Quick claims insights from Allianz

The customer found the experience extremely difficult and it had an effect on both their mental health and financial position. Despite the setbacks, the customer had only praise for the service provided by the assessing team manager who handled their claim.

Up to this point the customer, whose business included a number of vehicles and premises, was insured with various insurers. As a result of their vehicle claim experience and the customer service in particular, they decided to consolidate the business’s policies with Allianz.

We strive to hear this kind of feedback every day – and we’re glad it’s not uncommon for our customers to feel this way. In the last 12 months, our customers have rated their Comprehensive Car Insurance claim experience as 4.3 out of 5 based on over 7,000 reviews¹, with terms such as ‘easy’, ‘excellent’ and ‘prompt response’ commonly used. Read some of the responses given by our customers.

Our 2021 data reveals how much we have assisted with customer claims. In the last quarter of 2021 and across all dealerships, Allianz Automotive managed almost 70,000 claims and replaced nearly 500 vehicles.

These are substantial numbers, but many customers don’t fully understand the level of their cover or how complex the experience can be, until they find themselves having to make a claim.

Catherine Troyahn, Allianz National Manager, Claims Customer Relationship Management, says the claims experience of a customer is highly dependent on which insurance provider and product they select, adding that “a customer doesn’t really appreciate what they’re going to get from their insurance product until they need to use it.”

As an example of what’s available, our comprehensive car insurance includes three-year new for old cover after total loss (for Premier Motor Insurance policies) and a genuine replacement part guarantee – refer to the relevant PDSs for terms and conditions. We also offer an optional benefit that can remove the excess on windscreen damage, in the form of one claim for full replacement and two claims for repairs during any period of insurance.

The windscreen component is significant considering windscreen damage constituted the most common claim type for motor vehicles in 2021. The five most common claims types last year were:

• windscreen
• damage as a result of being hit in the rear
• hitting an object (e.g. wall, fence or post)
• damage sustained while reversing
• damage while parked

In a sign that we have addressed the claims needs of our customers and continued to drive improvement, we finished 2021 by increasing our customer top down Net Promoter Score (NPS, which measures customer loyalty) by 28 per cent, an increase that takes us close to market leadership.

The benefits offered by certain insurance policies can be outlined to dealer customers at the point of discussing insurance cover. Additionally, business managers may share with their customers the positive feedback we have collated in the past year, as well as have a discussion with them about our excellent claims star rating. Both can be effective tools to help customers choose which insurance provider – and which insurance policy – is best suited to them.

Explaining our point of difference to dealer customers – and backing it up with real-world examples of customer claims experiences – can help make the insurance conversation more meaningful at the time of vehicle purchase.