Hartford Steam Boiler First to Underwrite Limited Warranties for Industrial Equipment Sold Through Internet Marketplaces
8 January 2001
Hartford Steam Boiler First to Underwrite Limited Warranties for Industrial Equipment Sold Through Internet Marketplaces
HARTFORD, Conn.--Jan. 8, 2001--The Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company, the leading insurer of equipment and mechanical breakdown, has become the first insurance company to underwrite limited warranties for used industrial equipment sold through online equipment marketplaces such as electronic exchanges, brokers, auction houses and dealers.Hartford Steam Boiler will pay to repair or replace used machinery and equipment such as CNC lathes, milling machines and presses for 90 days after online purchase.
The warranty gives buyers a level of protection that helps business-to-business equipment marketplaces provide customers with greater assurance about making large used equipment purchases on the Internet.
"Hartford Steam Boiler has specialized in inspecting and insuring equipment for over 130 years. With our engineering knowledge, our database of equipment failures and causes and our field inspection force, we can accurately assess equipment reliability," said Charles Bittner, program manager for insurance of warranted assets.
The total large-scale manufacturing and industrial equipment market in the United States alone is estimated at more than $100 billion annually. Many online used equipment marketplaces have been operating for less than a year, according to HSB. These marketplaces are used by sellers and buyers to move anything from machine tools to high-tech equipment and everything in between, including machinery used in automobile and aircraft manufacturing plants to power generation equipment.
"As with anything purchased online, you're not able to kick the tires," said Bittner, "so a buyer who wants a piece of expensive assembly line equipment, for example, needs assurance that what's being bought will operate when it arrives. A warranty underwritten using Hartford Steam Boiler's experience and knowledge of equipment reliability will provide a powerful comfort level to the buyer."
But the buyer is not the only one involved in the transaction. Hartford Steam Boiler is offering to underwrite warrantees for online equipment marketplaces that can help them succeed in a new marketplace and add value for equipment sellers who use the marketplace.
"The online marketer needs a warranty insurance program to increase listings and transactions," Bittner said. "The equipment seller benefits because a warranty helps assure the buyer, and it allows the seller an opportunity to sell an asset faster and possibly at a higher price. Online equipment marketplaces have the potential to be an important source of productivity gains for industry and we see our warranty as a catalyst."
Under the program, Hartford Steam Boiler will underwrite the online marketplace's warranty for 90 days and handle claims made during this period. Depending on condition of the equipment being sold, Hartford Steam Boiler will pre-approve selected assets as eligible for warranty. The warranty will cover the cost of repairs and necessary replacement parts.
The Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company, the world's leading equipment breakdown insurer, is a global provider of specialty insurance products, inspection services and engineering consulting. Hartford Steam Boiler was founded in 1866 to provide loss prevention service and insurance to businesses, industries and institutions. For more information about Hartford Steam Boiler visit its website at www.hsb.com