Zurich Slashes Claim Times To Just 13 minutes  December 7th 2023

Zurich slashes claim times to just 13 minutes

• Insurer Zurich UK slashes average contents insurance claim times to 13 minutes for customers using new communication channel
• Refreshed video messaging service Hello Zurich sees a 400% increase in customer uptake
• Zurich continues to implement technology to help ease the claims process for policyholders

Waiting times for Zurich customers have been slashed dramatically after the insurer introduced video and WhatsApp messaging for customers making a claim.

Claims times have been cut to an average of just 13 minutes for customers using a new WhatsApp messaging option, while Zurich has seen a five-fold rise in the number of customers using the insurer’s new video messaging service, Hello Zurich.

Hello Zurich allows claims handlers to video call with claimants, building trust from day one while allowing handlers to capture visual information about the claim, significantly reducing time and hassle for customers and eliminating the need for long email exchanges.

Zurich is also employing the service for customers identified as vulnerable, who may be more comfortable discussing their claim face-to-face rather than over email or the phone.

DeSantis' proposed budget targets rising property insurance premiums

Florida governor Ron DeSantis has announced his proposed $114.4 billion budget for 2024, including a $409 million allocation aimed at easing property insurance premiums.

DeSantis’ proposal calls for a one-year exemption on taxes, fees, and assessments that would target homeowners with properties valued up to $750,000.

These exemptions translate to a 6% reduction for the average Florida homeowner, according to a report by the Orlando Sentinel, which cited information presented by the governor’s staff.

Florida has seen insurance premiums triple over the past five years, according to the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I). Average annual payments have gone over $4,200, while the national average sits at $1,700.

VIU by HUB Now Offers Landlord Insurance for Rental Properties or Secondary Homes on Its Digital Broker Platform

Policy provides property damage protection for individuals owning fewer than five properties

VIU by HUB (VIU), an omnichannel insurance brokerage platform, announced today the launch of landlord insurance to protect investment rental properties and secondary homes. Landlord insurance typically includes two different types of coverage, property damage and liability protection, and offers financial protection from damage caused by fire and storms, lost rental income and personal liability.

Landlord insurance enables individuals owning fewer than five homes to now shop for, compare quotes, and purchase a policy through VIU. This type of policy offers protection for homes that do not qualify for homeowners insurance, such as secondary residences, rental properties or vacant homes undergoing repairs.

"About 70 percent of investment properties in the U.S. are owned by individuals – this represents a huge number of people who are in need of a different insurance solution to protect their rental homes," said Bryan Davis, EVP and Head of VIU. "By adding a landlord policy to our roster of products, we further cement VIU's role as a one-stop shop for all personal insurance needs for individuals and allow our partners, particularly those in the property management space, to better serve their customers."

While VIU is available to all consumers, the platform can be easily embedded within the systems of partner businesses and organizations, such as property management companies, enabling them to offer additional value-added services like landlord insurance. Property management companies can provide small-scale clients with the opportunity to protect their investments and receive unbiased advice through a licensed independent broker. This enables them to provide expanded services to their clients while simultaneously creating an alternative revenue opportunity for their business.

Real-Time Data and Mitigation: How Tokio Marine Is Changing Risky Behaviors

Executive Summary

Risk prevention has been a key pillar of Tokio Marine Group’s global strategy for years, with many of its local insurance entities around the world marrying real-time risk mitigation solutions and behavioral change programs to their insurance products. Just one example is TMNF’s Drive Agent service, providing in-vehicle alerts to over one million drivers who are distracted, sleepy or in danger of crashing and resulting in a 13 percent drop in claims frequency.

Here, TMNA EVP Robert Pick and CM Guest Editor Matteo Carbone also review the claims management benefits of Drive Agent, and other IoT-based services developed by Tokio Marine operations like Philadelphia Insurance and PURE in the U.S., targeting risk prevention for commercial and personal property policyholders in addition to drivers of individual cars and fleets.

Robert Pick is Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Tokio Marine North America and Group Deputy Chief Information Technology Officer at Tokio Marine Group.

Matteo Carbone is Director of the IoT Insurance Observatory and chairman of Net Insurance’s innovation advisory board.

Judge refuses to dismiss class action lawsuit targeting Tesla insurance arm

A California judge on Monday refused to dismiss a lawsuit targeting Tesla and its insurance arm, setting the company up for a difficult legal battle involving plaintiffs from multiple states.

The class-action lawsuit, filed this April by plaintiff Ricky Stevens, alleged that the electric vehicle maker increased customer insurance premiums based on false data. According to the company, rates are determined based on a scoring system that uses information obtained from the vehicle to estimate how safely the owner is driving. One of the monitoring devices used to grade customers is the Forward Collision Warning, which alerts car occupants when they are at risk of crashing into an object. The more this alarm is triggered, the more likely the owner’s rate is to increase.

However, the lawsuit claims that the collision warning system frequently exhibited “sporadic and random” behavior, alerting owners of a threat that never existed and Tesla of poor driving that never happened. The plaintiff argues that these false alarms contributed to poorer safety scores, leading the company to hike the premiums of many customers without due cause. On its website, the EV brand notes that the scoring system ensures that rates are calculated based on “real-time driving behavior,” a claim that Stevens and his lawyer labeled as false advertising.