This article is part of Carrier Management’s series on the Future of Insurance.
Rebecca Wheeling Purcell, CEO and Founder, Schedule It, reviews automation trends impacting the claims function of the insurance industry and the role of insurers generally, which she sees moving more toward loss prevention than claims payouts.

Q: What major changes do you see on the horizon for the property/casualty insurance industry in the next 10 years?
Purcell (Schedule It): In the near term, small and midsize insurance carriers will emphasize customer experience across all technology initiatives and product development efforts so as not to lose customers to larger carriers with more geographic reach and bigger marketing budgets. As part of the positive customer experience push, automated communications to policyholders will become standard for all insurance carriers instead of only the top-tier players. Additionally, policyholder and claimant participation in the claim process will continue to increase, with smart carriers offering premium discounts based on participation.
Technology will also play a significant role in the near term with advances such as IoT devices decreasing water damage claims, for example, and helping carriers move toward mitigation of more risk.
Going forward, automation will invade the insurance industry, with bots taking over many customer service functions, handling simple underwriting inspections and empowering more self-service claims.
Risks insured by insurance carriers will be drastically different in the next decade. Carriers are already beginning to ask what happens when driverless cars prevent accidents and smart homes notify policyholders or service providers about potential problems before they happen. It’s a move toward proactive prevention as a service instead of the traditional model in which carriers provide products that prescribe action after a loss.
In 20-25 years or more, this time in history will be looked upon as even more exciting and tumultuous than the first Industrial Revolution. Together, we are changing the world.
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