It’s no secret that insurance claims can be a hassle. But what contributes to making them difficult experiences?
Insurance professionals often have different opinions on what makes for a poor claim. Here we’ll explore some of the main factors that create frustrating and time-consuming claims that leave customers frustrated.
Customers’ expectations not being met
Setting the right expectations with your customers is paramount. When a policyholder lodges a claim, whether it is their first time or not, they like to know what they can expect to happen over the coming weeks to months.
Being transparent with your customers should be a key priority. Especially at a time when the business may see a claim surge due to a declared disaster, you should let your customer know there could be delays due to the high wave of claims and demand on suppliers at the time.
Leaving out such details could result in a poor claim experience causing a frustrated customer.
Miscommunication
Clear communication throughout the whole claim experience is crucial. In Australia, the Insurance Council of Australia requires you to update the policyholder weekly regarding their claim. This should be the minimum as customers are often out of their homes due to repairs or other contributing factors.
You should constantly update your customer when something changes or is progressing.
Not supplying constant and informative updates is a quick way to result in a poor claim experience.
Unclear or unrealistic promises
Vague or unrealistic promises will get you an unhappy customer leaving with a poor claim experience. Never promise a customer anything when it comes to managing a claim, especially if you are a supplier in the insurance industry and work for underwriters or insurance companies.
It is not your authority to promise anything other than that you will do your best. If customers are pledged to something at the start of the claim, and it is not delivered by the end, we guarantee that most will follow you up and hold you to your word.
Lack of empathy from customer service representatives
Lodging an insurance claim, especially if it is their first time, can be overwhelming.
Developing a keen sense of empathy is not just helpful in our personal lives; it is a powerful tool that improves how we manage and deal in our customer service roles. Tightly coupled with self-awareness and continually honed social skills, empathy enables our claim managers to become exceptional in their roles.
The most effective and empathetic professionals can tune in to their body’s signals for emotion. This is an essential skill in any job where empathy matters. We need to practice with our feelings, see them within ourselves, and then be enabled to provide them to our customers. And being empathic need not be onerous.
Difficulty getting an update on their claim
This one is straightforward. Be available!
If you are managing insurance claims and your available hours are nine to five, Monday to Friday, then make sure that you are available to assist your customers with whatever they require.
The less available you are and the more times the customer finds it challenging to get in touch with you creating a higher chance of delivering a poor claim experience.
While it’s impossible to make everyone happy all the time, understanding and avoiding these factors should make for a better experience for you and your customer.
At Wilbur, we want to help you succeed in every way possible. That’s where our technology fits in. We are the experts in solving everyday disruption, whether that be insurance claims, property repairs or facilities maintenance. If you want more information on improving your business process, please click here to get in touch. We value our relationships with insurance professionals and are always here to help in whatever way we can.