The days of receiving policy documents through snail mail and running around the insurance office to settle claims are now passé. The popular messaging service WhatsApp messenger is all set to make life easier. Pretty soon, you will be able to receive your insurance policy documents right inside your homes via WhatsApp.
Insurance companies are adopting technology at a fast pace to meet the growing demands of consumers, for easy, hassle free, doorstep service with a click or swipe.
The latest to join the bandwagon is non-life insurer Future Generali India Insurance Company (FGII) that has decided to offer policy documents through WhatsApp. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance has also introduced Boing chatbot to help consumers with instant documents for claims by policyholders, at various places like hospitals, or automobile workshops.
“Using a digital platform is safe, faster and makes it simpler at the time of delivering policy documents as well as claim settlements,” says K.V. Dipu, Head Operations & Customer Service, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance. A soft copy of policy document is valid and in case of loss of hard copy it is no longer a problem and a win-win situation for both policyholders and insurers, he added.
Other like ACKO General Insurance, offers insurance claims in case of automobile accidents in less than two hours. The policy holder has to just send a picture of the damage on their automobile to the insurer. In the digital age, knowledgeable and connected consumers expect insurance providers to be in step with their evolving needs.
“Some companies use technologies like Artificial Intelligence and machine learning to simplify the process further, save time and make the whole process simple,” said K.G. Krishnamoorthy Rao, MD & CEO, FGII. More than 5200 policy documents have been delivered by the firm via WhatsApp since its launch last month.
FGII has also begun an awareness campaign for the insured community which says that small and simple claims can be settled through online video streaming.
However, the flip side of this is that an insurance policy document contains personal data of the policyholder and sending via social networking platform means there is always a security risk. Potential manipulation of a policy document may take place and is likely to increase cyber crime, says Cyber Law expert Pavan Duggal.
The security issues are something that insurance firms need to take care of. “Insurers need to put in place a two-step security system, but it has to be implemented by all. Any failure can lead to loss of documents and delay in claims,” says Sahil Bagla, Chandigarh based Cyber security expert. He points out that globally this is a norm and in India which has started to adopt it, it should just take care of the security aspect.