From tracking our steps and calorie intake to the way we request taxis, technology has bled into almost every area of our existence. But not every industry has been able to move to a digital experience. The insurance industry is one of the least tech-savvy industries out there -- but it’s also a $1.1 trillion market. That is is why investors and entrepreneurs have begun tackling it, vowing to make every process within the insurance realm friendlier, easier and, most of all, digital.
Where the industry stands today
Emerging technologies have had little impact on improving the carrier side of things. Though carriers have built systems to make a broker’s life easier, these systems are largely outdated and clunky.
These systems also have not addressed a larger issue: Small businesses are largely underserved in the commercial insurance world. Because the cost of acquiring a customer is high, brokers spend the majority of their time serving bigger businesses, which have more risk and higher premiums.
Insurance brokers do not have the means to acquire small businesses in a cost-effective way, nor do they have the structures in place to support the digital customer.
See also: Technology and the Economic Divide
Unless you’re a company like Apple, you likely don’t have the luxury of innovating quickly; that is because there are often many layers of management standing in the way of making a quick decision. The insurance industry has found itself woefully unprepared to respond to the drastic change in our economy. The scrappiness you see in corporate innovators was absent; the status quo of bad process was king.
Customers have higher expectations today than they did 20 years ago; couple that with changing demographics, and insurance companies start to feel the burn. Customers expect a seamless experience: that is, easily educating themselves, getting a quote, purchasing insurance and easily managing that insurance.
However, insurance is a much more complex buying process than consumers are used to. Customer expectations are mismatched with the way insurance is currently purchased, and Insurtech start-ups are seizing the opportunity to redefine this process.
Insurance is necessary. It allows us to protect ourselves, our businesses and our worldly possessions. But the process is outdated.
So, nothing has changed?
No one entity owns the insurance buying process, which makes it a slow-moving and often disjointed experience for customers. Things ARE heading for a change, though; it’s just been a slower change than other industries because of the complicated web of reinsurers, insurers, intermediaries and retail agencies that all have a stake in crafting the process.
The right financial resources are being allocated to figuring out this process; insights are being learned from making consumer applications intuitive; and the incredible power of the internet is becoming easier to access within the insurance industry.
Here’s what we’re already seeing:
- Data: Carriers are using data in a smarter, better way. Machine learning and the computational power that is available nowadays allow carriers to slice and dice data in ways that were never a possibility before. As a result, rates are better matched to a customer’s risk.
- Speed and Ease: The use of third-party data has also opened the door for carriers to ask only the most relevant questions during the application process, which means shorter, better and less nitpicky applications overall.
- Improvements in accessing information and education: The information that’s found online surrounding insurance will become more personalized. For instance, what insurance does your business need if you live in a certain state and work in a specific industry?
- Emerging technologies present new opportunities: From data breaches to drones, new technologies have made carriers and start-ups take a look second look. How do you access risk and intelligently price new technologies with little information?
- Even smarter incentives: Wearables might be just the beginning for incentive-based pricing. We’re looking at an untapped market for incentive-based commercial insurance, but expect that to change in the near future.
- Friendlier service, any way you want it: Most carriers are providing service on the phone, but it’s impossible to think that won’t change, and fast. Expect to get in touch with a carrier or broker via email and chat--sooner rather than later.
