What Does Customer Experience (CX) in Insurance Look Like?

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According to a New Horizons report, insurance companies lag behind other industries in the realm of digital transformation. It is no surprise that CX in the insurance industry is also severely lacking. 81% of companies expect CX to be the key battleground in the race for market dominance. In a crowded and traditional market like insurance, it is clear that CX is a key component for differentiation. However, where should the insurance industry invest in CX?

Customer Experience in Insurance Claims Processing – Key for Growth

The insurance claims arena are notoriously slow in digitizing, let alone accelerating. While digitizing claims processes provide basic savings, a Deloitte’s study on life insurance underwriting suggest that prospects are 20% more likely to purchase a life policy as the underwriting and application process gets closer to real time. Clearly, the value of applying process acceleration to claims processing is the biggest CX opportunity for insurance companies.

What Does the Ultimate Insurance Claims Processing CX Look Like?

Insurers should look for an instant, integrated processes that enable claimants to complete claims on the first try, reducing NIGO. Insurers can use simplified mobile-friendly claim forms and allow customers to attach supporting evidence with selfie-style pictures of damages. The mobile approach means that claimants in natural disasters or on the road can complete claim submissions on the spot. These solutions can be completed from any smartphone, anywhere.

What Can Insurers Do Now?

The Insurance industry has been slow to adapt. However, there are interventions companies can do right now to Improve Customer Experience in Insurance

Go Paperless

This should be priority one. If you are still using printed paper in your office to bind policies or process claims you must switch to a digital solution. Manually inputting data, reading handwriting, storing original signatures are all traps for in-efficiency, draining costs, potential non-compliance, and not to mention poor customer experience.

Use eSignatures

This goes hand in hand with Paperless. Seek a solution that utilizes auditable, court-admissible, documents that record client interactions. The technology should easily surpass ESIGN regulation from the year 2000. Bonus, allow customers to sign policies from their mobile phone with just their finger.

Use eForms

During the sales process, policy binding, or claims process, there is too much room for error and customer frustration. Insurers should look to eliminate errors and frustrating rework associated with sloppy paperwork. If you’ve gone partially digital and use PDFs, take the next step and convert the PDFs to preconfigured smart eForms and guided eSignatures. This will eliminate errors like missing data and unverified signatures. It is important to have the customer review information and input their own details as if they are on a website, without the clutter of PDF’s and irrelevant information.

Real-Time Interaction and Collaboration

Insurance is not tangible like the latest iPhone. Consumers also generally do not understand how insurance works, what kind of risks are covered and policy information. Which is why insurance is still very much face to face or over the phone. Insurers should take advantage of the agent-customer time by guiding the customer through the required paperwork. Use in-call tools that allow for eSignatures and documentation to simplify the work with insurance professionals.

Agents can use a collaboration portal to display and have the caller review any important documentation like terms and conditions. For regulatory purposes, the portal then records a tamper-proof, audited trail that documents exactly where and when customers opt into coverage terms. Customers are demanding this simplicity and ability to transact from their mobile phones, especially during a time of need like a flood or hurricane. By providing solutions that exceed customer expectations, agents will see improved retention, referrals, and CX metrics.

Howard Schulman
Lightico
I've worked with several call center technology companies delivering marketing and sales insights and strategy.

2 COMMENTS

  1. When it comes to consuming information, customers have different preferences for tone of voice (formal, informal), channel (print, email, SMS), or language. Cultural and technological change require insurers adapt. Newer insurance companies invest in the latest technologies, including best-in-class policy correspondence (https://ecrion.com/insurance-customer-experience). Meanwhile, established providers with legacy core systems launch digital transformation initiatives with a focus on customer experience.

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