Indian insurance industry is going digital; are you following?

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Today, technology is evolving at a faster pace than we have ever witnessed. Humans have embraced the digital age and how! Everything from who we are to how we engage with the outside world is defined by the technology we use – from ordering food to hailing taxis to insuring our lives.

Insurance as an industry is currently at the helm of a disruptive technological revolution. While it is still an emerging sector in India, insurtech has shown promise with technology, people and personalisation at its core. With adequate backend support, the technology-led sector is capable of utilising data-driven insights at our disposal, to augment customer experience. From chatbots to mobile-first services for reduced claim times and immediate assistance, customer satisfaction... nay... delight is top priority for the industry that is pegged to reach US$ 280 billion by 20201. With such immense potential, it is no wonder incumbents in the sector are prioritising digitisation for a customer-first approach.

What it means for us

For us, the progress from offering traditional insurance to disrupting the sector with technology is a conscious choice aligned with the advent of the digital age that our customers are a part of. Reaching them through the same channel where they consume most routine services is integral for a company to gain a competitive edge.

The shift is not only a technical, but also a personal one. Akin to the trend in the sector, our driving force is our consumer for whom we endeavour to bring innovative insurance services at par with global benchmarks. The primary pain points our consumers have faced are access, availability and cost. Therefore, in an effort to alleviate these very issues, our role has evolved from being merely a ‘protection-oriented’ partner, to a ‘pre-emptive advisory’ partner. This is evident from our product offerings such as video streaming service, mobile points-of-sale, digital claims processes, claim assessment based on video streaming and AI powered chat service. Going digital has ensured convenience and accessibility to our customers in terms of faster claims, simplified chatting with the customer support and not having to be physically present to process a claim.

What’s next?

Developed along the lines of innovation and customer-first approach, our video streaming service has helped us settle more than 53,000 claims (at the garages) in a short span of time and has reduced our turn-around-time (TAT) by a whopping 30%!2

The benefits of our video streaming platform are numerous. It eradicates the hassle of having to explain on phone various technical automobile issues. It also reduces chances of fraud since through the video, the RGI agents are able to see for themselves the problems that arise in the motor vehicle. It also eliminates the problem of physical presence, as through video streaming, the agents can detect the issue and process claims faster digitally.

The trend is picking up fast, and multiple other players in the sector have adopted the tech-based video streaming for limited functions such as renewing policies. However, Reliance General Insurance is the first player to introduce the concept of video streaming in the insurance sector. Ours is a cloud-based technology that provides hassle-free end-to-end claims solution and enables our network garages to file a claim with just basic details, resulting in instant approval.

Miles to go…

The inflection-point where the insurance industry is today is merely another milestone in its long-term digital narrative. With technology as the core enabler of disruptions, we may expect to see many more such milestones in the sector.

(Rakesh Jain, CEO, Reliance General Insurance Company Limited)