If anything, the volumes speak to the need for a catalyst such as AI to increase the efficacy of how adjusters are working.
Kathy Serunian, associate vice-president at FullscopeRMS, said: “Change within a busy claims group can be daunting…the default reaction to new technology solutions is, ‘don’t interrupt my flow.’ But at the same time, they are craving ‘how can I do this more efficiently?’"
Andrew Wibberley, co-chairperson of the Income Protection Task Force, said: "Claims professionals, struggling to manage increasing workloads while manually reviewing individual records, often face an overwhelming amount of data.
"This can be especially emotionally demanding for new adjusters who haven’t yet gained the insights of their more experienced counterparts."
Efficiency and personalisation
EvolutionIQ estimates it takes around 12.5 hours to read and fully comprehend a case file, with professionals often handling multiple cases at a time at a time when sales of IP are expected to rise, having already experienced a 50 per cent increase since 2021.
AI’s growing role in income protection is not just about efficiency, but also about its ability to provide a more personalised, hands-on approach. Insurers will need this if they want to:
- Keep up with demand
- Adhere to customer needs
- Retain their staff.
The societal value
The fact that AI solutions are raising the floor of standards for personalised customer journeys in income protection, and across financial services, reflects a societal value this industry can deliver at a point where it is crucial.
Individual income protection claims volumes have remained high since the pandemic, which indicates a broader challenge for policymakers of people out of work.
Using the UK as an example, there are 2.8mn people out of work due to ill health and disability, prompting the government’s Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall to declare that employment support needs fundamental reform.
In a directly linked issue, income protection providers are still seeing high claims volumes in the UK. The rising volume has made quick access to healthcare records critical to halt the build-up of backlogs.
AI solutions, rather than a scaling of headcount, are increasingly proving to be the most valuable tool to resolve this challenge.
It is a crucial partner for claims adjusters, alerting them about claims where people can return to work faster, which is much sooner in the review cycle when compared to legacy processes.
We see a snowball effect of positive outcomes: claimants in need get more adjuster attention, each adjuster can help a larger volume of sick or injured employees on their recovery journey, and complex claims can be addressed much earlier in the process.
In that process, IFAs also benefit in assisting their clients, insurers benefit with more focused and efficient claims processes and wider society is a benefactor.
