Life insurers could win more business if they improve the quality of their support to bereaved families, according to research from a US tech company.
Empathy, which works to ease the pressure on families when making life insurance claims, believes that support at such a difficult time could create long-term trust and loyalty.
The company’s Cost of Loss: The UK’s Bereavement Burden report found that most people (57%) choose an insurer based on the specialised bereavement support they offer. This rises to 72% among Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) and 77% for Gen Z (born between 1997 and 2012).
This is a big part of the market with the report discovering that a third of beneficiaries felt under-supported when making a claim at such an emotional time. The figure jumps to 46% for Gen Z respondents.
Clare Dodd, Empathy’s UK general manager, said that the UK’s insurance market is evolving rapidly.
“Individuals and their families are facing significant complexity and emotional strain, and insurers have a real opportunity to step into that gap with meaningful, human-centred support.
“Insurance was created to provide peace of mind, and leading providers now recognise that payouts alone aren’t enough and are already looking for new ways to support policyholders,” she added.
The personal touch
For Empathy, the report shows a clear link between beneficiary experiences and consumer behaviour.
Those whose claims process exceeded expectations said they were almost two-and-a-half times more likely to buy their own life insurance policy from the same provider and twice as likely to buy additional products.
Of those who were not satisfied, 86% were unlikely to give that insurer any of their business.
Areas for improvement include better communication, with support needing to be personalised. A fifth of respondents said the contact they received from their life insurer during the claims process felt impersonal with messages appearing to be generic or were created using a template.
Additionally, 19% felt that post-claim follow-up or access to further information was limited.
