Blockchain systems and methods for providing insurance coverage to affinity groups

US10664920B1 · kind B1 · utility

Assignee

• State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company · US

Inventors

• Leif Agerholm Roll · Bloomington, US
• Eric A. G. Webster · Mountain View, US
• Gregory Hayward · Bloomington, US
• Craig Dean Isaacs · Bloomington, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Jan 12, 2018
• Grant date: May 26, 2020
• Expiry date: Jun 11, 2038

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H04L9/50
• WIPO field: IT methods for management
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

Blockchain techniques for providing insurance to an affinity group may include an enforcement server that receives a plurality of bidding actions (e.g., bid or no-bid) from a plurality of bidding entities in response to an auction of an opportunity to provide insurance for members of the affinity group. The server may compile transactions corresponding to the received bidding actions into a block of transactions (e.g., a round of bidding), distribute the block of transactions to validation entities to form a consensus on the highest bid, and update copies of a distributed ledger with the block of transactions. The server may identify a winning bid and provide affinity group member data to the winning bidding entity, thereby providing consumers with lower cost insurance and/or insurance that is more reflective of actual risk (or lack thereof). The affinity group may be updated over time and re-auctioned using the blockchain techniques.