AI and empathy - claims processing at the Ecclesia Group
The numbers speak for themselves: around 147,000 claims totalling 1.2 billion euros were reported to the Ecclesia Group in 2023. This makes the work of the “claims managers” at Germany's largest insurance broker for companies and institutions all the more impressive. They are the ones who ensure on behalf of customers that claims are settled quickly, in accordance with the contract and with the customer in mind.
“Our aim is clear: we put our customers on an equal footing with insurers,” says Thomas Primnitz, Head of Claims at the Ecclesia Group. ”They don't have to worry about complex settlement issues and legal interpretations of clauses. We are the specialists with the necessary insurance know-how.”
The range of claims processing is wide: for all insurance solutions brokered by the Ecclesia Group, the Group generally also handles claims processing on behalf of its customers. This includes the major areas of property insurance, general liability and medical malpractice insurance, as well as the Ecclesia Cyber, Ecclesia Mobility and Ecclesia Construction competence centers.
Claims reporting made easy – with ecconnect
If a customer wants to report a claim, there are various ways open to them. If the responsible claims handler is known, customers often inform him directly by e-mail. The disadvantage of this approach is that the information about the claim is received as continuous text – and thus in a different structure than is necessary for processing. With the digital claims form on the website and the “ecconnect” digital platform, the Ecclesia Group offers its customers alternatives that provide the necessary structure and thus enable more efficient and faster claims processing right from the start. For example, the ecconnect platform can be used to quickly and conveniently transmit all relevant information about a claim, including photos and additional documents, to the Ecclesia Group. And the tool can do even more: it enables customers to manage their insurance contracts and claims in one place. Not only claims notifications, but also questions about contracts and claims processing can be forwarded there quickly and easily to the responsible customer service representative. The major advantages of the platform are that it is up-to-date and transparent. Both the customer and the claims handler can use ecconnect to view the status of the claims process at any time and, for example, check which sums have already been paid out.
How AI can help in the future
“In times of advancing digitalization, we will rely even more on innovative technologies in claims processing in the future,” explains Thomas Primnitz. ”On the one hand, we are developing ecconnect into a tool that guides customers even smarter and more intuitively through the claims reporting process. In addition, artificial intelligence will play an increasingly important role.” As part of a project, the Ecclesia Group is currently planning technologies that can understand and interpret documents, such as claims notifications by email. In the future, incoming notifications could be processed even faster – and customers would receive a response more quickly. ‘And that's just the beginning,’ says Thomas Primnitz. ”As the Ecclesia Group, we have one of the largest claims databases in Europe. Now imagine an AI that can analyze and interpret all this data: that would have enormous added value for claims management.” For example, recurring patterns in the claims data could be used to identify risks at an early stage. In addition, more precise benchmark comparisons could be created for hospitals, social economy companies and other customers of the Ecclesia Group, on the basis of which necessary strategies and measures could then be developed.
On the ground for customers: the claims field service
Whether via the ecconnect platform, the website or by email: once the customer has reported their claim to the Ecclesia Group, the claims handler responsible assesses which steps are to be taken next. They remain involved as the process continues, to ensure that the claim is always settled in a contract-compliant, customer-oriented and timely manner. If differences arise in the assessment and evaluation of the insurance, the consultant represents the interests of the customer and works towards a settlement that is in line with the contract. Often, claims settlement involves the consultation of appraisers or experts. If the claim is complex, the claims consultant also involves the Ecclesia Group's claims field staff. The claims field representative then visits the customer and inspects the damage on the spot, coordinating and orchestrating the interaction with both appraisers and experts and the insurer's claims handlers, who also send their field representatives in such cases. The Ecclesia Group does everything in its power to represent the interests of its customers as well as possible throughout the claims process in order to achieve an optimal outcome in the settlement.
“It is precisely this work close to the customer that I appreciate about my job,” says Florian Gerloff, claims specialist in the Ecclesia Mobility Competence Center of the Ecclesia Group. Gerloff does not travel to customers, since motor claims can be processed without a claims field service. Nevertheless, he has a lot of special customer contact because he is responsible for business travel collision insurance. This means that he is not contacted by fleet managers, but by employees of customer companies who have used their private vehicles for business purposes and have now suffered damage. It is rarely the big, bad accidents, more often the small parking lot bumps or rear-end collisions. And yet: “A sure instinct is required here. It's not uncommon for people to be distraught or agitated,” says Florian Gerloff. “For me, such claims are routine, but for the people involved, it's not an everyday occurrence, it's a real shock.” In such cases, the first thing to do is to calm the people involved and get them back down to earth. Gerloff likes this challenge and he wants to repay the trust that customers have placed in him. ”By offering them the best possible service and doing everything I can to process the claim as quickly and effectively as possible for them.”
From automotive supplier to insurance broker
In the two years that the 36-year-old claims handler has been working for the Ecclesia Group, he has handled many a case that has stuck in his mind. Especially those cases in which the customer took the matter with humor and submitted the claim report in an entertaining way. “For example, I remember a message in which someone described how a deer suddenly jumped onto his bonnet at night after the two had looked into each other's eyes long and intensely through the windshield,” says Florian Gerloff. Of course, claims are no laughing matter. But when the other side can look at the incident with humor, it helps to lighten the situation.
Florian Gerloff originally comes from the logistics industry, not the insurance industry. As a trained specialist in warehouse logistics and a graduate transport and logistics manager, he was most recently responsible for the distribution of original spare parts at the Volkswagen Group. There he dealt a lot with accident damage and the calculation of the corresponding individual components. “From there, the leap into the motor claims processing of an insurance broker was not that far away. At the time, I wanted to change, to try something new – and that's exactly what Ecclesia offered me,” says Florian Gerloff. The Ecclesia Group deliberately relies on employees with different backgrounds and experiences in order to further expand its expertise. Career changers like Florian Gerloff bring new perspectives and a more holistic approach, which ultimately help to provide customers with even better and more comprehensive advice and support.
It is precisely this holistic, comprehensive view that characterizes the Ecclesia Group. Also unique in the industry are the numerous additional services that go far beyond the norm: from on-site prevention campaigns at the customer's premises to raise risk awareness, to a wide range of services in the event of a claim.
Editorial team