February 2018
On the Rise: Exploring the Growing Popularity of Insurtech
Insurers currently find themselves standing at an exciting crossroads: the old ways of working are falling out of favour, and insurtech innovations are sweeping the board in terms of practicality, efficiency, and competitive advantage.
Now, some commentators are referring to 2020 as the year insurtech finally goes mainstream, with innovations set to take centre stage in an industry which finds itself being forced to evolve to keep up with the modern world.
With only two years to go, there’s no better time to get clued into what insurtech is, what it means, and what’s still to come from the innovators ahead of its grand mainstream debut!
What is Insurtech?
For the uninitiated, insurtech is a portmanteau of ‘insurance’ and ‘technology’, serving as the trendy name for all the transformative innovations we’re currently seeing in the industry. This includes technologies developed solely for insurers, as well as technology which has been adapted to address industry-specific challenges.
Haven’t heard of it? Well insurtech has spent the last few years whirring away in the background, building a name for itself amongst insurers – hence the prediction of a true mainstream debut being held off until 2020. But although it might not yet be a household term, insurtech is still going strong, with an estimated worth of $7 trillion. Not bad, right?
How Did the Rise Begin?
Insurtech startups and disruptors have been cropping up for a few years now, so there was never a true ‘origin point’ for the innovations, but the introduction of in-car monitoring devices, wearable activity trackers and front of house apps are all notable early iterations of what insurtech is today.
Behind all these different technologies is not only the ability to improve workflow behind the scenes and to streamline processes such as customer communications and claims applications. Insurtech has directly addressed many of the challenges specific to insurers, with the likes of wearable activity trackers becoming a mainstay on the health insurance scene, drawing in new blood and turning insurance from a dinosaur into a vibrant industry keeping up with the times.
As with every other industry, insurers then wanted to keep up and startups made themselves available to make that happen. The rest is history.
What Insurtech Can We Already See?
As mentioned above, in-car monitoring systems and wearable fitness trackers have already become noticeable pieces of insurtech innovation. The former has transformed how premiums are set by properly providing in-depth analytics around a driver’s behaviour, and has allowed for restrictions on younger drivers and when they can drive, in exchange for fairer deals.
The latter – fitness trackers – come off the back of the wearable technology trend, and have been adapted to target growing levels of obesity and poor health, rewarding policy holders for staying healthy, ensuring more valuable policies in the long-term.
On the customer front, apps such as MyAviva and Cuvva have transformed the relationship between insurers and customers, whilst bespoke CRM solutions have opened up communications and help to improve transparency between the two parties.
More to Come
Although it might seem like there’s already plenty of insurtech doing the rounds, the above examples are really just scratching the surface. As more firms and more customers become aware of the technology on offer, it’s only a matter of time until more insurtech innovations come to the fore.
One such innovation could revolve around our developing relationship with autonomous vehicles and the complications they bring to insurance policies, whilst Blockchain’s growing presence in the insurance world may just demonstrate its usefulness beyond being a mere cryptocurrency fad.
With the likes of VR and AI also scrambling to get in on the action, the future is set to be an exciting time for insurtech – and 2018 could very well set the tone for how that future unfolds.
Lunar CRM create bespoke CRM solutions for clients in a number of industries – including insurance. To find out more about how we can help your insurance firm to achieves its goals, feel free to check out our case studies page, or get in touch with us directly to book a free demo.