These days, insurance companies in the UK need to improve their processes with the right strategies and tools, such as claims management software. Reason: many Brits don’t trust them.
The Love-Hate Relationship
The UK has one of the excellent health care systems in the world, but it is still subject to public funding. With budget cuts, a lot of Brits decided to get private health insurance. In 2015, the need for such a product in the UK went up by 2.1%. It covered around 4 million people. Despite this, not everyone likes to deal with insurers. In a study by EY among 1,000 British consumers, over 68% of the uninsured people didn’t trust providers. About 55% of the insured said the same thing.
For this group, they believed that insurance providers would exert all efforts not to pay. This is even if companies paid up to 95% of the claims. A survey by Claims Rated, meanwhile, revealed that 50% of the respondents didn’t think insurers would pay claims. Younger adults were also more likely to share the same sentiments. Less than 40% of them thought that insurers would process claims.
Where the Distrust Comes From
In the UK, many people forgo insurance because they couldn’t afford it. Around 25% said they’d rather spend on their daily needs than on coverage. Affordability isn’t the only issue, though. Some of these concerns impact trust ratings.
For example, the EY study showed that young adults (or those below 35 years old) would like insurance providers to offer loyalty programmes or incentives. The Claims Rated survey mentioned that 59% of the respondents found the process of filing a claim time-consuming and complicated. Nearly 40% of them shared that insurance providers needed to simplify claims procedures.
Improving Customer Experience
The two surveys mentioned involved only a small group, but the results should be enough for insurance companies to pay attention to. Trust must matter for insurers for the following reasons:
- Although the demand for private health insurance increased, it needs to grow further.
- Trust is a reflection of customer service. An excellent relationship with the client pays the business in many ways. It promotes loyalty, and clients can help in marketing through word of mouth.
How can insurance providers enhance their customer service? Experts suggest that:
- They encourage their clients to customise their coverage according to their needs. Insurance demand can change over time, and clients must have the option to upgrade or downgrade conveniently.
- Insurers should broaden their products and bundles to cater to different demographics or market. This way, clients enjoy value for money or even see coverage as more affordable.
- Create loyalty programmes or incentives.
Insurance providers can benefit from automating and centralising their claims process as well as using a digital platform. It can bridge the gaps and needs of both the insurers and the users. This dashboard is accessible across different devices, such as tablets and mobile phones. It can then speed up and streamline the filing and approval of claims.
Most of all, it could generate analytics, which helps correct and improve present processes. Insurers can show empathy in many ways. One of these is by enhancing the customer experience, which can boost trust.
