Technology top priority for Canadian insurers
Technology, particularly the enhancement of underwriting portals, has been ranked as the number one priority for Canadian insurers in 2015.
This is according to a survey by Xchanging, the business process, procurement and technology services provider, in partnership with Insurance-Canada.ca.
Nearly half of the respondents (49 percent) chose technology as the biggest priority from a resource point, which was more than double the next highest category (underwriting, cited by 23 percent).
When asked about specific technology categories that would receive more investment in 2015, respondents further underscored the importance of underwriting, with 31 percent quoting underwriting portals as the top priority, followed by big data/analytics (28 percent) and mobile applications (20 percent).
Xchanging said that when respondents were asked about their companies’ most value claims-related technologies, 54 percent cited predictive modelling/analytics but only 14 percent cited cyber security solutions.
On competition, it seems that Canadian insurance market participants are most worried about home-grown competition and non-traditional sources of competition.
“When asked who would be their biggest competitors in 2015, respondents indicated by a wide margin (42 percent) that local insurance companies and non-conventional insurance sources (i.e. banks and Google) pose the biggest threat to their businesses,” said Xchanging. “Only 11 percent cited foreign-backed insurance companies as the biggest threat.”
Sean Allen, vice president of sales, Xchanging Insurance Services, North America, said:“With approximately $46 billion in direct premiums written, it’s clear that the Canadian market is growing exponentially. It’s encouraging to see the market making a concerted and dedicated effort toward investing in modernising its technological infrastructure to better serve its growing customer base, capitalise on growth opportunities and ward off rising competition.”
Responses were sourced in October and November 2014 via Insurance-Canada.ca’s newsletter subscriber base and relevant Canadian insurance LinkedIn communities, with 83 percent of respondents from the property & casualty industry, and the remainder working in life and annuity, reinsurance and multi-line.
