpand on a little bit more.
Like I said, it really thinksabout cyclists on on.
You know an entry level rightup to.
If you're listening to this andyou've got that collection of
bikes and you've been riding fora long time, you know a lot of
us sometimes have a second setof wheels.
(12:21):
You might have this pair that'sreally fancy and you only use it
on big rides, or you might haveone that's got fast wheels to
get you to work and then somebigger fat tires for the weekend
so you can go play in the dirtand you can click and add a set
of wheels.
Bicycle Broker works a lot withbike retailers.
(12:41):
Most of our business is thebusiness insurance side of the
cycling industry and one thingwe work together on is how do we
make this an easy process toput in front of people on new
bike day and one of the ways weincentivize that is, if you have
one of these policies on a bikewithin the first 60 days of
(13:03):
purchase, you're able to click abutton on our website and
eliminate depreciation.
So, as long as you have aSunday's policy, if you put it
on there when the bike is new,that's just another
functionality of it to kind ofincentivize people to look at
one of these policies seriously,because depreciation can happen
(13:23):
very quickly on a bicycle.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Could you describe your company's relationship with
Project 529 and tell peoplewhat that is?
Speaker 2 (13:34):
company's relationship with Project 529
and tell people what that is.
Yeah, most definitely so.
We're in a position to.
We're kind of at the end right.
I'm covering through insurance,worst case scenario Bike is
very damaged, stolen, et cetera.
But we work as closely as we canwith anybody who's proactive
with bike theft, and so registryof a bike is super key to that
(13:58):
Part of our process.
Even if you buy one of thesepolicies, the second you
complete the sale, your documentsent to you via email, if you
haven't already done it,register it on the Project 529
platform.
So if it does get stolen, 529 isI treat it like a VIN number on
a car and if that bike isrecovered after a theft, most
(14:20):
likely by a police station,they're able to log into a 529
platform which is shared betweenevery owner of the bike who's
registered their bike and policestations and police officers
across all of North America tothen track that recovered bike
back to its original owner.
That's huge to reduce thefinancial effects of a bike
(14:45):
theft and to reunite the bikewith its owner.
It's a beautiful, beautifulprogram that we fully support.
It's integrated into ourprocess, not mandatory, but
really, um, really pushed by byour team, in the same way that
we're starting to to work a lotwith and promote bicycle
(15:08):
trackers.
Um, just today in the UKthey're looking at legislation
to bring bicycle trackers moreto the forefront because bike
theft there is like, yes, it'sabsolutely a problem in Canada,
but the UK is seeing numbersthat are astronomical just with
(15:30):
the volume of bike thefts.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
And how does a bike tracker work?
Speaker 2 (15:34):
just with the volume of bike thefts.
And how does a bike tracker work?
So a bike tracker would bewhether you're using, if you
think about the Apple, airtag,or a lot of them now have a
proprietary piece of hardwareand software.
So when we talked earlier aboutbike registry, you're kind of
doing the same thing.
You're registering your tracker, which is a little piece of
(15:55):
hardware that can be hidden onthe bicycle, and then if it is
stolen, imagine it has a gps airtag, if you will, and that
proprietary software is how youcan connect and contact police,
track the bike and aid therecovery.
You know it's not to govigilante and chase down bike
(16:19):
thieves and you know do thatyourself, but it is to aid the
recovery of your stolen bike.
And then again you would kindof take one of those trackers
and definitely utilize 529 tokind of complete that piece, not
without the other piece of thiswhich we have to touch on.
And as we evolve our program,the more expensive your bike,
(16:41):
the more we would want to see abetter lock used.
So we are developing a kind ofCanada-wide approved lock system
just for the promotion ofbetter quality locks and how to
lock and speak about thatthrough our blogs and our
communication and training.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
So would you require your customers to have one of
your approved locks and or atracking chip in their bike and
or registration with Project 529?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Um locks are required in certain scenarios to prevent
your claim being declined,which is let's use the example
that a lot of us know would be Iride my bike to a coffee shop.
