EP 14 - Insurance as an Enabler: Why Services Matter as Much as Coverage
Insurance is not just another industry. It is the foundation that enables others to exist.
In this Episode:
Francois Jacquemin explores why insurance must evolve from pure coverage to services that enable trust and value. This episode shows how prevention, integration, and client support define the future.
Without insurance, cars would not drive, homes would not be built, businesses would not expand, and societies would carry risk too great to bear. Insurance creates the security that allows growth.
Coverage is not enough.
For too long, insurance has been reduced to coverage. A policy, a claim, a payout. This narrow definition risks commoditisation, where price becomes the only differentiator. But the real strength of insurance lies in its ability to be more than a back-office risk carrier. It becomes meaningful when it also provides services that clients feel they can trust and rely on.
Services as trust in action.
Consider roadside assistance. For one insurer, the promise was simple: wherever you are, help will arrive within 20 minutes. That service did more than sell policies. It created confidence at the moment of crisis, not only for clients but for everyone who witnessed it. Trust was built in action, not abstraction.
In health, services can mean prevention, education, and integrated data. One insurer developed an open app that allows clients to gather health information from multiple providers in one secure space. It was not only about claims. It was about enabling healthier lives and more informed choices.
Integration with corporate priorities.
For employers, services are just as critical. Prevention programmes, wellness initiatives, and integrated HR tools are not only beneficial for employees. They are strategic investments. They reduce long-term costs, improve engagement, and create recognition that companies are investing in their people. Services strengthen the bond between insurer, employer, and employee.
The ecosystem of innovation.
No insurer can build every service on its own. That is where InsurTech plays a vital role. Startups focused on prevention, digital platforms, and client engagement can expand the ecosystem faster than traditional carriers. The most forward-looking insurers will not only adopt these innovations but also integrate them into their value chain, creating networks that go beyond risk transfer.
From carrier to enabler.
Insurance companies face a choice. Remain as commoditised risk carriers in the background, or become enablers that actively shape society. Coverage is the foundation, but services are what make it human. They transform insurance from a distant promise into a daily presence.
The future of insurance is not only about protection when things go wrong. It is about enabling life to move forward with confidence.
Timecode:
00:41 Value-Added Services in Insurance
00:53 Case Study: Car Insurance in the US
02:16 The Importance of Service in Insurance
03:42 Health Insurance and Prevention
05:26 Corporate Involvement in Employee Health
06:42 The Future of InsureTech
07:39 Conclusion: The Evolving Insurance Landscape
Francois Links:
Apple Podcast
Transcript:
One key element that I always found extremely powerful, but also works very well with the clients and, uh, also is something which is close to my philosophy, that the insurance industry is an enabler in society, is not one industry, uh, of a, of a, of an economical environment. It's basically a basis where all the other industries and segments are growing and building upon it creates security for client, individual client.
It creates security for, uh, corporation and finances. Insurers are, should not be restricted to only ensuring, and they're not. The more successful insurance companies provide also additional services to their clients. And this is how they can become meaningful. So those services can be, uh, for instance, I remember car insurance in the us they had, uh, contracted, uh, all those, um, garages and, and, and, and support providers who were repairing, uh, cars when there was a breakdown in accident.
And, uh, one of their campaign was like, don't worry. Wherever you are, whichever issue you have on the road, whether it is an accident or a breakdown, we'll be there in 20 minutes if you are insured with, uh, with us. And it's something that was extremely powerful. And it was powerful on two levels. The first one was for the recruitment of new clients, and, uh, when they were like, okay, that's a safety net, don't worry.
Um, when the agent was selling the contract, it was like, we'll be there in, in 20 minutes. So it's a strong argument, but it's not the strongest. The strongest was when there was an accident. There were two cars, one car from this insurance company and a car from another insurance company. And guess who was there first?
This insurance company, the Drew Promise to be there 20 minutes latest after the accident happened and the image and the impact it gave to the other non-insured with that company client was extreme powerful. So they saw an inflow of client. Of course competition caught up and it was something that was different.
But the message here is that it's so important to have a service next to the insurance contract. We've seen a lot in health insurance about prevention or information about sickness. There is some initiatives that are actually quite, quite difficult to execute and need a long, long time. But, um. Client need to have or like to have all their information onto one single location.
So an insurance trooper was working for was developing an app that was open for other companies as well. So a client could have is information, health information within that environment, but not only the one from the insurance company, but also whatever information was coming from outside, external provider.
Providing therefore a, an environment, safe environment for the client. So there, it's not only about making sure that the client has something within the scope of one coverage, but has a vision for society and how society should evolve. And that was very, very appealing, uh, to, to clients. So it, these are elements of service that are extremely powerful.
And if an insurance companies builds it, value chain, foresee those elements. It is very powerful. It adds element of success to the insurance company. What I'm saying is that if you build service as part of your long-term plan, let's take health because it's something that is much talked about and also very, uh, emotional, uh, for, for client.
But if you take health, a lot of prevention, and if you build prevention as part of your value chain, then what you will get is also the type of client that will be covered. So your segmentation. Will be influenced by and, and the client selection will be influenced by the type of prevention that you have.
Therefore, your pricing could be adopted. Now we say simply prevention is great, so do more sport or do eat better. In those kind of things, it's very good, but doing more sport could also create more injury, for instance, because instead of being at home and not doing anything and be in an injury free environment, you could be going and jogging the forest.
And you can trip because it's raining and you will, uh, have a sprained ankle or something. So it's not only about reducing costs, it's about making sure that once you understand what you are doing, by creating these prevention surrounding services. Linking with other companies, et cetera. You also have all those integrated in the pricing and claim management so that when it happens, you also are there for your client.
So it's about creating consistency in a long cycle of a relationship with a client. We just highlighted some elements of, uh, being enabler and, and, and including services within, uh, a, uh, relationship client to ensure, of course, we shouldn't forget the distribution element. But also, I don't want to forget that there are also corporations that are investing in the health of their employees and their families, and therefore are also party of the ecosystem.
Those corporations, they of course need, uh, as different way of interaction. These interaction and services should be two-sided. The first one. Should be driven towards the employees in a non-compulsory way. Let's say. It should be open and invitational, something that's appealing to client, but also it should be something that could, offering the possibility for, uh, a.
HR department or the financial department to create action. So it's something that could be integrated in the HR philosophy, HR support that is being given towards the employees and internal communication towards the, um, the financial services. Because what they want is, of course there are some return on investment.
If we pay a bit money of money for prevention, then maybe we could have a bit of relief on the premium. Were that it communicated properly towards the whole. Client, employee basis so that there's recognition for the work and investment done by, uh, an employer. So in all, in all, based on my experience, servicing is an element of the insurance industry.
There's a huge ecosystem of, uh, InsureTech or adjacent InsureTech that can provide amazingly thought, well-thought services, insurers, uh, do not have even the biggest one, the ability to invest and create all the services. So linking or buying, uh, InsureTech is something which, which we've seen happening.
The most active are the ones that going, are going to position themselves, um, in, in the best way as, as part of the insurance world. Um, I'm sure as well part of this InsureTech will, will grow and become insurance companies at some point. I'm very, um, eager to see what the future will, uh, will, will give us a, a strategic evolution in what newcomers are going to be there.
But what is certain is that to survive and to be meaningful, especially in today's digital and AI world, an insurance company need to be able to provide services with the risk of just being a back office and, and, and risk carrier, but then, uh, made as a, as a commodity part of the value chain as opposed to.A, uh, meaningful and, uh, significant driving society actor that create value for shareholders and their clients.