Entrevista a Cecilia Sevillano, Head Smart Home solutions SwissRe, que participará en el panel IOT de #InsuranceChallenges19.
COI. How is the digital ecosystem of smart insurance improving? Is there a good understanding to be able to promote digital transformation? In what areas of activity has a greater activity been carried out?
The increased dependency on smartphones is being enhanced by the wealth of possibilities brought by connectivity and data. Partnerships for end-to-end insurance solutions can be much easier to translate into simpler customer experiences through digitalization. Insurers who have traditionally centered their offer on claims payment have now got the possibility to broaden towards services from other vertical markets within the home ecosystem.
The greatest activity is happening in the bundling of insurance with devices, and/or assistance services to understand the uptake from end-users, position themselves as innovators and ideally, grow the business. The insurance product remains the traditional where the «smartness» is yet to be integrated into such offers.
COI. Could be resistances for the application of some of the new digital technologies by regulatory bodies in some countries? How is the situation at the moment?
There’s a growing awareness amid regulatory bodies throughout Europe on the need to adapt to the changes brought by technological innovation. This will be a process against the clock where regulation will seek to pair to the speed of the market. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK is worth highlighting as a leader in encouraging innovation and pioneering an agile approach to regulation. In 2018, the FCA proposed a global regulatory sandbox, which provides support to innovative firms through dedicated and informal steer on potential implications and facilitating applications for authorisations.
COI. Are the companies prepared for the implementation of digital technology and what roadmap would you dare to envision?
Broadly speaking, Spanish companies are aware of the need to adopt new technologies and in the case of the insurance industry there is a growing pace of change in this regard.
There are many models being implemented by different companies. Partnering is definitively one of the main answers that companies are finding to accelerate their transformation. In Swiss Re we have integrated technology in our commercial strategy and focused on specific areas such as how technologies will affect the way we work. Swiss Re is not and is not going to be a Venture Capital. However, we feel very strong in fulfilling our core promise: making the world more resilient.
We look for partners who can really add value in selected areas, typically adjacent to our core proposition to extend the boundaries of what risk can we cover. For example, in the space of smart home, we are currently working with several partners. In particular, there are two start-ups that have really taken an interesting angle in the mission of making any home and people inside it safer; therefore, we decided to move to a strategic relationship with both.
More important to our value proposition, is that we also act as strategic partners to our clients in order to assist them in their transformational journey. In Swiss Re we work hand in hand with our clients, helping them to adopt new tools and technological solutions
COI. What are the most significant impacts that SwissRe is observing?
Swiss Re remains convinced that new technologies will profoundly disrupt the insurance industry’s value creation chain in the years to come and we are anticipating new opportunities, particularly in the digitalisation field. We are actively preparing for these new challenges thanks to important internal developments and new outside partnerships.
The demand for re/insurance should continue to grow as the insurance industry strives to cover those who are not insured. If we add to this, the higher concentration of assets in catastrophe-prone regions, rapid urbanization, new technologies and associated risks (cyber risk), changes in the environment (climate change) and an aging society, there is very little doubt that more capital and innovation will be required in the re/insurance industry – whether traditional or alternate.
COI. You are intervening as an expert in Insurance World Challenges 19, What reasons do you have to attend this event?
If we were to attempt to sum up the general mood of the insurance industry with regard to the IoT, it might include curiosity, engagement, a natural emphasis on safety rather than the joys of creative disruption, and a generous pinch of scepticism. What seems to be missing in most, but not all, cases is a sense of urgency.
No big changes come when you operate in isolation. Great things happen together and it is essential that we discuss and reflect on future challenges and trends faced by the sector on a global level, together. In fact, our company tagline is «We are smarter together» and we mean it!
