Digital In Action - The Changing Landscape of Indian Insurance Sector

Over the years, insurance companies in India have been more focused on traditional ways of distribution and operations which are paper-based and require face-to-face contact with customers in order to conduct business. 

In 2020, when the world was hit by a pandemic and face-to-face interactions were not possible, digital transformations were put on the fast track. Both manufacturers & distributors have shifted their focus towards a more digital way of conducting business. In a bid to move towards the digitisation of insurance policies, the IRDA has brought in various measures to ensure Insurance Partners and policyholders are able to sell, purchase or claim insurance online.

The Moments of Truth for the Indian Insurance Sector in 2023

1. Digitisation and unification of all insurance needs onto one platform 

• Digitisation can cater to demand more precisely so that customers are no longer obliged to buy elements of a package they do not want. 

• Insurance partners have built hyper-scale platforms that enable them to blur traditional industry definitions by spanning product categories and customer segments.

• Customers now expect a unified app-based infrastructure or platform for all their insurance needs due to the increasing use of digital platforms.

1. Unique & Micro level products tailored for Distributor’s customer segment and offer exclusivity

• The insurance sector needs to shift from one-size-fits-all policies to personalised products that cater to the specific needs of each customer. 

• Demographics such as age, income, location, level of education and health conditions play a major role in creating personalised insurance offerings

• Hyper-personalisation, beyond demographics, can enhance customer satisfaction, increase retention rates and ultimately lead to higher profits.

• Financial Institutions (FIs) specialise in catering to the needs of specific customer segments in specific geographic regions. This knowledge can help understand what customers need.

• These customised Micro-level products can offer exclusivity to the FI as they will be co-created for the FI’s customer base. For example, customised insurance products for specific professions or industries can be designed to provide tailored coverage and benefits to customers in those fields. 

• Such products can create a sense of belonging, which can be leveraged by insurers to retain their customer base.

Key enablers needed across the insurance value chain with all the relevant capabilities to offer a seamless distribution and customer journey

Create ‌Product	Distribute the Product	Manage Policies & Claims	RUN the Partnership
Digital onboarding to ease tailor-made product creation in a short time to market with maximum agility	Pricing and policy real-time APIs are easily integrated within the distribution ecosystem	Policy management system to handle the portfolio lifecycle of simple products. Claims management Solution	Digital portal to monitor the products portfolio in full transparency Partner Management Data collection and quality management  Best Practises in Security