You need to lock it outside.
You know, we we do have, like,there's pretty intense wording
(17:32):
around the likelihood of gettingyour full claim paid if you're
not even locking up your bikewhile it's outside.
Um, so that one is, yes, it isa prerequisite.
The bike trackers andregistries no, they're.
I mean, I don't know if you'vepersonally, or the listeners out
there, have gone through a biketheft.
It is mentally it really tough,and so just how nice would it
(18:02):
be to get your bike back.
Speaker 1 (18:03):
So we have to promote that, we have to talk about it,
but it's not mandatory, no,Speaking of getting your bike
back in Project 529, what canyou tell us about their success
in retrieving stolen bikes?
I know I've registered.
I can't even remember if I paid.
I don't think I did, but I'mnever sure if that's going to
make a difference if my bikedisappears and it would have to
(18:26):
be found by the police who lookon the registry of 529.
Is that how it works?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
Yeah, correct.
I mean, in the case of anytheft right over a certain
amount, you're going to call thepolice and have that police
report.
And if you can add to thepolice report, my bike is
already registered on five tonine and a lot of people do it a
little reactively of I just hada bike stolen and then they
(18:54):
post it on social media and talkto their friends.
I watch those posts all thetime and one of every two
comments is if you haven'talready done it, register it on
529.
So that is kind of commonknowledge amongst cyclists.
But go ahead.
Speaker 1 (19:10):
You can register after the theft.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Absolutely, you can do that reactively.
This isn't like insurance whereyou need to have the policy
active before the theft or thedamage.
For anybody listening here whomight very recently or in their
network, be involved in a biketheft, if you have your proof of
purchase, serial numbers, somedescriptions, maybe a recent
photo, you're able to upload allof those on 529 and aid the
(19:38):
recovery of your bike.
Absolutely Right, because, likethe scenarios that are out
there are, you know, let's usedowntown Vancouver as an example
.
That's where the bike theftbegins, but it's generally moved
as quick as possible to anothertown, to another province, or
it starts a worldwide tour.
(19:59):
It could get recovered inanother country and 529 is a now
global safety net for recoveredbikes that can slowly get that
back to you, right?
I mean a bike could end up inMexico from Vancouver very
easily.
I mean the stats on the 529site are pretty alarming.
Two million North Americans peryear are involved in bike theft
(20:23):
.
You know that's including thebig population of the United
States, two million cyclistswe're talking about victims, not
thieves.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Correct, okay.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
Yeah, it might be tough to count the amount of
thieves, but, yeah, two millionvictims of bike theft and the
market itself for the blackmarket of bicycles is half a
billion dollars annually.
That's staggering numbers,right?
So that's why we talk so muchabout these proactive measures.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
I thought that when bikes get stolen, they get taken
apart and the parts get sold.
Is that not the case?
Speaker 2 (21:00):
I mean, that's a question for a criminal.
No, that is the case.
I mean the way we look at it is, if the bike is recovered,
great, there's still most likelygoing to be a claim on your
insurance because the bike couldbe spray painted or some of
these nice parts could have beentaken off and swapped with
(21:22):
lesser parts, devaluing yourbike or treat it as vandalism.
And so every bike that isrecovered, we push our
policyholders to please go intoyour trusted local bike shop,
have your mechanic do anassessment so that we know for
sure that you know is there aclaim?
(21:43):
How do we make you whole again,right?
How do we get that bike back tothe same condition it was at
before it was taken?
Speaker 1 (22:02):
Nick, you mentioned that this is a common type of
insurance in other countries inthe world.
Why has it taken so long tocome to Canada and how prevalent
is it and how popular is it inother countries?
Speaker 2 (22:11):
I mean, I look to the UK as my North Star.
It tends to be the home ofinsurance.
You know, people know, maybelike Lloyd's of London or it's
where there's new products aremade, and so if we look at this
type of specialist bikeinsurance, the standalone kind
of coverage that we're doingthrough Sundays in Canada if we
(22:33):
were on this podcast in the UKwe would have more than a dozen
options for cyclists to look at,to go.
