Digital is critical for auto insurance shopping: JD Power

Digital channels are critical for auto insurance shopping and services, according to the J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Insurance Digital Experience Study. 

While a majority of auto insurance apps and websites offer foundational capabilities, some aren't delivering value-added services. The study evaluates digital consumer experiences of property and casualty insurance shoppers. It was conducted in January through March of this year, in collaboration with Corporate Insight, and is based on 11,086 evaluations.

Stephen Crewdson, senior director, insurance business intelligence at J.D. Power, told Digital Insurance via email, that from a policy servicing perspective and a shopping perspective there are a few things that set the experience apart for consumers. 

"Make it easy to understand policy info, link for paperless billing, add driver/vehicle to policy, pre-fill info in request for quote/quote application, access info/definitions for terms used in request for quote/quote application, and make it clear which discounts apply," Crewdson shared. 

Overall customer satisfaction with digital shopping was 516, on a 1,000-point scale, which is down 5 points from a year ago, according to the study. Digital channels also bring in more customers with more than half, 53%, of first-time buyers connecting with auto insurers through digital. Also, satisfaction is ultimately the highest when customers have digital-only interactions.

Crewdson said: "There are a few things going on here. One is that people who choose to interact with their insurer digitally have not only a preference for digital interactions, but an expectation that the digital channel will 'deliver the goods' and handle the transaction. Also, consumers are getting better at 'triaging' which interactions to take to digital channels vs. which require a conversation with a human. Therefore, some of the more simple-to-handle transactions are being served digitally, whereas more difficult transactions are usually handled through other channels. Insurers are going to need to continue evolving the digital channels to handle more and more complex transactions while continuing to offer human-to-human interactions when the human is needed."

Progressive ranked highest in service with a score of 737. American Family was second with 717 and Nationwide was third with 716.

Crewdson pointed to study results that showed 17% of service experiences and 28% of shopping experiences fail to meet foundational expectations. 

"Considering where digital channels across industries are in 2024, it is surprising that many experiences are failing to meet the minimum expectations. Customer satisfaction is markedly lower when digital channels fail to meet foundational expectations," Crewdson said.

Stephen Crewdson will deliver a keynote address discussing the data from their latest research and what it reveals about how technology is influencing the customer relationship at DIGIN this year.