With a lack of insurance holders in the black community, Dennis McKinley saw an opportunity in the market. He launched Milk Insurance in order to allow everyone especially, people of color, to obtain insurance in any state that they reside in, as easy as possible.
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Milk offers auto, home, umbrella, renters, life, pet, travel, and ID theft insurance all online from most major companies. In an interview with BLACK ENTERPRISE, McKinley discuses the reasons he launched the agency and why it’s so important for black people to obtain insurance.
BE: Why did you start an insurance company?
Dennis McKinley: Personally, the process of obtaining car insurance was just too time-consuming. It was just too much info and red tape involved for something that I thought was just so simple. I recently thought of the concept at the end of last year. I knew that I had the resources to provide a better way for everyone. So I partnered with the leader in Insurtech, Bindable. We made insurance a lot easier for people, especially people of color.
What has been the response?
We, as consumers, are leaning more and more towards the internet & our devices to make transactions. It has been mostly geared toward products; but now, what about insurance? What about the important stuff — the things that truly matter? So the response has been great. The opportunity to be connected to the important stuff like insurance and get it bound done via phone or the web; it’s easy & everyone likes easy.
(milkinsurance.com)
Where do you see the biggest disconnect in black culture when it comes to obtaining insurance?
We look at insurance as a what if? We can’t see it, we can’t touch it, so we feel like it’s unnecessary. Until we need it, it’s too late. We need to always plan for the future and make sure we are covered on all fronts. Insurances should be looked at like a necessity.
Why is it important for black people to obtain insurance?
Insurance simply protects you against all risks of day to day life — with things of value and most importantly, yourself. Anything that you have that’s worth value including your life, needs to be protected at all times.
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