Storms and natural disasters visit often throughout the year yet significant portion of the population does not have any insurance and an insurance firm is taking the opportunity to invest in new technologies to tap the market.
According to the Insurance Commission, insurance penetration in the Philippines is very low at only 1.64 percent.
MAPFRE Insular says that with a major number of properties either uninsured or underinsured, there is a significant threat of financial loss if, and when, disaster strikes.
“We believe that the Filipino market still has aversions to insurance because there is an impression that it’s difficult to acquire,” said Tirso Abad, president and CEO of MAPFRE Insular.
“To address this problem, MAPFRE Insular has invested in new technologies to make insurance easier to acquire and to simplify its concepts for the customer,” he continued.
One of MAPFRE Insular’s latest innovations is the use of the QR code for all their clients.
“The QR Codes make it faster to verify and process claims. Each unique QR code is also secure, so the customers are protected from counterfeit claims on their policies,” Abad said.
“The digital images QR codes can be kept safe in your phone or in any cloud service, making it easier to retrieve when you need it,” he said.
MAPFRE also made some advances with their insurance application process. They recently established the MAPFRE Insular Virtual Office (MIVO), which allows clients and partners to do their business completely online.
“MIVO is the first digital office for non-life insurance providers. It makes everything accessible and convenient, both for our business partners and our clients,” said Ms. Elke Santos, MAPFRE Insular’s First Vice President of Sales.
“Instead of having physical meet ups between agents and clients, MIVO allows us to instantaneously quote, issue, and collect payments online,” she said.
Other service-oriented innovations MAPFRE has introduced include UpDocs, a convenient way to submit requirements online, and to start processing of the First Notification of Loss (FNOL).
Speaking of FNOL, MAPFRE Insular also has a 24/7 hotline that policy holders can call.
“No need to wait for office hours to be able to report a claim. If you get into an accident, just pick-up your phone and we’ll process the FNOL as soon as we get it,” Abad said.
MAPFRE also has the MAiassist road assistance app, which provides policy holders with a convenient way to access roadside assistance.
MAPFRE Insular highlighted that all these technologies are there to make insurance applications and claims more convenient, secure, and, most important of all, trustworthy.
“All the promises in the world would not matter if there is no trust and confidence in you,” Abad said.
“Though these technologies and the enhanced service experience it provides, we’re confident that we will live up to our reputation of being the most trusted insurance brand,” he said.