Van Ameyde accelerates the use of Robotics – or RPA (Robotic Process Automation) – to improve the quality and efficiency of claims handling. By having robot software take over repetitive tasks, the claims managers can focus on customer contacts and the legal and technical aspects of the claims. What exactly does this mean in practice?
Figures published by Gartner show that the global adoption of robotic process automation (RPA) expands exponentially. Gartner estimated global spending on RPA software in 2018 at $680m, up 57% on 2017. In 2022 this amount is expected to rise to $2.4bn.
In claims management, too, the use of Robotics is on the rise. In 2019 Van Ameyde, for instance, expects robots to handle 10,000 claim intakes for just one customer. According to Bart van Wezel, who heads up Van Ameyde’s Centre of Excellence, this will increase exponentially in the coming years. The animated video shows how Robotics is used in the claims intake phase.
Low cost of entry
“RPA is particularly suited for bridging the gap between unconnected systems. The benefit is that RPA can act as an API alternative, and does not involve expensive and time-consuming changes in IT systems,” says Bart van Wezel. “It doesn’t matter whether the robot needs to ‘read’ , check and copy data from documents received by email , or whether the robot retrieves documents using an SFTP
*) server: customers decide what approach matches their processes best.”
*) SFTP = secure file transfer protocol
Scalability of capacity during spikes
According to Jan-Michiel Cillessen, as Van Ameyde’s COO responsible for the adoption of Robotics, scalability of the virtual workforce is a main benefit. “Particularly during peak periods, for instance after a storm, it’s imperative that the contacts with policyholders do not suffer due to increased work pressure. Thanks to Robotics, our claims handlers do not fall behind and we don’t have to temporarily relax the claims handling rules either,” says Jan-Michiel.
Intelligent automation: adding ‘intelligence’ to RPA
RPA is used in various phases of the claims management process. Bart says, “Now that we have identified the phases in which we can use RPA, we are assessing where more ‘intelligence’ is needed. At present, the RPA bot retrieves structured data. In other words: the bot retrieves data from forms with pre-arranged fixed fields. We are expanding RPA with Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and AI. As a result, the bot can also ‘understand’ and process semi-structured data. This is necessary when automating incoming mail or payment processes, for instance for settlement of third-party repair invoices.
Improving data quality
Another massive advantage of Robotics is increased accuracy as robots make no mistakes when entering or checking data. This means greater efficiency, increased customer satisfaction and just as importantly: better data quality. Bart observes, “Data quality will make or break data analytics and checks for risk management purposes. Working errorless is a precondition.” Suffice to say that Robotics improves productivity, which will ultimately result in reduced claims handling costs.
Accessible process automation: for you too?
Would you like to know how Van Ameyde can assist you with improving your claims processes? Please contact Business Development Manager Michael Akerboom.
When integrated with other technologies, such as machine learning and OCR, RPA can serve as the enabler of straight-through-processing.
Gwenny Nales
Corporate Communications Manager @Van Ameyde
