The reality of technology is very simple, according to Jamie Bisker, an insurance industry research author with the TowerGroup. You use it where it makes sense. When it comes to wireless technology, it hasnt always made sense for the insurance industry. Thats why Biskers recent report, Wireless Realities in Insurance, shows the industry lagging behind banks and brokerages in wireless IT spendingboth at the current level and projected over the next four years.
I think the industry is just being prudent, Bisker said. Insurance has a reputation for being slow, but most claims departments went out and got the equipment and now the policy side has to catch up.
Wireless technology has worked for claims by keeping agents and adjusters connected to the home office when theyre in the field making their reports. But selling policies, while often done in remote locations, is not a transaction that can always be completed at the initial meeting. Better technology will be needed to make those sales easier to accomplish. PDAs and Pocket PCs are great for setting up appointments, but they dont do the job when it comes to working with large amounts of text and data, something insurance is famous for.
These form factors seem too small to be useful, but time will tell if field personnel warm to the convenience of a device that fits in a pocket, Bisker said. Color screens with higher resolutions would make these small computers more useful.
Wireless was initially considered a good fit for insurance sales, but thats changed. As Bisker put it, Its hard to visualize a large number of consumers wanting to deal with the purchase of insurance over a wireless device today. He believes that the future of wireless in the sales process involves customer service and personal information management tools along with access to agency systems.
While wireless can no doubt speed up the claims process, there is a certain resentment of such speed by consumers, who sometimes think theyve been eliminated from claims decisions. But Bisker said claims handling is the most logical place for wireless devices. A new generation of handheld computing devices and the advent of high-speed wireless data communications will enable faster, more thorough estimates.
As to insurances financial services brethren, Bisker said, Brokerages recognize the significance of online sales. It can be done with symbols; the small screen is not a problem. Many people are now doing their banking over the phone or online. Very rarely do people go to the bank.
Insurance may be linked to brokerages and banks under the heading of financial services, but Bisker said the two Bs share more in common than does insurance. Insurance is a different type of transaction, he said. Banks and brokerages are more mathematics. Insurance is more algebra.
Wireless may someday be in that equation, but for now it is trailing the others. ROBERT REGIS HYLE
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