Augmented Reality in the Insurance Industry: Changing how We View Disaster

Hopefully, you’ve never had to engage with an insurance company. While many of these businesses are of course ethical and conduct their work fairly with their customers; others thrive on a culture of undercutting customers, overcharging them on rates, and giving them poor or limiting plans.  This is because there are so many different factors that fit into the insurance industry, so many different situations it needs to cover, and the variety of different disasters which homeowners encounter are numerous. It’s hard to find an affordable plan which covers every aspect of your home’s security.

One way this is changing is with the implementation of modern technology for use in these older, somewhat antiquated business sectors. Augmented Reality, or AR; is a technology that superimposes computer-generated imagery (CGI) onto reality, in real-time. Commonly, this has been used in industries such as gaming, entertainment; and is even seeing a rise in adoption in the tourism industry as well. However, AR may be a great way to revolutionize and change the insurance industry for the better.

For one, AR can be used to show you the structural issues or problems inside of your residence. This can be done through your phone’s camera using the app Allianz, which overlays the walls of your home through your camera’s phone and shows you possible damages to your home’s infrastructure which could cause further structural damage or disasters in your home. Allianz is also able to analyze things such as the wiring in your home, the pipe and drainage systems, as well as the leveling of your floor and tiles inside of your home.

Additionally, augmented reality may be used to explain things such as your insurance plans, price plans, and other detail-heavy lectures you’ll need to give to potential customers. Oftentimes these lectures won’t draw customers in but bore them instead. However, the use and integration of AR; can not only allow customers to get a better understanding of their insurance plan through the use of images and graphics but also engages them in an interactive manner; which makes the information you’re providing all the more memorable; helping them make more informed decisions in regards to their insurance.

AR can also be used by insurers in order to help estimate damages to a building and the overall cost of repairs, giving accurate price/cost analysis regarding your home. Now, this is entirely possible through the use of AR technically. Using photographs, insurance agents can create 3D models of the entire area; allowing them to create a full blueprint of the home and any of its possible structural shortcomings. From there, you are able to work with different technical specialists in order to assess the overall damage volume to the property, and how this affects the overall structural integrity of the building. This essentially means adjusters and insurers can use AR as a primary metric for accurately assessing property damage, which improves customer service due to efficiency, and helps lower the overall cost of man-hours and operation associated with the assessment of the damage.

While AR is indeed an avenue some insurers should consider investing or looking into, the technology is still far from perfect; and your team needs to take into full consideration the facts currently surrounding AR technology. For one, it’s still in its infancy. While there’s no telling where AR may go in terms of technological advancements, uses, and overall application to a variety of different businesses; it also runs the risk of burning itself out through dividing itself in too many directions. The path of AR technology, above all else; needs an end goal and a sense of direction. Additionally, given the technology still isn’t fully sound or perfect, your estimations for things such as structural integrity and damage assessments could be very off. Consider the quality of the apps and software you’re using as you go about your work. Be sure to read reviews, and get an understanding of what the best product on the market is for your line of work. When technology is still growing, research should be your top priority in order to avoid being scammed or wasting your valuable resources on something which is not profitable for your business.

In the ideal situation, however, as long as your team performs its due diligence in terms of research, market introspection, and quality checking the AR software you use; it can be assumed that the technology will only provide a net bonus for your business. Of course, I will continue to stress that you need to research and be educated about the AR choices your business makes, but I do feel it is a viable market for anyone to invest in: both for now, and going forward into the future.