Sept. 11, 2017—Bill Brower, vice president of LexisNexis Risk Solutions, appeared on A.M. BestTV to discuss how insurance carriers are moving towards an era of what he calls "touchless claims."

The discussion stemmed from a recent LexisNexis study that evaluated the claims process to track what direction it’s moving. The study found that there are three or more people touching the average claim, and insurance companies are looking to reduce that number to zero.

“We’ve added so much technology, but haven't integrated that in a way that creates more efficiencies in the claims process,” Brower said. “So, what can we automate?”

During the interview, Brower tracked how claims have been simplified over the years. Once laptops were introduced in the 1990s, he says that carriers started to rethink the process and established DRPs so the customer could go directly to the body shop for a repair, as opposed to waiting for the carrier. Recently, the process was simplified further by allowing customers to take photos of damage for estimates. He said the LexisNexis study shows that 30 percent of carriers use this feature—the touchless claim.

Brower says the claims process will be even further simplified with the help of telematics. LexisNexis envisions a claim that’s reported with a car when the customer is in an accident—especially if it’s a connected vehicle tethered to a customer’s phone.

“The car senses there’s an accident and sends a message to the customer,” he said. “Now we’re getting the first notice of loss electronically. With one click of button on phone, that brings relevant police report information into the system...then it’s paid electronically.”

By making these changes — changes many carriers have already implemented — Brower said that carriers have reduced the claims process from 10–15 days to 1–2 days.

Brower said 50 percent of collision claims today could be handled in a touchless manner. Within five years, he thinks the industry will see widespread adoption.