Financial Services Ireland

Report

European Insurance Outlook 2015

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Insurers face many challenges this year including soft pricing conditions and tight profit margins.  In response, many insurers are investing heavily in analytics, cloud computing and other technology.

The year ahead is set to be a challenging one for the European insurance industry.  Successful insurers in 2015 will look to seize opportunities to maximize their digital channels and make better use of the data they capture in order to personalize products and services.  Insurers have traditionally lagged behind the retails sector in product innovation; it usually occurs incrementally and is transaction-led.

Possible solutions lie in connecting to underserved consumer markets, the expanding middle class and high-net-worth clients with new and better products.  Forward-looking insurers are targeting their growth strategies in those high-potential areas.

Insurance companies have a greater responsibility to interact with the customer, provide a range of digital communication channels, encourage loyalty and brand awareness, and tailor products to individual needs.  Insurers are scaling up their analytical capabilities to be in a better position to use data in a more connected way.

Our key findings:

• Insurers should tailor products to individual needs and improve digital capabilities to boost loyalty and brand awareness.
• Improved analytical capabilities enable insurers to extract meaningful insights at virtually every stage of the insurance life-cycle.
• Regulatory initiatives will require greater transparency with customers, changes to distributor relationships and increased governance and oversight over products.
• Finance is under pressure to add value in planning, budgeting and forecasting, while also responding to regulatory requirements and tax challenges

To learn what will be on the mind of insurers in Europe during 2015, click here to download the full report.

James Maher

Insurance, Sector Leader
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