At DIA Amsterdam, Swiss Re’s Aline Avedikian, Swiss Re Head L&H Solutions EMEA and Arnold Löw, Swiss Re Head P&C Solutions EMEA, will speak about how their company’s tech and innovation strategy is driving the digital transformation of the insurance industry.

We already had the pleasure of talking to them and we asked their thoughts on the shifting risk landscape, changing consumer behaviour and the role that their company Swiss Re aims to play in all this.

As an intro, how do you look at the insurance industry anno 2022

“The world is changing faster than ever before. The pandemic has put jobs at risk, forced governments to inject money into economies and led to supply chain disruption, which in turn has fueled inflation. And there has been the unforeseen impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. All these factors have left societies fragile and vulnerable. And if this weren’t enough, climate change has been driving record-high natcat losses – the devastating floods in Europe last year are still fresh in minds. At the same time, clients’ behaviour and needs are shifting at lightning speed, developments which have been amplified by the pandemic. The direct-to-consumer sales channel is growing exponentially. And major players outside the insurance industry are setting customer experience standards. Think Apple, Amazon, Netflix and others”.

And how do you see SwissRe reacting with demanding environment?

“We’re the midst of a digital transformation. Our goal is to help the insurance industry create solutions geared to fresh needs so that individuals and society can bounce back more quickly when faced with crises. Innovation is the key to remaining a relevant partner both for our insurance clients and society. With its global risk expertise, comprehensive data insights, in-depth R&D, leading-edge technology platforms and a heritage of innovation, Swiss Re is placed to drive change and support the industry in this period of transformation. This opens new opportunities and sustains growth”.

Swiss Re Group traditionally provides clients and brokers with reinsurance products, insurance-based capital market instruments and risk management services. It also offers a set of technology solutions designed to support the growth, efficiency and performance of its clients.

Swiss Re is moving towards solutions. Can you explain how they add to resilience and growth?

‘We help our clients write the next chapter in their growth stories. We do this by harnessing Swiss Re’s entire capability spectrum. The latter embraces Disruptive Technology, Data & Analytics, Risk Insights and Global Strategic Partnerships. We partner with clients globally to develop innovative solutions that improve commercial excellence, accelerate digital transformation and focus on customer engagement.

With better digital risk knowledge, we’re also creating even more seamless customer journeys. Swiss Re’s satellite-based solution for natural catastrophes, operated in partnership with the satellite operator ICEYE, doesn’t require any damage photos from the insured. It records floods in high resolution even in complex terrain such as urban centres, where conventional flood modelling isn’t possible. Swiss Re gains access to data within 24 hours of an event and makes it available to partners on the CatNet® Premium platform. This enables them to record the damage more quickly and initiate payments.

As we seek to provide better services for our customers, technology helps us simplify processes and make the cooperation more productive. Data knowledge allows us to tailor products more individually to customers. For consumers, this means adapting premiums to their personal circumstances and needs. Telematics data, for instance, enables motor vehicle insurance to be priced according to driving behaviour. Apps automatically record journeys and recognise behaviour patterns such as abrupt braking, rapid crossing of junctions or mobile phone use while driving. The app receives data on customers’ driving behaviour and uses it to calculate discounts that are subsequently credited to customers for upcoming premiums.

We’ve also transformed automated underwriting. Ten years ago, risk questionnaires were still sent in and checked manually in nearly nine out of ten cases. Today, this is an online process for 45 percent of customers. Swiss Re’s Magnum, a 2021 Forrester Wave report leader, is constantly pushing the boundaries of what’s possible automated underwriting, from tech capabilities such as machine learning or artificial intelligence, to data safety with our Digital Trust Label. With Magnum, clients can access a full range of capabilities allowing point-of-sale underwriting fuel their growth”.

So where do you feel we are in this journey?

“We’re still only scratching the surface of use-and behaviour-dependent insurance innovations. The development of additional interactive services is also still new territory for the insurance industry. One such service is personalised coaching and tips for safe driving, offered by the smartphone app Blablacar Coach from Swiss Re, the community-based travel platform Blablacar, and the car insurer L’olivier Assurance. For our life & health customers, MyWellLife is a comprehensive, mobile-first health engagement platform to help take lifestyle factors into account to assess price risk beyond the traditional clinical risk factors.

The more interactions we have with customers, the more individualised customer journeys we can create. Swiss Re’s goal is to understand customers’ risks in ever greater detail as the volume of data increases. This will enable us to offer more effective prevention services and better prepare society for risks.

Ninety-two percent of insurers expect big data to generate significant improvements to their marketing, client experience, underwriting and claims management. Companies using data analytics have a distinct advantage thanks to using more accurate and earlier insights from data. With Swiss Re Impact+, we’re powering the decision-making to navigate today’s complex risk landscape and help clients grow their business profitably.​ Across P&C and L&H, we’re providing a plug-and-play platform that delivers comprehensible, intuitive and smooth user experience. Our clients can access one of the largest risk and insurance data pools worldwide tailored to local markets. They can also leverage not only our joint portfolio data, but also external data sources”.

About Swiss Re Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, where it was founded in 1863, the Swiss Re Group operates through a network of around 80 offices globally. Its approximately 14,000 employees provide a wide range of technical expertise, enabling the development of unique solutions and driving growth. Swiss Re is organised into three Business Units (Reinsurance, Corporate Solutions, iptiQ), each with a distinct strategy and set of objectives contributing to the Group’s overall mission.