Brokers are ‘more relevant than ever’ post-pandemic

Brokers are “more relevant than ever” post-pandemic, according to Helen Bryant, director of digital trading at insurer Allianz.

Speaking during an Insurance Times webinar in association with Applied Systems Europe last week (February 2022), Bryant emphasised the value of broker-led advice considering how complicated insurance products can be. ”For me, it’s about how brokers bring that to life for customers going forward,” she said.

Brokers can achieve this by “using data to pinpoint interactions with customers [and] using it to bring to life some of some of the risks and issues that we know are really critical [for their business or industry]”, she explained.

”I think we will continue to support and show the value of broking when buying insurance going forward.”

Self-service

Dave Chapman, Applied Systems Europe’s chief revenue officer, agreed with Bryant.

He said: “It’s about advice and the level of service [brokers] give to their clients. It’s also about the type of advice they give and the most appropriate insight.”

Speaking on self-service platforms, Chapman added that these will be relevant “at different points of the buying cycle for different types of brokers”.

For Chapman, the key for brokers is to understand their customers and choose the best method of communication, as well as certain services, to meet their needs.

“Brokers will get questions on a daily basis, some of which are complicated and do warrant a phone call, but some of which are also throwaway questions, so they might be best dealt with via self-service.”

Meanwhile, Wayne Jefferson head of etrading at Applied Systems Europe, noted that brokers have to select the right technology to suit their service needs from the myriad that is currently available.

He said: “The thing that has come out of this conversation for me is that all the tools are in the bag, we have just got to use them properly and together.”

The webinar also included panellist Ashwin Mistry, The Clear Group’s newly announced non-executive director, and chair Savan Shah, head of research at Insurance Times.