The insurance industry is being disrupted by new, tech-savvy companies who are bringing their full force of innovation and opportunity. They will disrupt the landscape in which incumbents compete, bringing about changes akin to those brought about by the advent of financial technology businesses (or “fintechs”) in the banking industry.
Since more than a decade ago, fintechs—many of which started as startups—have tried to upend the banking industry. Because they are free of the burden of banking operations, branch networks, and outdated IT systems, they operate at a significantly lower cost than traditional banks. They entered markets that were previously dominated by incumbents by creating cutting-edge items and delivering them digitally in a fraction of the time.
However, the fintech story has been evolving. Modern banks have responded to the challenge by digitizing their business processes and providing a wide range of cutting-edge goods and services via digital channels. Part of the fintech industry’s attention has migrated away from directly targeting end users and challenging incumbents.
In partnerships where the incumbents retain control of the end user while the fintechs contribute to enhance the user experience and customer centric approach, traditional banks and fintechs are increasingly joining forces. The face of banking has been altered by fintechs, but traditional financial institutions are catching up, transforming what first appeared to be a pure threat into a plan for the transition to the next generation of financial services.
A similar pattern is emerging in insurance. Long thought to be a laborious, dreaded process, purchasing insurance. dealing with obnoxious salespeople who are motivated by commissions rather than the interests of the clients. navigating mountains of paperwork with voluminous jargon that is difficult for the common person to understand. You go through the process for weeks or even months just to learn that you are still not approved for coverage.
“Insurtechs” are technology-driven businesses that enter the insurance market and use cutting-edge innovations to offer coverage to a more technologically savvy clientele. The word “insurtech,” which stands for “insurance technology,” is used to describe technology that is intended to improve how insurance companies and the insurance sector as a whole operate. To change the way they conduct business, insurance companies are utilizing technology like big data, artificial intelligence, consumer wearables, and smartphone apps.
Regulatory restrictions have been lowered in some places. Without being required to adhere to the comprehensive regulatory frameworks that apply to incumbents, insurtechs have been encouraged to test their creative business strategies on certain customer categories. Insurtechs, like fintechs, are expanding innovation across the industry, posing a threat to incumbents but also opening up chances for collaboration on the shifting landscape.
Insurance businesses can now create paperless smart contracts thanks to insurtech. A blockchain-based contract between two or more parties is essentially what a smart contract is. The negotiation or performance of a contract is then facilitated, authenticated, and enforced by automated blockchain protocols. Consider, for one, a life insurance policy that, in the event of the policyholder’s demise, pays a sum of money to a named beneficiary. To calculate and initiate the compensation, the smart contract performs instantaneous checks on online death records.
The management of claims becomes more effective and quick thanks to smart contracts. The registration, authentication, and implementation of agreements have all been made considerably simpler since computer protocols can enforce them without the need of a claims assessor. This not only significantly lowers the possibility of fraud, but it may also result in higher customer satisfaction. Insurance companies may now manage insurance claims more quickly and openly thanks to technology.
The simplicity provided by insurtech enables people and organizations to swiftly access insurance goods and services, saving valuable time and getting rid of the traditional inconveniences associated with purchasing insurance. Customers can customize insurance coverage to suit their particular needs in addition to having access to more insurance providers.
All of their counterparts must meet the standards for insurance firms, reinsurers, and brokers. To confirm that their customers are who they say they are, this entails gathering a sizable amount of data on them. Identity verification has historically taken a lot of time, as you can expect. Insurtech provides assistance in the area of customer identification verification. It keeps track of customer paperwork and proof of validation from issuing agencies thanks to technology. Additionally, it enables the business, reinsurer, or broker to keep track of the information about their clients.
A single version of claim documents that can be examined and tracked by underwriters in real-time can be created using blockchain technology. This indicates that blockchain technology has the potential to let all stakeholders manage a claim at once. Blockchain offers the chance to consolidate all claim-related documents and make them accessible to underwriters. This not only streamlines the claims management process for underwriters but also lowers the expense associated with handling claims.
Through the use of smart contract components that enable the automation of several procedures, insurtech is also simplifying the process of managing claims. This has a variety of advantages, including enhanced communication between clients and insurers and greater flexibility and transparency.
Every year, businesses spend millions of dollars to combat insurance fraud. By offering a decentralized digital depository, insurtech can also aid in the detection of fraud and the eradication of errors. This entails verifying the validity of claimants and policyholders as well as giving a thorough transaction history. It can stop transactions from happening twice, get rid of intermediaries, and record every transaction for public records.
The streamlined payment of insurance premiums and claims is another benefit of insurtech. Take auto insurance subscribers as an illustration, who have an account from which payments are continuously withheld in proportion to the number of kilometers they have travelled. Each autonomous car has a telematics system that instantly records and transmits the miles driven, calculates the premium, and pays it.
Instantaneous digital transactions that are sustained seamlessly across digital channels are what customers increasingly expect. Although insurtechs have not yet penetrated the market deeply, they are expanding quickly and within a few years they stand to capture a sizable portion of value pools. The proportion of the future insurance market that incumbents hold will depend on how rapidly they adjust to these implacable market developments.
Insurtech firms will increasingly cooperate with established insurance companies to reduce costs and streamline operations. Insurance companies are segmenting their consumers as individuals more than ever before rather than as groups. The Internet of Things (IoT) may become more prevalent as a means of continuously accessing consumer insights and behavior to improve insurance goods and services. More digital tools and services will be available to empower insurance brokers and agents and make their life easier. The insurtech industry will be crucial in streamlining data and back-office operations, which is crucial for agents managing several carrier policies.
Check out my related post: How has wearables improved the medical field?
Interesting reads:
https://www.tibco.com/reference-center/what-is-insurtech
https://www.salesforce.com/blog/what-is-insurtech/
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/insurtech.asp
https://academy.smu.edu.sg/insights/what-insurtech-and-what-does-it-mean-insurance-industry-6451
https://n26.com/en-eu/blog/insurtech
https://www.imtechies.com/insurtech/
https://whatfix.com/blog/insurtech/
https://www.meetbreeze.com/blog/what-is-insurtech/
https://www.wallstreetmojo.com/insurtech/
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