San Diego, California — COVID-19 has sent the automotive claims process digital, with the majority of insurance carriers adopting virtual claims processes in the last year, says Mitchell International’s latest industry trends report.
According to Mitchell’s report and data and analytics company LexisNexis Risk Solutions, 95 percent of auto insurance carriers are embracing virtual claims handling, with many now setting their sites on touchless estimates. By 2025, the company predicts that more than 80 percent of claims processed with the virtual, and up to half of non-injury claims fully automated.
For the North American auto insurance industry, automated or ‘touchless’ estimates remain the end goal—but technological evolution needs to take place to strive closer to such an objective.
“The idea that today, fully automated appraisals without human intervention can be accurately produced is fiction,” reads Mitchell’s report.
“While technology advancements have led to increased automation, the need for human oversight and intervention remains necessary. Furthermore, the infrastructure and regulation required to support a completely automated end-to-end system are still evolving.”
The transformation from field appraisals to the “Holy Grail” of touchless claims is not done overnight or entirely by machine, says Mitchell. Appraisers are a key to developing and improving processes through introducing automation gradually through implementing virtual estimating and human-machine collaboration in guided estimating.
The guided estimating process involves artificial intelligence (AI) that guides the appraiser through each decision point. The goal s to put more power in the appraiser’s hands while leveraging the AI for useful recommendations. Following this process comes the implementation of fully automated claims.
For more information on Mitchell’s Q1 Industry Trends Report, click here.
