How P&C Insurers Are Working to Advance Digital Claims Technology

Digital claims technology could use a jumpstart. Consumers expect and appreciate an automated and streamlined claims process, from the moments after an accident to the claim’s settlement. A recent survey from Solera found that more than 75% of consumers reported trust in automotive claims and repairs handled entirely by artificial intelligence. More than half of claimants surveyed experienced digital claims tools in action when submitting a claim. Despite the convenience of automated claims processes, carriers still experience barriers to adoption when updating their claims processes. According to the study, the cost of implementing new claims technology poses the largest challenge for insurers, enterprise body shops/OEMs and repair shops.

Digital claims technology is risky—yet critical

In the current remote environment, digital claims technology has become even more critical to ensure safe and efficient claims management. Insurers and claimants can benefit from leveraging digital technologies such as photo and video estimating, aerial imagery, image recognition and virtual inspections. Technological advancement comes with risks and challenges, especially when combating insurance fraud. The general fraud-related claims rate is 10%. However, since the onset of the pandemic, the rate jumped to 18%, according to FRISS’s 2020 Insurance Fraud Report. Insurers must establish reliable digital claims infrastructures and fraud-detection technologies to automate the claims process and protect themselves from fraudulent claims.

What can P&C insurance carriers do?

Insurers can advance their digital claims solutions by partnering with technology and data companies or other insurers. Insurers like The Hartford, State Farm, USAA and Slice Labs recently created strategic partnerships to enhance their digital claims processes using AI and blockchain technology. 

• In 2019, USAA and State Farm began working on a blockchain solution to improve the speed of the auto claim subrogation process. The insurers recently went live with the solution that relies on blockchain technology to power the subrogation process for all claims between the companies. The insurers hope to onboard other carriers onto the platform throughout 2021 to make the subrogation process quicker for all insurers and their customers.
• The Hartford partnered with Tractable to leverage AI technology to accelerate the evaluation of auto damage within its U.S. claims operations. Tractable uses computer vision to assess photos of vehicle damage to act as a human appraiser and returns an appraisal almost immediately after claimants submit photos.
• Slice Labs, an on-demand insurance platform, recently launched an automated end-to-end claims settlement process. The process leverages natural language processing, document and receipt scanning, multilingual audio and video transcriptions and machine learning. The startup partnered with Duuo, a Canadian digital insurance distributor, to create the digital process.

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