OUR VISION
Car drivers worldwide will have their claim settled fairly the same day
25.02.2019
HUMAN VS./& MACHINE
Like every other forward-thinking company, we at ControlExpert ask ourselves what our future business model should look like. What strategy do we have in mind long-term; which direction should our development be moving? A vision gives the answers to these questions.
“A few years ago, our answer to the question of what drives us would probably have been: to save money for our customers“, according to Nicolas Witte, Managing Director at ControlExpert. “In the meantime we know: that is a goal and the desired result of our work. However, our vision goes a good bit further than that. We intend to change the whole process of claims settlements“. That is absolutely essential. Even today it still takes 28 days on average from the time of the accident until the claim has been settled, which means it takes a good month before the claimant receives payment or has his vehicle repaired. That is far too long – especially from the driver’s point of view. Therefore, the vision represented in the company today focuses on that space of time. Nicolas Witte puts it in a nutshell using one sentence: ”We want to compensate car drivers fairly for their claims on the same day the accident happens – worldwide“. To make this vision more tangible, we have examined the individual aspects more closely down below.
Naturally, this vision means a lot for the strategic development of the company. It influences perception, approach and decisions. “If you compare our vision with reality you will see that today’s claims process is quickly reaching its limits.“ A significant factor for this has turned out to be the inspection of damage by an appraiser. Today, this process step is still carried out like it was several decades ago: an accident happens, it is reported to the insurer, who in turn informs an appraiser, he then makes an appointment, inspects the vehicle, writes a report, passes it on to the insurer, there are queries and amendments – the procedure goes on for days and is the main reason for claims adjustment taking so long. True to our motto of “Redefining Rules“, we at Control€xpert are involved in finding ways to optimize the process. We do not question the appraiser’s role – however we do question a personal inspection of the damage. After all, it is a fact that an inspection on site is far from necessary in all cases.
It started with a picture
Contrary to other insurance sectors, in the field of motor insurance the assessment of damage based on photos was frowned upon for a long time, and actually considered impossible. Those days are gone. At ControlExpert many processes start with a picture, as does claims adjustment with a digital and automatic assessment of pictures. Using automatic image recognition a certain percentage of the cases of damage can be examined, without an appraiser even having to look at the picture. Apart from saving time, this procedure has another important effect: because minor claims can be handled automatically, the appraiser has more time for more complex cases of damage. He can take care of the claims that demand more attention and sensitivity. This means that artificial intelligence puts him in the position of being able to improve his profile, strengthen customer satisfaction and carry out his work better. That does not just apply to him.
More time to talk to each other
Digitization of the process and the use of AI means that the insurers and repair shops can also work more efficiently. The technology not only takes over whole steps autonomously, but also points out the crucial points. It will take the load off people, making it possible for them to react to claims with much more empathy and giving them more time to talk to each other. For Nicolas Witte it goes without saying that the combination of humans and machines, and the targeted use of their technology’s special abilities, brings our company vision a little bit closer all the time.
Car drivers
Everything we do at ControlExpert centers on the car driver. The aim of every development and product, of all research and services, must be that the car driver can settle his claim quickly and easily. We always focus on his needs.
The same day
This is all about speed of course – but not only that. It does not suffice for us to be “simply faster”. You need to save more than just a few minutes here and there in order to drastically reduce a process that usually takes 28 days on average down to 1 day. This is why we question the whole process and concentrate on cutting out anything that is not beneficial. Our goal is to dispense with process elements that are old-fashioned and unnecessary, to help us save valuable time.
Worldwide
In the past, claims settlement processes were handled very differently all over the world, yet in the last few years they have continually become more aligned. Of course this is down to digitization. People have always wanted, and attempted, to simplify processes. However, it was only through digitization that we were able to optimize processes on a grand scale and standardize them internationally. Our offers with that in mind just hit the nerve in every country.
Fair
In our vision, “fairly“ is two-dimensional: on the one hand it’s about finding a fair solution for the car driver. In addition, fair means that after settlement of the claims process, everything should look as if the accident had never occurred. The insurer should restore the claimant’s vehicle to its condition before the accident. Not more and not less. On the other hand, the solution has to be fair for the insurer too. Nobody should be able to profit from an accident and wrongfully claim benefits.