UK insurers have ‘stabilized’ their claims services in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, but service levels continue to struggle to meet rising customer expectations.

Independent insurance research consultancy Gracechurch has published the results of its ninth UK Claims Monitor report, awarding its Service Quality (SQM) mark to three UK insurers by 2023.

Allianz, Chubb and Ecclesiastical received the award, having been “highly praised by UK claims broker specialists for their effective communication, responsiveness and overall broker service and customer focus.”

All exceeded the threshold of 75% positive evaluations compared to the previous year.

However, the monitor also warned that there was still work to be done for the market.

Gracechurch explained: “The study, now in its ninth year and conducted among specialist claims brokers, shows that the UK claims service has stabilized post-pandemic, but that brokers still experience significant inconsistency in the claims service. claims.

“The prevailing view is that claims handling needs to be faster and more responsive to meet growing customer expectations.”

Broker Service Levels

Gracechurch is working with Biba on the association’s new study on insurer service levels, following calls from Biba members to investigate the low service levels many brokers said they had encountered during the pandemic and continued to receive after her.

Biba CEO Steve White said the monitor results were a good first step in the process and work on Biba’s project was continuing.

“Service improvement has become a key priority for Biba and our members and is included in our manifesto,” he explained.

“Our research partnership with Gracechurch is helping us measure service performance objectively and our goal is to create an industry leading survey of insurer service that is used to prioritize improvement.

“With that ongoing, it is really encouraging to see insurers achieving Gracechurch SQM for claims in 2023.

“Kudos to Chubb, Ecclesiastical and Allianz – claims service represents a significant part of an insurer recommendation so this is a useful benchmark and we hope to see many more insurers recognized in this way in the years to come.”

Ben Bolton, Managing Director of Gracechurch, added: “The UK insurance market is still disrupted, especially when it comes to talent and consistency in service delivery.

“Some of this reflects broader market issues, however our research shows that insurers can buck the trend through committed leadership, good management, investment in technology and strong service cultures, all of which our success achievers SQM have plenty.”

recommendations

The consultancy’s report saw Ecclesiastical topping the survey’s Net Promoter Score (NPS) table, which indicates which brokers are likely to recommend the insurer based on their claims service.

The report showed that Ecclesiastical had improved on last year’s performance, beating 20 other insurers to top the table by 2022.

Jeremy Trott, Ecclesiastical Claims Director, commented: “I am absolutely delighted that Ecclesiastical has once again ranked first in service and has been awarded the SQM by Gracechurch.

“We know from our own satisfaction surveys that we provide clients and brokers with excellent service, but getting independent reinforcement of that is always nice and I’m incredibly proud of the team.

“The report also shows us areas where we can improve, which we are always looking at.

“We have ambitious goals for the business and to be known throughout the industry as a leading provider of claims services. I am determined to continue to improve our performance levels to help grow our business while providing customers with the highest quality service they have come for. wait.”

Bolton added that insurers needed to invest in their claims operations if they were to keep up with the demands of their customers.

“It is now clearer than ever that with a talent shortage across the market, the insurance industry needs to invest in technology that enables claims teams to work more efficiently, do less heavy lifting and focus on collaboration and collaboration. problem solving to help customers have good service. experiences,” she explained.

“It’s also about enabling innovation, value-added products and services that meet changing market needs, without which the industry simply won’t grow.”