Technology versus the human touch – why it doesn’t have to be one or the other

This article was created in partnership with Duck Creek Technologies.

Desmond Devoy, of Insurance Business America, sat down with Sasha Korol, senior director of research and innovation at Duck Creek Technologies, to discuss the results of a global survey that looked at how the consumers the insurance.

People need people, and a new global survey found that, when it comes to talking to their insurance companies, many still want the human touch.

In the newly released Duck Creek Technologies survey “Global Consumer Insurance Insights” for 2023, the second annual report underlines that while technology is here to stay, people have a big role to play. The survey found that 44% of consumers would prefer to deal with someone – up from 35% in 2022 – if there was a policy.

As such, interest in apps and use of WhatsApp for buying and transferring insurance has also increased every year.

“This year’s survey results show that consumers favor both more human connection and the convenience of secure digital tools available for point-to-point communication of specific needs as they arise, ” said Sasha Korol (pictured), senior director of research and innovation at Duck Creek. “It’s critical that insurers create multiple channels that serve the diverse preferences of consumers for all stages of the purchase and service journey. Insurers must strike the right balance between digital self-service features and live agent assistance for consumers.

Korol added that this may mean exploring cloud-based digital communication capabilities such as screen sharing, co-browsing, digital audio and video, and chat to provide humanized contextual assistance that is convenient and helpful to the consumer.

Cross-country check-up

The survey was conducted in 13 countries (listed below), among 2,095 adults, with a 50/50 gender split, who hold at least one insurance policy. The research was conducted independently by Research in Finance for Duck Creek Technologies, using a seven-minute quantitative online survey.

• Denmark *
• France *
• Norway*
• Spain
• Portugal
• Sweden *
• UK
• Canada
• deer
• australian
• New Zealand
• India *
• Singapore *

The * indicates a new country added to the survey from 2022.

So why was it decided to expand the survey for a second edition?

Korol said the company wants to take a more “granular” view of the countries in the regions they cover.

“The 13 countries were selected based on where Duck Creek Technology primarily conducts business and where our employees, and our consumers, live,” he said. “It allows us to understand the overall dynamics of the market.”

Breaking down the responses from the United States, the Boston-based company reported that of those surveyed:

• 90% believe there is a good variety of options when purchasing different types of insurance (compared to 87% in the 2022 survey.)
• 36% are happy to transfer insurance online (down from 55% in 2022).
• 40% find add-on insurance products attractive.
• 52% are interested in insurance on-demand for short-term rentals.
• 35% of those who know embedded insurance trust the concept.

Around the world, as one would expect, there are some significant differences in preferences between regions and countries on various topics.

“When looking at the sources of advice/research that policyholders consider before buying insurance, UK and Norwegian respondents are more likely to consider a price comparison website,” Korol pointed out. “In contrast, those in Portugal and Spain are more likely to value advice from friends, colleagues, or insurance brokers.”

North of the Pyrenees Mountains, “French respondents value the advice given to them at the point of sale,” said Korol. Meanwhile, in Asia, respondents from India and Singapore are less likely to own a home or motor insurance. But Korol thinks he knows why: “It’s probably because the respondents in this group are younger and may not have owned a house or a car yet.”

An overview of global insurance trends

There are also important global trends noted in the survey, in four key areas (some questions are new to the survey so they do not refer to any of the 2022 figures below):

• 72% of the average buy insurance directly from a provider (2022: 73%)
• 67%, on average, feel that the insurance provider’s website is the easiest/fastest way to buy insurance (2022: 40% prefer to interact through their insurer’s website.)
• 52% feel that buying insurance through an app is the safest method (2022: 13% on average prefer to interact through an app.)

Transfer of Insurance

• 86% feel there are more options available when switching insurance (2022: 85%)
• 92% rated their transfer experience as “positive” overall, and 40% rated it as “very good” (2022: 92% positive overall, 37% very good.)
• 50% feel that bundled insurance packages provide value for money.

Communication Preferences

• 82% want to hear about new services (2022: 80%)
• 75% want to hear about other products (2022: 75%)
• 45% on average do not hear from their insurer for a year (2022: 34%)

Innovation in Insurance

• 43% find the concept of add-on insurance attractive (2022: 48%)
• 54% find the concept of insurance on-demand attractive (2022: 55%)
• 62% don’t know about embedded insurance or aren’t sure what it is.

The numbers may speak for themselves, but, as a bonus, the survey includes several calls to action, such as:

• Maximize accessibility of insurance products to consumers across channels.
• Humanize the consumer experience through digital channels.
• Use the SaaS ecosystem to activate channels and differentiate from the competition.

For Korol, there are several other takeaways from the survey, including that 75% of consumers want to hear about other products, but 45% have not heard from their insurers over the course of a year. Last year, 34% of consumers did not hear from their insurer – so the survey shows that as the need for human interaction and interest in new insurance products grows, the level of interaction between the insurer and insurer seems to be declining.

“Consumers embrace insurance and are eager to learn more about new products and services, including 43% interested in add-on insurance and 54% interested in on-demand insurance,” he said. “There is a huge opportunity to continue to engage consumers in various digital channels to ensure a humanized experience. Insurers must continue to build products that meet different needs and facilitate the human experiences.