I want to compare this bikeinsurance company versus that
one.
Who's got better rates?
Who's got better coverage?
Am I a part of a club or doesmy local retailer have some type
(22:54):
of deal and discount?
It's a big infrastructure.
Or another way to look at it isyou're a cyclist in the UK and
the insurance on your bicyclecomes from a special insurance
policy for bicycles.
They're a decade past thinkingabout my bike is insured under
my home.
Those days are gone.
(23:15):
There's been a polar shift.
Right, the bike insurance rules.
It's that, or people just riskit and they pay out of pocket if
something happens.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
Well, it sounds pretty exciting and I'm excited
for you because I know this is awhole new chapter in your life
and this product is nowavailable and we're going to put
all the links up on our shownotes.
Is there anything else youthink people need to know about
(23:45):
the gaps that this fills or theproducts that you offer that we
haven't already talked about?
Speaker 2 (23:53):
I think the best thing for the public is to, yeah
, visit our websites, because itdoes link to a live team of
Canadian brokers.
We all ride bikes and we'rehere to answer those questions.
There's a toll-free number setup, live chat email.
We're actually looking forfeedback from the public, right?
This is a brand new type ofinsurance and that's not always
(24:16):
easy for people to get, so we'rehere to answer questions.
If you're challenged with howit works, give us a call.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
Does it apply equally to all places in BC?
What if I'm in some smallercommunity?
Will I get the same service?
Speaker 2 (24:35):
We are currently operating and offering this
coverage, which is identical toall residents of british
columbia, alberta, ontario.
Later this spring we will openmanitoba and nova scotia.
Going into next year the hopeis to be across all of canada.
But yeah, it's the same.
There's just difference oftaxation in.
(24:55):
Yeah, it's the same.
There's just difference oftaxation in your province.
That's it.
Otherwise, same product.
So this podcast could gonationwide.
I hope it does.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
And you're sitting there in the Sunshine Coast
masterminding all this.
Do you have a network ofbrokers around?
Let's just talk about BC.
Does it matter where they'relocated?
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Well, our brokers are all located relatively close to
Vancouver and they're alllicensed to work with any
resident of British Columbia, soit doesn't really matter.
We promote back totransportation even within the
company.
It's a work from home, digitalright, so you're not going to a
bicycle broker office to buy aninsurance policy.
(25:42):
You're dealing with over thephone, um or or through our
website communications.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
If I remember of a biking club, would there be an
opportunity for the whole clubto get some kind of a discount
deal with you?
Speaker 2 (25:59):
That's where I want people to connect directly with
myself through the website.
We are, this summer, startingto release partnership programs
for larger organizations, clubsand a retailer program.
Most definitely, yeah, sothat's all coming soon.
You can use our website.
There's a contact atbicyclebrokerca email address
(26:23):
and just subject linepartnerships.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
Well, nick.
Thank you so much for fillingus in on this.
It's a pretty exciting newdevelopment which I hope will
make life easier for cyclistsand make more people more
inclined to not just buy a bikebut actually ride it and not be
so terrified of having it stolenor damaged.
We really appreciate yourparticipation and we will put
(26:48):
all the necessary links up onthe show notes.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
No, thank you so much to the BC Cycling Coalition all
of your listeners.
It's a pleasure interactingwith you.
I'll be at your trade shows andlook forward to the feedback.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (27:10):
You've been listening to Bike Sense, an original
podcast from the BC CyclingCoalition.
An original podcast from the BCCycling Coalition.
If you like the podcast, we'dbe grateful if you could leave
us a rating.
On whatever platform you use,you can also subscribe so you
don't miss future episodes.
If you have comments orsuggestions for future episodes,
(27:31):
email me at peterladner atbccyclingca.
Email me at peterladner atbccyclingca.
You can help us amplify BCCycling Coalition's voice by
simply becoming a free member atbccyclingca.
Thank you.
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