Insurers must align with customers

The arrival of insuretech is changing the global insurance in ways many could never have foreseen, John Cammarata, vice president of development and the insurance transformation leader at PointSource, told PCI Today.

“The insurance industry is at a pivotal point,” Cammarata said.

“The industry is in disruption, with a lot of investment entering the industry through insuretech and organic innovation. But this is because the industry has failed to align with consumer expectations in a few areas.

“That has opened the door for investment and new business models. In many ways the incumbent carriers are playing catch-up, where they’re trying to align their digital experience through their value chain from manufacturing their product, distributing their product, servicing their clients and providing the right level of engagement when and how the user wants it.

“Holistically that’s the view that we see when we’re talking to insurance companies—they’re trying to align their business to respond to this.”

Cammarata said a report by PointSource, The State of the Mobile Experience, highlighted this dislocation in customer expectations as a stark figure. Sixty percent of insurance decision-makers said the biggest pain point for customers is not having access to the necessary information when they need it. “That’s a huge number,” he said.

According to Cammarata, a new consumer model is emerging. “Consumers want access to the information when they want it and how they want it,” he said.

“Those expectations don’t come from insurance companies, they come from all walks of their lives. They use Uber to get a ride, they use Airbnb to schedule a room and they expect that same level of interaction with insurance companies. A lot of people expect to self-service first and then reach out and talk to an expert.”

Cammarata said that some insurers have been in denial about this reality. However, 2016 has been a pivotal year and he said many are moving past that denial phase and realising they must address this as an issue.

“I’ve talked to a lot of carriers about this. The advent of new companies and business models, such as Lemonade, and others, are proof that this can be done,” he said.

“They have leveraged access to data and they have fully digital experiences. In many ways they’re setting the bar and proving the point that this really can be done

“A lot of the incumbent carriers I believe are at a turning point and realise that they have to change. Now they’re in the middle of working out how they can create the right product and digital experience for their policyholders.”