Page 207 - India Insurance Report 2023- BIMTECH

India Insurance Report - Series II 195

Much as we may prefer, the calls from the customer are not evenly spread during the day. They
usually tend to be lumpy, and there are peaks and troughs for the calls (Lunch Time or Holidays etc.)
All these pose various staffing challenges. During peak periods, the contact centre is going to be under
tremendous pressure to respond to the customers. This may result in missed calls or delayed pick up of
calls which do not create a good customer experience. Now imagine that we have a digital worker a.k.a.
Voice BOT which can take the calls. Voice BOTS are nothing but Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled
solutions that are adept at understanding the customer’s language, the intent, tone, purpose and can
complete the actions required to fulfil the customer’s needs. For example, If a customer wants to download
a policy, the BOT will engage with the customer just like a real human would do, and after the successful
verification, the BOT will seamlessly connect with the Document Management Systems and will download
WhatsApp or e-mail the document. Subject to the AI program being trained, it can handle customers
speaking in English or in Hindi or in Hinglish or in any other vernacular language. In case of complex
scenarios like claim intimation or registration, which are lengthy and require multiple details, the BOT
can step in and guide the customer on a step-by-step basis. These technologies come with an inbuilt
understanding to divert the calls to human agents in case the BOT is unable to assist the customer
comprehensively. The biggest benefit of the Voice BOT is the ability to scale to very large numbers. So,
even at peak loads, the customer will get the same consistent response.

Of course, it will also save costs – no real seats are required for the Voice BOTS. No attrition
challenges, no absenteeism, consistency in responses, etc. Insurers are already trying out Voice BOTS in
some areas of the contact centre, and mainstream adoption will happen in the next couple of years. The
benefits to customers include consistent quality, and to an insurance company, it brings higher
productivity and lower costs.

6. Regulatory Technology (RegTech)

Insurance is a regulated industry and, in some ways, is the custodian of money of its customers and,
therefore, it is subjected to multiple regulatory compliances. As technology evolves, naturally, the
technology around the compliance area is also evolving. In some years down the road, there will be
companies that focus exclusively on compliance software (RegTech) and solutions for the insurance
industry. The objective will be to:

A) Automate standard compliance jobs so as to achieve higher accuracy at lower costs;
B) Reduce operational risks.

From a regulatory perspective, one can expect

 Better standards and expectations for compliance;
 Increased regulatory oversight;

 Increased enforcement actions, fines, and penalties on violations;
 Faster regulatory compliance requirements than ever before.

Some examples/areas where compliance effort would be herculean/expensive without the use of RegTech: