DECEMBER 20198IN MY OPINIONHow InsurTech is Reshaping the Insurance Industry By Abel Travis, Vice President, Underwriting and Product Innovation, AF Group Until a few years ago, the insurance industry has been an industry unspoiled by Innovation. Within the last few years, we've seen startups emerge that are challenging all parts of the Insurance value chain. To the Industry's delight, not all startups are hoping to disrupt, but instead enable the Insurance value chain. General words of wisdom are, instead of resisting these newcomers, embrace them. You may just be surprised at how they can help transform parts of your business. The changing customer expectation is a core focus of InsurTech companies, which are startups merging business model and technology enablement to drive insurance innovation. While many carriers aspire to drive in-house innovation, partnering with startups that enable insurance allows those carriers to leverage talent and capabilities outside of their core discipline. While just a few years ago, there were many InsurTech's that had technologies looking for a business model, that notion has changed, birthing an InsurTech discipline which has matured. InsurTechs are ready to enable Carriers, Agents and vendors alike to reshape the insurance industry. There are several key areas in which InsurTech is helping to transform the insurance industry that will have positive impacts for years to come. Improve UnderwritingNot too far in the distant past, underwriting maintained a very traditional feel, with desk underwriters relying on data collected from the Web, through manual processes or agents, to begin the renewal process. What would happen if policyholder operations changed during the policy period? Typically, an underwriter would wait for endorsements or the renewal period before reflecting that change on the policy. InsurTech's are changing that landscape. Risks are not static and can change during the policy term. Companies like RISK possible have developed continuous underwriting platforms designed to monitor risks with up to the minute data and analytics, thereby identifying operational changes during the policy term. For underwriters, this information can help inform customers of the hazards associated with the enhanced operations, and potentially ensure better safety of policyholder employees.
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