Addressing travel insurance pain points
The days of customers gritting their teeth and staying with a provider whose service they consider to be substandard are effectively behind us. It has never been easier for dissatisfied consumers to switch to a new company that promises better treatment – and many companies are waking up to this reality, innovating in the realms of personalisation and customer service. A customer satisfaction arms race, if you will, which can only be a positive thing for developments across the board.
Part of navigating this new reality involves knowing what customers do and don’t like, and new research from insurtech company Cover Genius has shed light on a few of the ‘pain points’ that consumers have noted in their dealings with travel insurers. Cover Genius undertook a study of over 2,000 UK-based respondents and found that of the consumers who reported frustrations with their insurers, these frustrations largely boiled down to two points of friction. These were the duration of the claims process – customers reported waiting an average of 10 and a half weeks for a claim to be paid out – and inconsistency of information, with many respondents needing to have multiple conversations with different parties to get the information they needed. Thirty-six per cent of respondents said that they found chasing their claims to be a very stressful process, while 27 per cent of those aged 18 to 24 said that they probably wouldn’t bother claiming because of the stress that would result.
“We are starting to see forward-thinking disruptors in the travel sector who are already starting to tackle this problem,” said Angus McDonald, CEO and Co-Founder of Cover Genius. “These two pain points are easily solved with technology, which consumers have already experienced in other industries, so it’s not surprising to find that there’s growing frustration and mistrust of the insurance ecosystem.”
The survey found that 45 per cent of UK insurance customers would be happy to purchase bolt-on insurance products if it meant more peace of mind. Over 25 per cent said that a simpler, streamlined claims process involving a single-click service would be an attractive proposition and 66 per cent of those aged 18 to 24 and 67 per cent those aged 25 to 35 said that they would be happy to pay more for the simplicity and peace of mind offered by instant payouts.
“Instant payment technology, streamlined booking processes and consistent information delivered to the palm of the hand have become second-nature solutions for most major travel players now,” said McDonald. “How this translates to a seamless customer experience is what provides travel companies with the best chance of engendering loyalty and repeat bookings. However, the concept in other industries where we see them moving towards managing an end-to-end experience is not a new one, and this research definitely shows opportunity for travel companies to own more of the components associated with travel –
including offering a better approach to that all-important travel insurance policy. Travel players being able to apply the same cutting-edge, customer-centric approach to helping travellers when they need it most, will be a game-changer, and we are seeing how this is creating an increased positive impact on brand perception.”