How Claims Professionals Prepare for 2023 Hail Season
by Troy Stewart, President and Chief Operating Officer, Brush Claims
With the hail season beginning this month and extending through the summer, it pays for claims professionals to be prepared and proactive. According to a data analytics report, 6.2 million properties in the U.S. experienced one or more damaging hail events in 2020, making this a busy time of year for insurance claims. The difference with hail season as compared to our typical storm season is that, unlike a snowstorm or a hurricane, people in high-risk areas never know when hail could fall on their property or home.
The time is now for claims professionals to take action in preparing policyholders to be as prepared as possible, and it starts through building trust and strengthening relationships. So, as the weather starts to warm up and the rainy season begins, our team of insurtech experts is sharing a few tips to support awareness campaigns and build client confidence throughout the hail claims process.
Provide “Extra Mile” Value To Policyholders
Providing informative, clear and easy-to-digest information to policyholders will increase the likelihood of them implementing suggested strategies for hail season. Consider offering an e-book or concise infographic with simple steps to prepare property for hail along with emergency preparedness tips. This can serve an effective way for insurance professionals to educate their clients and potential clients on how to prepare for any damage. Proactive awareness provides policyholders with steps they can take to protect vulnerable areas of their property before, during and after a hailstorm.
Additionally, an e-book or infographic can also be leveraged to provide information on how to initiate a claim, what to expect from the claims process and what documents and evidence may be required. Providing this in a visual format is preferred, because it will give policyholders a clear picture of what must be done during the confusing and chaotic moments that follow a disaster and ultimately improve customer satisfaction.
Set Up Well-Check Communications
The last thing that someone enduring the chaotic, and sometimes traumatic, effects of hail wants is to feel abandoned and isolated in their experience. It is crucial to have a plan to proactively communicate with your policyholders immediately following a natural disaster – hail included. Instill confidence and strengthen the client relationship with consistent personalized contact with those who may have been impacted by an event. Provide them with timely resources and reassure them along the way that you are doing your part to ensure they receive the necessary support.
Insurance professionals may conduct checkups through phone calls, but that is not always the most effective or efficient way to reach a large number of policyholders. Leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) solutions will create an efficient approach that allows for mass messaging and personalized communications. Through AI, it’s possible to begin engagements with policyholders from the onset of an event to create a smooth claim filing process. These regular automated communications should deploy as soon as, if not prior to, a hailstorm’s impact on an area, as they are an excellent way to stay in touch and provide world-class customer service. With that, claims management software is vital in aiding in these high-quality customer experiences. For instance, Hubvia solutions can help streamline the process and communications between all parties, including the policyholder, which is ideal during a hail event.
Evaluate Processes
Position your brand as the one that is there when the policyholder needs you most, to be that trusted pillar of security, make sure you are using the most recent data and analytics on hail events. Utilize a high-quality data provider that seamlessly integrates into your operations and funnels insights into one, easy-access location. This will allow you to create a streamlined process for your claims team and allow your response to strengthen that trust with the policyholder.
It’s time to help your clients weather every storm. Brush Claims offers over 30 years of experience in bringing a safe and trustworthy experience to policyholders. We understand the importance of having a reliable system in place that offers speed, transparency and accessibility when it counts most, and that’s why we have spent years perfecting a system that’s built to protect.
