The Insurance sector is traditionally considered conservative, often having the reputation of being complicated and little open to innovation.
There tends to be a comparison between the technological evolution seen in Banking and the supposed delay that the Insurance sector continues to present, which contributes to an image that is not very favourable to consumers, often unfairly.
The change in consumption patterns, access to the Internet and social networks, and above all digital transformation are fundamental factors that have “pushed” Insurers to resort to technology as the only possible way to innovate products and optimise the management of processes and resources.
Terms like Blockchain, IoT (Internet of Things), Cloud Computing, Data Analytics, AI (Artificial Intelligence), Chatbot, etc, correspond to some of the technologies that tend to revolutionise the sector and gradually transform a sector that for a long time was averse to major transformations, having often manifested some difficulty in keeping up with the evolution of consumer needs.
The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has also accelerated the digital transformation of the sector, forcing the implementation of some innovations that have arisen out of necessity, which perhaps would not happen if we lived in normal times.
The truth is that consumer pressure is increasing and it is up to the Insurance sector to provide answers to the new normal, through a strong bet on innovation
A case of particular relevance is the evolution that is taking place in Health Insurance, partly as a result of the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic in terms of access to medical assistance, but also in line with the digital revolution which began before the advent of the pandemic.
In terms of the transformation that the sector is undergoing, it is worth highlighting some notable bets, which will certainly significantly improve the quality of service offered to customers in the use of their insurance:
Telemedicine, Tele-Health, access to facilitated medical care, e-claiming, adapted AI, robotics, drop and deliver, wearable devices, are some of the innovations that are causing disruption in the sector, provoking profound changes at the level of the alteration of business models and processes, and significant advances at the level of the quality of the offer.
Naturally, the panorama of change will not be the same in all markets, with more evolved markets (Europe and the United States) moving towards a self-service model in the use of insurance, in which Insurtech insurers are rapidly gaining space at the expense of traditional insurers. This situation no longer occurs in countries where there is a greater lack of medical assistance or where the level of consumer demand and knowledge is lower.
However, there is a common and transversal objective, which is to effectively improve the experience of the final consumer in the use of his insurance and to change the paradigm that insurance is complicated. The truth is that consumer pressure is increasing and it is up to the Insurance sector to provide answers to the new normal, through a strong bet in innovation. The companies that do not understand the current challenges will be hopelessly left behind and tend to disappear.
