The future of home and motor insurance

Introduction

Which features and characteristics of home and motor insurance are most attractive to customers? This question has been foremost in the minds of insurance executives in recent years. The answers are gaining in urgency as the ongoing social and economic consequences of COVID-19 are leading many customers to consider the value and flexibility of insurance products in terms of changing circumstances and needs.

To explore the demand for different types of product and service, Deloitte surveyed over 8,000 customers from Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and United States. The results give a clear indication of what customers want. Insurers can use this feedback to help guide the launch of new products, services and partnerships with InsurTechs.

Five main findings emerge from the survey:

• customers favour simplicity; they want products that are easy to understand, purchase and use, they also want to be confident that they are paying a fair price, and to trust that claims will be paid fairly; with this insight, insurers can use a human-centred approach to redesign products and exceed customers’ expectations
• interest in insurance embedded into other services and in new product designs is strong in some customer segments, but varies considerably by country
• Internet-connected offerings, such as motor telematics and home insurance linked to home sensors, cause apprehension among many customers; they do not feel comfortable sharing data from car and home sensors with insurers
• the COVID-19 pandemic is increasing demand for adjustable cover and pushing people towards transacting via online channels; this behaviour is unlikely to revert to pre-crisis norms for many people
• the survey suggests three opportunities to fuel growth: simplify how customers perceive and interact with products; tap into strong demand for parametric home insurance; and target carefully delineated segments with new services.