Natalie Bowes, Head of Death Benefits, ICTS Death Benefit Services
Having been involved in this industry for a number of years, various lessons have been learnt and I have witnessed firsthand how crucial it is to balance regulatory compliance with compassionate and personalised customer service to truly support beneficiaries during their most challenging times.
Death benefit services in the insurance industry encompasses financial strategies, emotional considerations, and regulatory compliance. Losing a loved one is a traumatic experience and dealing with financial matters can add to the stress. Death will always be a sensitive matter; we need to be empathetic and compassionate and take into account that the person has lost someone.
This involves clear communication, patience, and a supportive approach that prioritises the emotional well-being of the beneficiaries.
We must also realise that each situation is unique. No two death claim cases will be the same. This is where listening skills come into play as we need to be able to ascertain just by speaking to a beneficiary what their emotional state might be.
Many beneficiaries experience financial constraints when they have lost a loved one, especially if that person was the bread winner in the family. We must take into account that there are daily needs that must be fulfilled, bills to be paid, children need to be in school or taken care of in some or other way and that life must still go on without that person in the family.
Building trust with beneficiaries allows one to fulfill the objective when making the telephone call, emailing or messaging a beneficiary, and this objective is for the beneficiary to trust you enough to complete and send in documentation in order for death cases to be finalised and payment made to the intended recipients.
Technology plays an important role in the efficiency of death benefit services, however, we have realised that beneficiaries prefer to deal with a human being, whether it be telephonically or in person. Being able to speak to someone rather than chat to a Chatbot, especially in these circumstances, gives beneficiaries a level of comfort where they can ask as many questions as possible and that someone is actually listening to them in their time of grief.
However, integrating the technology with human interaction ensures that beneficiaries receive not only efficient but also compassionate service. Continually improving technology and investing in training and developing of staff to provide empathetic, personalised services are key factors to ensures that beneficiaries receive the support they need in a manner that acknowledges and respects their emotional journey.
Our experience has been that some beneficiaries might be skeptical at first as to the motives of the telephone call, email or WhatsApp, but once they are able to ask us certain questions to confirm the authenticity of our communication to them, they begin to trust the process.
Also, being able to show beneficiaries that there is a process flow to how death claim cases are handled enables them to trust us.
Speaking to beneficiaries in their mother tongue is another important factor to consider. This allows for better and more efficient communication and understanding when engaging with beneficiaries.
In conclusion, we in the death benefit services industry need to create a reliable support system for policyholders and their beneficiaries.
ENDS
