Claims Processing Simplified with Virtual Presence Technology
By Marieke Wijtkamp
When property damage occurs, insurance clients want immediate service and closure from their insurance provider. Waiting days for a decision and the added inconvenience of staying home for a claims adjustor causes distress. For the insurance company, incurring the extra cost associated with sending out adjustors also burdens the operation. Leading insurance providers are now eliminating these delays for clients as well as the associated costs using virtual presence technologies to enable video-based claims.
Video Claims Eliminate Delays Traditionally, a client calls the insurer to report the damage and attempts to describe the situation to the customer service representative. In some cases, the next step is an onsite visit by an adjustor, which introduces delays, costs, and frustration for the client who often has to wait to start the repairs. With video-based claims, the insurance service representative can immediately escalate this initial call to include video. Together, the client and service rep see the damage, discuss the situation, and draw on the visuals to isolate key areas of concern. The service rep can even remotely control the client’s camera to get optimal lighting, zoom, and take pictures or recordings of the damage for the case file. Depending on the type of claim, this approach has taken a 3-4 day process down to just 15 minutes. No one has to wait at home for an adjustor or delay the repair.
Empowering Clients Directly One property insurance company in the US integrated Librestream’s Onsight virtual presence platform into an existing iOS and Android application for their clients. By embedding this proven technology, nearly 90 percent of their mobile users have the ability to stream video for eligible claims from their smartphone or tablet. The insurance service representatives also have the companion Onsight Connect software loaded on their desktops. To initiate a claim, the service rep invites the client with an eligible claim to securely share their camera. If the client agrees, they can review the damages in real time with audio, video, and images. The service rep can instruct the client where to point their device, and if necessary, can even remotely control the camera to get the required visual. Both parties see exactly the same visual at the same time. The images and audio shared can be used to assess losses, determine services needed, and in some cases, complete the claims in real time. For example, in one case, an adjustor confirmed a dishwasher leak and immediately assigned a flooring company to repair damage to the wooden floor, saving at least seven days for the client.
Improving Access to Experts for Contractors In another application, insurance companies are exploring video-based claims support for their extended network of adjustors and contractors. The ability to assist these specialists with questions that arise onsite can escalate decisions and remove added costs from the process. In this application, the contractor has the virtual presence app on their smartphone or tablet and shares visuals directly with the insurance provider or other specialists for immediate answers.
Security of Content Critical Clearly, security over content and usage matters a great deal for video-based claims with clients. The virtual presence technology must help overcome that concern by providing tight security over the wireless communication and media content. Security certificates, encryption, authentication and even centralized administrator control have become tablestakes for mobile virtual presence technologies.
Optimized to Perform on All Networks The network bandwidth environments are also uncontrolled for video-based claims. A client may have a strong wireless network environment or a very low bandwidth 3G cellular network. Regardless of the network, it is essential that both parties can hear each other clearly and that the service rep can control the experience to optimize for network availability. The Onsight system includes tools like Bandwidth Adaptive Streaming, which automatically adjusts the video to ensure that the audio remains clear. With the advent of virtual presence technologies, securely extending the power of collaboration to clients and insurers is now a reality, allowing clients to repair and rebuild more quickly while lowering expenses for insurers. Now, engaging in a full video claims session starts with a simple phone call.
Marieke Wijtkamp can be reached at (204) 487-0612; e-mail marieke.wijtkamp@librestream.com Marieke Wijtkamp holds her Bachelor of Commerce and MBA degrees from the University of Manitoba. She brings 15 years of marketing and senior leadership experience to Librestream. Ms. Wijtkamp has held prior positions in marketing, business development, strategic planning and corporate leadership in several technology companies. Most recently she was the President & COO of OMT (TSX:OMT). In that position, she spent six years leading the company’s two technology service-based operating divisions. Prior to OMT, Ms. Wijtkamp was VP Marketing/Strategic Planning at Norsat International Inc. (NASDAQ:NSAT, TSX:NII), a satellite technology company and Infocorp Computer Solutions (TSX:INP), an international business software solutions company.
