Drones Make Headway In Cutting Claims Costs; Challenges Remain

Drone technology can significantly reduce claims processing costs, but barriers remain to universal adoption by insurers and claims adjusters, a panel of experts said.

Safety and privacy concerns of regulators and the general public have blocked wider use of drones in the claims process, but regulators will likely ease restrictions in the future, and drone operators can take actions to ease other concerns, they said.

Drones began to take off in the insurance claims sector in 2012, said Michael Park, chief product and marketing officer of EagleView Technologies Inc., a Bellevue, Washington-based aerial imagery and data analytics firm.

He was speaking during a session Tuesday at the InsureTech Connect conference in Las Vegas. Drones can reduce claims processing costs by up to 75% and greatly reduce the time it takes to complete a damage assessment, he said.