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IRDAI Chairman Debasish Panda has advised insurance companies to work towards enhancing the claim settlement experience of policyholders. Panda was speaking at the CII Insurance Summit in Mumbai.
The chairman said that insurance is all about making people secure not just through solicitation of policies but also through trust it offers, transparency it maintains and the delightful experience it creates.
Today, policyholders are more informed and discerning. They expect comprehensive policy and choose products that fit their unique needs. But the real challenge for the insurance industry is creating an entire seamless experience i.e. from product offerings to claim settlement. However, the moment of truth comes during the claim experience. Hence, the claim settlement process should be swift, transparent and hassle free for policyholders, said Panda.
Panda also directed insurance companies to handle claim requests with empathy and efficiency. He said that a policyholder who receives hassle free experience can become a lifelong advocate of insurers thereby benefiting the industry in the long term.
The chairman instructed insurance companies to focus on three key areas to enhance the overall insurance experience of policyholders – Products, Processes and Promise.
- Products should have customer friendly features like 30 days free look period and policies for all age groups
- People behind the process are key. Knowledgeable and well-trained distribution networks are essential to enhance the customer experience. Also, insurers should look at addressing certain questions to make their process better like how easy is solicitation of policies, how quickly they can deal with service requests and what they are doing to make the claim settlement process seamless
- Claim settlement is the moment of trust. Journey doesn’t end by selling, it actually starts during the time of claim settlement or during the time of stress and needs. For instance, insurers should make the entire experience frictionless i.e. a health policyholder should focus on recovery and not on hospital bills
Panda also said that the insurance regulator will introduce the National Health Claim Exchange, which will ensure cashless hospitalization across all hospitals throughout the country.
