(Image source: TCBI homepage.)
The Claims Bridge International (TCBI, Melbourne/Denver) has announced the U.S. launch of its cloud-based technology EziClaims Suite, which is designed to assist insurers and their partners deliver contactless hail claims for customers. As part of the launch, TCBI reports that it is offering U.S. insurers an enterprise subscription free of charge in 2021, so they can evaluate the benefits of the technology.
David McDonald, President, TCBI International.
“Initially developed for the Australian market, EziClaims Suite enables insureds to easily capture the hail damage to their vehicles on their mobile device, and then engages them to choose, schedule or reschedule an appointment with a repair shop,” comments David McDonald, President, TCBI International. “Since many areas in the U.S. also suffer from catastrophic hail events, we felt insurers and their customers in North America would greatly benefit from the technology platform.”
TCBI is led by an experienced team of U.S. and international insurance, claims and repair executives. McDonald says the multinational group joined forces to “reimagine” catastrophic auto hail claims and find a better way of handling these events.
“With EziClaims Suite, insureds can photograph and document the damage to their vehicle on a mobile device in less than five minutes,” comment Bill Park, TCBI President Americas. “They receive a simple link to a mobile-enabled website without having to download an app.”
Smart Triage
Jerry Volquardsen, SVP Operation and Customer Experience, TCBI, led the development of the software, which he describes as designed to work alongside the insurers’ existing claims operations and systems. “From the data provided by the insured, the software immediately calculates a provisional estimate of the cost of repairs,” comments Volquardsen. “Then, the smart triage application recommends the most efficient and effective way to repair the vehicle or identify it as a total loss.”
Jerry Volquardsen, SVP Operation and Customer Experience, TCBI.
Once approved, the insured can then book the vehicle into TCBI’s national network of repair shops, which are all integrated into the platform. This includes a significant network of paintless dent repair (PDR) facilities, which Volquardsen says is the fastest and lowest-cost way of repairing hail damage. The platform also allows insurers and their customers the ability to track the progress of their repairs and provide feedback on their experience from their cell phone, according to TCBI.
“Using this technology in Australia for a number of years, we found that it not only improved the customer experience, but it also reduced the claims handling and repair costs for the insurer by up to 40 percent, depending on the nature of the hail event,” comments Rob West, former head of business development at IAG, Australia’s largest insurer. “With the current challenges of COVID-19, this digital, contactless solution is required now more than ever.”
TCBI describes the key benefits and features of EziClaims Suite as follows:
- Significantly reduces insurers’ total claims costs
- Improves the customer experience
- Can be rapidly deployed as no systems integration is required
- Minimizes face-to-face interactions, providing contactless claims services
- Fully compliant with U.S. data protection and privacy protocols
- The platform can be branded by the insurer
Park adds that some tier-one insurers have launched their own digital hail claims management systems, built in-house. “This white-labeled solution allows other insurers to offer a fast-track digital service without having to find the capital or allocate internal resources,” he added.