Allianz Partners Australia has launched a new self-serve refund portal to automatically calculate the premium refund COVID-19 affected customers might be entitled to. The COVID-19 Insurance Refund Portal is significantly cutting down process time, with many customers getting money back in as little as three business days.
Developed in less than three months – a testament to Allianz Partners’ dedication to reuniting customers with their refund quicker – the portal calculates and issues partial or full refunds of unused premium, from single and multi-trip travel policies that have gone unused to rental vehicle excess and event ticket insurance.
Since the World Health Organisation (WHO) recognised the spread of COVID-19 as a pandemic on 11 March, Allianz Partners has already sped through a huge backlog of refund requests, refunding more than $8.5 million to approximately 24,500 individuals, or $347 per customer on average.
Up to $12 million in total could go back in the hands of more than 100,000 Australian policyholders through the portal over the coming months.
IBISWorld data shows cancellation insurance makes up nearly 40 per cent of products and services in the travel insurance industry, with COVID-19 related disruption putting significant pressure on providers to process refunds in a timely manner.
Damien Arthur, Chief Market Manager at Allianz Partners Australia, said the new portal went beyond industry expectations, leveraging technology to give customers greater control and faster refunds.
“Allianz Partners reacted quickly to the international travel ban by temporarily ceasing sales of travel insurance. We started refunding customers whose plans were impacted by COVID-19 in June and have already manually refunded more than 16,000 customer policies. The new portal is enabling us to process refunds much quicker to help provide customers with a faster, more positive experience. While their plans may have fallen through, we’re pleased to put some money back in their pockets,” Mr Arthur said.
“We continue to put the customer at the centre of everything here at Allianz Partners. This starts with offering refunds – not credit notes – and giving people access to a self-serve portal rather than having to ring and wait in a queue to get their refund.
“Allianz is constantly striving to create a better offering for customers and partners and we will continue to re-evaluate our product offering in light of the pandemic to ensure customers are protected on their next adventure.”
Any customer impacted by COVID-19 who purchased a policy before 18 March, the date the Australian Government issued a ban on overseas travel from Australia, might be entitled to a refund. Customers can check their eligibility for a refund by visiting www.policymanager.com.au/aga.
IBISWorld Travel Insurance in Australia, March 2020
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