How to expedite claims during natural disasters
Insurers and their customers both pay the price for inefficient claims after a catastrophe.
2020 has been a year of nonstop natural disasters, and 2021 certainly will have its fair share of disasters in store.
Natural disasters leave customers stranded and helpless without access to the usual channels such as printers and computers. For customers to receive compensation on time, businesses need to streamline processes and respond to claims with speed and accuracy.
A switch to mobile-first, effortless tools will be essential. Otherwise, companies risk placing their clients in a dangerous and uncomfortable position: needing assistance but forced to play a waiting game. And it’s not just customers who pay the price for inefficient claims after a disaster; insurers suffer due to muddled processes, overworked call centers, and wasted overhead. There is a better way.
The five elements of speedy claims processing
1. Reach the customer where they are
Natural disasters are practically synonymous with chaos and high stress. Customers and insurers alike want the claims process to be completed as quickly as possible. For customers, there is pressure to return to some semblance of normalcy and get compensated and rehoused. For insurers, there is pressure to serve large numbers of customers who experience calamity during the same period.
Yet during natural disasters, devices such as landlines, computers, scanners, printers, and fax machines tend to get lost as collateral damage, making it difficult for clients to submit these urgent claims.
With this in mind, cell phone providers such as Sprint have poured money into designing cell phone towers that can withstand winds of 120-150 mph in disaster-prone areas.
Insurers, too, must adapt to a reality in which policyholders may not have access to anything beyond the smartphone in their pocket. A recent survey found that only 34% of policyholders were able to easily connect with their insurers to receive help.
Mobile-first solutions can overcome the limitations inherent to displacement and reduce delays in the processing of vital claims documentation.
Whether customers are stuck in a shelter, housed in a temporary residence, or staying with relatives, they should be able to get their claim processed easily.
2. Time is of the essence
A typical insurance claim process is usually resolved within two to six weeks, and sometimes longer. This is not sufficiently fast in the aftermath of a natural disaster when customers need immediate compensation and help.
It benefits both the insurance company and the customer to speed up claim cycle times. Speeding up the claims processing time benefits both the customer and the insurance company.
Insurance companies must remember that until a payment process is facilitated, they will be on the hook for covering additional living expenses (ALE). Insurance companies that reach settlement quicker don’t just have more satisfied customers — they save money on accommodations and food expenses.
3. Seamless compliance
In the aftermath of a disaster, customers frequently lack access to original documentation and forms. They may have even been lost in the disaster itself. Insurance companies need to keep digital records of customer information, including digital copies of important documents. After a disaster, an inability to access paperwork can be a real liability — and even fraud risk.
In addition, proof of loss is critical for compliance, but victims of disaster can’t be expected to take pictures and fax them over to a company to validate the claims being made. With smartphone technology, it’s far easier for customers to share this information.
Finally, identity verification is a must during the claims process — but after a disaster, it must be handled differently. Today’s automatic facial recognition ID verification technology is not just easy for customers to use regardless of location, but it has up to 99.9% accuracy rates.
4. Payment efficiency
As always, customers, after a disaster, cannot begin fixing anything until the insurance company confirms they will cover it. Instant payment processes are, therefore, a lifeline for insurers in dealing with disaster victims. A quick and accurate payment plan should be implemented to determine coverage and expedite the reconstruction process.
5. Automated workflows
During a disaster, insurance agents are overwhelmed by the sheer number of customers that need assistance. Coverage may different among policyholders, making it difficult for agents to remember which documents are required. As customers scramble to figure out what’s required of them for the first notice of loss (FNOL), they are frustrated when their broker is confused or mistaken.
Automated workflows allow an insurance admin to set up business rules based on conditional logic to streamline the document and form collection process. In the FNOL form itself, conditional fields are shown or hidden depending on the customer’s information and coverage level. “If/then” take the pressure off agents to remember every required document, ensuring the FNOL process is completed accurately and quickly the first time.
During a crisis, nothing is more human than tech
With a growing prevalence of natural disasters, insurance companies have a unique opportunity to be their customers’ heroes during their time of greatest need. A quick and seamless claims experience is essential not only to get individual customers back to normal but to reach all customers who have experienced calamity in a timely manner. It may sound ironic, but there is nothing more human than enabling digital claims during a time of crisis.
The opinions expressed here are the author’s own.
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