Vehicle Insurance Case Study: Dealing Efficiently With Hail Damage Claims

This is interesting thinking from AG in Belgium;

The thunderstorm that took place on May 30. erupted over Belgium, caused considerable damage and caused a high number of claims against AG Insurance, more specifically for hail damage to cars. In order to be able to help its customers as quickly as possible, AG has temporarily opened “Scan & Repair Centers” in Boom and Charleroi. These centres ensure faster damage assessment and smoother repairs.

Londerzeel region hit hard

The hailstorms that swept across our country on Saturday 30 May caused a lot of damage to vehicles. The Londerzeel region in particular, but also Charleroi and the south of the country were hit hard. More than two weeks after the storm, the number of car claims at AG Insurance has risen to more than 4,000.

Unique in Belgium: AG’s global ‘hail plan’

AG Insurance makes every effort to settle claims as quickly as possible. Even if they are the result of a natural disaster that leads to a huge increase in the number of damage reports in a very short time. That is why the insurer has drawn up a global ‘hail plan’ to assist its policyholders quickly and efficiently, from the claim notification to the repair. For example, AG has engaged a highly effective scanner that directly analyses damage to the body of cars. A first on the Belgian market.

Hail scanner in an AG Scan & Repair Center, close to the affected customers

In Boom (and in Gosselies near Charleroi) – the regions where the highest number of customers were affected by the hailstorms – AG Insurance set up an AG Scan & Repair Center with a hail scanner in just a few days.

It is a mobile scanning arc with high-resolution cameras. It takes pictures of the car and at the same time registers the reflections on the damaged body by projecting beams of light onto it. The different impacts are measured and divided into categories based on the severity and time it takes the bodybuilder to repair them. And all that in a few minutes, while an expert or repairer takes much longer to measure all the damage.

Quick appointment for repair

In the AG Scan & Repair Center, AG Insurance policyholders can not only quickly have the damage to their car measured, but also make an appointment to have the dents repaired by the dent removal officers present on site. These dent removal machines use an environmentally friendly technique that restores the body to its original state, without any difference in colour or quality.

Customers helped faster and more efficiently

AG Insurance is the first Belgian insurer to apply this innovative technology.

Edwin Klaps, Managing Director Broker Channel & Non-Life Insurance Development bij AG: “We all remember the hailstorms of Pentecost 2014. Many insured people then had to wait for months before their car could be repaired, because the demand was so high. That’s when our idea for the hail plan and the AG Scan & Repair Center was born. We have now set it up in Charleroi and Boom in just a few days, as a quick and concrete solution for our affected customers. Thanks to a simple, innovative and customer-oriented approach, the damage can be assessed quickly, in order to speed up repairs. This initiative is proof of our commitment to assisting our customers and partners at all times.”

 Because the heaviest hailstorms fell in the Londerzeel and Charleroi regions at the end of May, the AG Scan & Repair Center has been temporarily located there since 10 June. All affected AG Insurance car insured persons (Top Omnium, Multirisk, Top Second-hand and/or OmniNature) can go there from Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., after reporting their damage to their insurance advisor.