iBynd, the premier insurtech that makes it easy and fast to rate, quote and bind insurance online in realtime, has released the company's 2023 Industry Outlook: Business Insurance Is Going Digital and Embedded. Are You Ready?
"Commercial insurance is part of a multi-trillion dollar insurance industry that has lagged behind in adopting digital distribution, relying instead on aging system and distribution infrastructures," said Phil Friedman, Chief Executive Officer of iBynd. "Before the pandemic, we were seeing stirrings of an awakening among business consumers. The lockdowns and subsequent digital offerings in every space have opened commercial insurance consumers' eyes to what they can demand from their trusted business partners. And what they want is embedded offerings during their journeys with those partners."
iBynd's outlook details trends that are in their infancy stages and will quickly take foot in the coming year, setting the stage for explosive growth, which experts say will increase the size of the embedded market six-fold by 2029. With business consumers having grown accustomed to digital purchases when they want them, commercial insurance purchases are starting to follow. Commercial insurance is going digital, and it will be embedded in online journeys to meet the demand. Business to business providers, including affinity groups, need to be ready. Friedman indicated business to business providers should come up to speed quickly to take advantage of first move positioning, capturing consumer preferences and new income streams now.
"Insurance itself is not exciting on the surface," said Alan Laifer, Chief Operating Officer at iBynd. "It's a hassle for consumers to think about buying or using insurance. Yet, many companies want their customers to be covered, and financial institutions and others even require it. Embedded insurance is a whole new ball game for the buyer and business to business companies. iBynd's embedded platform, with automated point-of-sale underwriting and ability to bind a policy with accurate pricing in under 5 minutes, make it easy for companies to embed insurance and offer it during their online journey."
iBynd's outlook highlights that self-service is now normative, with nearly all consumers expecting self-service abilities. Time-strapped business consumers want insurance placed in their path. Trust and transparency with tried and true partners are built by giving customers what they need when they need it.
"We are deploying embedded insurance for many use cases that haven't historically been an option," said Jonathan Levy, Chief Revenue Officer at iBynd. "In one case, consider small and midsize business bank loans. Without embedded self-service options, businesses who are applying for loans that require insurance coverage would be turned away, instructed to find the coverage and then re-apply for the loan. This time-intensive process is completely resolved with embedded insurance, allowing the consumer to buy insurance during the online loan process, while remaining in the bank's journey. What used to take weeks now takes 5 minutes."
Embedded solutions also benefit the traditional agency distribution network. Agents who use surplus lines providers often must navigate multiple systems and maintain authentication credentials for each. Weeks-long wait time to gain access to a system can cost agents accounts and revenue.
"With embedded insurance from iBynd, we employ single sign on to eliminate the need for multiple agency user credentials and passwords and grant access on day one of onboarding," said Marc Pinke, Chief Technical Officer at iBynd. "Agents can now go to a single wholesaler or managing general agency's site and access everything they need."
Direct carrier integrations include built in underwriting rules, business requirements, and API calls that give agents rates in under 5 minutes. This eliminates back and forth with carriers, saving agents time and helping them close business quickly.
Tim Logan, Vice President of iBynd, highlighted the need to act now, stating, "It would behoove business to business providers, affinity groups, wholesalers, and managing general agencies to adopt embedded commercial insurance now. At iBynd, we can help them determine the best place to embed insurance in their world."
