The insurance industry has been investing heavily into new technologies, and one particular technology has clearly demonstrated the potential to make a lasting impact at the core of insurance services.  We’re talking about the Internet of Things (IoT), a broad term encompassing virtually all physical devices that connect wirelessly to networks.

In recent years, the industry has witnessed that IoT technologies can actually change their approach from responding reactively to claims after the fact to the prevention of claims using sensors and real-time monitoring.  For example, at Crawford & Company, we are combining IoT-enabled sensors and platforms with our existing operational infrastructure to deliver a new, comprehensive suite of services around the escape of water claims.

This is how it works.

IoT sensors are installed to detect water leaks.  When these sensors detect leaks, they immediately communicate via a central hub to alert property owners and Crawford of the issue.  Crawford then quickly dispatches mitigation experts to the affected properties for repair and relief.  From there, our IICRC certified specialists are able to estimate the damage and our managed repair networks can facilitate restoration.

New IoT-enabled solutions like this one offer many potential benefits such as fewer and less-severe water damage claims, quicker restoration, lower cost, and the like.  But these are only the initial benefits.  What’s really interesting about IoT in the claims space is the data.  If insurance companies have sensors all over the country monitoring everything from residences to commercial enterprises, they will be swimming in data.  This data offers real-time insight into how and why claims are occurring.  The aggregation of this data will lead to better predictive models on water damage, which will revolutionize how risk is evaluated for water damage claims.  

You can learn more about the Internet of Things and the insurance industry in the full white paper I recently authored, entitled “The Internet of Things (IoT) will change claims and risk forever.”