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INTERVIEW WITH
Victoria Sutton
Head of Claims Operations
The new name for Aston Lark
Innovating Insurance: Understanding Emerging Risks in an Uncertain World
People have become so accustomed to having physical products delivered to them near-enough instantly that the expectation has bled across into other areas of their lives.
What challenges have customer service teams of insurance companies faced in recent years?
In recent years, customer expectations have changed dramatically as a result of what I like to call ‘the Amazon effect’. People have become so accustomed to having physical products delivered to them near-enough instantly that the expectation has bled across into other areas of their lives. From a customer service perspective, this has meant that any delays in providing information or answers to queries creates disappointment for the customer.
There has also been a rise in the number of insurance professionals choosing to retire, so a lot of knowledge and experience has exited the industry. For claims departments, this is having a noticeable impact on the claims journey. What would have been a simple-to-answer query for an experienced professional can take much longer for their more junior counterparts, slowing down the process time of claims and creating frustration for the claimees. Eliminating frustration is one of the most important things that customer service teams can do if they want to achieve a positive claims journey for their customers. Even now businesses are using COVID as an excuse for slow response times - it is immensely frustrating for customers to hear this as a pre-recorded message before their call has even been answered! The pandemic was two years ago now, it is not a valid excuse.
How can insurance firms improve their customers’ experience when making a claim?
The biggest opportunity to improve customer experience when making an insurance claim over the next few years is in automation and AI. The number one reason for customer frustration during an insurance claim is a lack of communication on the status of their claim and when they can expect to receive any payout. Automation has the potential to reduce payout times drastically, perhaps even making them instant in the near future! Automation is only possible through the implementation of AI, a machine learning layer that is able to predict and identify risks far quicker and far more accurately than a human ever can. Insurance parties will also be able to integrate with external data sources to achieve their automation. Travel insurance firms could work with airline data in real-time to see when flights are delayed, allowing them to issue appropriate compensation exactly when it's needed.
For customers, these innovations bring two major benefits. The first is speed of payment - they can actually use the payout to pay for any expenses related to the claim, avoiding the need to use a credit card and having to wait for reimbursement. The second is removal of the process. Filling out forms and sitting on hold for hours is the last thing anybody wants to do, let alone if it's due to a critical situation that is making them place a claim! If insurers can deliver these two benefits in the coming years, then they will have much happier customers. And as we all know, happy customers are loyal customers!
The biggest opportunity to improve customer experience when making an insurance claim over the next few years is in automation.
The role of human connection is still a hugely important part of any successful insurance broker, for both sales and claim handling.
Victoria Sutton
Head of Claims Operations
Howden, the new name for Aston Lark
Is human interaction being phased out of insurance brokerage?
The role of human connection is still a hugely important part of any successful insurance broker, for both sales and claim handling. For sales, being able to understand the nuances of a customer’s situation will help you to pair them with the right insurer in a way that an automated system just can’t do. The customer should always be number one priority for brokers. If you’re not having real conversations with them then you won’t be able to fully understand them, and if you don’t fully understand them then you cannot provide the level of service required for a wholly positive experience. This is particularly true when it comes to handling insurance claims. Insurance claims are often made at some of the most delicate times in a customer’s lives and they can be hindered or confused by digital technologies. This is where brokers can add value. Making it easy for your customers to contact you and get the support they need quickly is a surefire way of improving your retention results.