UK rollout expected before the end of the year.
Zurich has been working in partnership with Apple since the autumn of 2017, the group chief of strategy, innovation and business development officer Giovanni Giuliani has told Insurance Age.
“We saw a win-win opportunity to partner with Apple to design the best app for brokers that you could dream of,” he commented.
“They [Apple] are very good in customer experience and can do this to a level that nobody else could do it.”
Giuliani believes that working with engineers and designers at the Apple Campus in Cupertino in California has created an app that can “change the dynamic” between brokers and the insurer citing convenience, layout and design as key strengths.
Cross-sell
He argued that the app will help brokers cement relationships with existing clients, cross-sell and save time liaising with colleagues.
According to Giuliani, the app will be connected to Zurich and, for instance, using geo-location technology, when a broker approaches a client’s office it will automatically supply useful information such as policies held with the provider, when the last claim was paid and renewal dates.
In addition the insurer has simplified question sets to make it more usable once with the client.
Artificial intelligence within the app will suggest cross-selling opportunities based on the data held on the client. Brokers will also be able to set up follow-on meetings for clients with colleagues just by swiping the relevant details.
Portugal
The app was launched in Portugal last week and Giuliani committed that it would be available to brokers in the UK before the end of the year.
The insurer is yet to hold talks with the software houses to ensure the app links to back-offices and prevent rekeying however Giuliani declared that in Portugal the process was delivered within months and that he was confident of achieving it in the UK.
Giuliani, who joined 18 months ago from Generali, leads a team of 100 working on projects including the app.
With the rollout being staggered across Europe he noted that the final decision on which products would be available to brokers was always decided locally.
“It depends on the priority for the local management and we are working together [in the UK] already.
World changing
He predicted that property and casualty, personal lines, SME, cyber and others would be part of the UK’s package.
“By the end of the year we will have the full spectrum.”
And concluded: “We think this will change the world of distributors.”
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