By Alan Berry
Chief Underwriting Officer, Cover-More Europe

When it comes to retail travel insurance, underwriting is the closest thing we get to gazing into a crystal ball. Tasked with creating insurance products and solutions for current and future customers, it’s a role that marries the known with the unpredictable – asking you to make an educated guess on the outcome. It’s a fine line that stretches between data-driven information such as previous customer purchase and claims behaviour and could-never-see-it-coming circumstances, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. It is, put simply, about working out the best way to accommodate current and future insurance needs and opportunities. Which means there’s an absolute barrage of information to consider. But by factoring in every element that plays a role – from potential partnerships and sustainability options to pricing and governance – you can coalesce information into patterns, and then patterns into trends. That’s where the sweet spot lies in terms of making sure we keep pace with ever-evolving customer demands and interests. So what lies in wait for the business of travel insurance more broadly, and Cover-More Europe specifically? Here are four trends and innovations in play and on the horizon.

Growing sophistication among travellers

One of the most significant contemporary impacts on traveller behaviour has been the growth and development of the aggregator space. This has opened up avenues for instant comparisons between products and pricing, creating more savvy and aware travellers who have shaped their purchasing and travel behaviours in response. It’s an area set to keep evolving, especially in times of economic uncertainty, but on the flip side, there remains a strong and growing cohort who look for assurance and a trusted brand over price. Cost aside, we also foreshadow a stronger focus on more respectful and thoughtful travel as tourists consider the sustainability and true ‘footprint’ of their plans.

Automation in focus

Artificial Intelligence (AI) will continue to play a major and ever-expanding role in our industry. This could potentially play out through the design and pricing of super-personalised travel insurance products, based on an individual traveller’s unique characteristics and profile. In terms of parametric solutions and real-time reimbursements, they will also become more ubiquitous.

Motion-detecting sensors to bring the right cover to your phone

It sounds like something out of a James Bond movie, but motion-detection and real-time sensing via mobile apps will continue to work their way into mainstream norms. These capabilities will allow us to enhance our support of travellers in having the right sort of protection by, for example, sensing if they are skiing or riding a motorbike, identifying whether they’re protected/covered for this activity and then allowing them to remedy the situation through their phone if they’re not. It’s the very definition of personalised, real-time care.

Continued innovation in technology

Internally, we have long focused on driving innovation, as showcased in our purpose-built global distribution and sales optimisation platform, Impulse®. This lets us personalise offers made to customers in real time, using a flexible API technology that can integrate into any web portal or sales tool. Looking ahead, we’ll continue to invest in technology at every step, from integrated purchase pathways to global tracking, intelligence and care platforms. Another key focus is our leisure traveller companion and assistance app, currently available to our Australian, New Zealand and US customers. It supports travellers with real-time, proactive information, protection and care across the globe, supported by command centres in the UK, Australia and Canada. Moving ahead, we will continue to innovate with the app and look to roll it out to more of our global markets. As we look to the future, it’s fair to say that digitisation and digital transformation are – and must be – at the forefront of the changes impacting travel insurance. Creating a limitless ability to evolve, they open up an exciting world of opportunity and benefits that allow travel insurers to be more nimble in attracting customers and delivering responsive, individualised care.