Enhancing The Claims Process By Partnering With Tow Operators

Insurance carriers have put a lot of resources into optimizing the auto claims process, and they’ve made significant progress.

The industry cut the average amount of time it takes to return a repairable vehicle to the customer after the first notice of loss from 13.5 days in 2018 to 12.9 days in 2019, according to J.D. Power, and then to 10.3 days in 2020, though the 2020 gains were at least partially due to fewer cars on the road during the pandemic.

Many insurers now provide AI-powered claims technology that enables the consumer to report an accident and supply the information needed to settle the claim without ever leaving home.

Unfortunately, even with these tools, consumers still take an average of four days to report the accident and another three days to deliver the required images that allow their carrier to use these new AI tools for their claim.

That’s seven days of costs — car rental fees, storage charges, etc. — and a significant delay in settling the customer’s claim. Obviously, the vast majority of consumers want to get their cars back in working condition as soon as possible. So what explains these delays?