LV= General Insurance launches voice skill for car insurance customers
LV= General Insurance (LV=GI), a UK-based insurance provider, has introduced voice skill for car insurance customers with Amazon Alexa or Google Home Assistant products.
The new service will enable customers to ask and get answered, a range of questions about their car insurance policy by asking their smart speaker to ‘Open LV’.
With the new services, LV= GI car insurance customers can ask questions about their policy using their home assistant products.
New voice skill will be able to answer over 500 policy-based questions initially
Said to be the first of its kind within the general insurance industry, the new voice skill will be able to answer over 500 policy-based questions initially. The questions have been collated from commonly asked questions on LiveChat and the call centre.
To make sure that the solution works as effectively as possible, LV= GI will also receive constant updates to help add or refine answers and will update the software whenever needed.
LV= GI sales and marketing director Jon Mansley said: “At LV= GI we’re always trying to make things easier for our customers, so with nearly 13 million smart speakers sold in the UK in 2019 we thought a voice app would be helpful.
“With the launch of this new voice skill, customers can now find out details of their policy in a matter of seconds, simply by asking their smart device.”
The new service has been rolled out to deliver policy information for customers who are less able to use a computer or telephone or check their documents.
The solution is also expected to help reduce over 28,000 questions on policy documents that are received by call centre employees every month, freeing up time for more in-depth call handling or claims, the company stated.
LV= GI worked with Rabbit and Pork to help build the solution’s functionality, which will go live on Amazon Alexa and Google Home Assistant devices.
Claimed to be the first voice skill for car insurance customers by a direct insurer, the company plans to add other products to the solution in due course of time.
Rabbit and Pork managing director John Campbell said: “We’re really excited to be working with LV= on this voice project to help make answering questions about insurance easier, quicker and more conversational. We are delighted to launch on both the Google Assistant and Alexa platforms at the same time, which allows us to reach a wider audience.
“It’s important that companies such as LV= have a presence on voice-enabled devices, as we are seeing them become part of our daily lives. We look forward to building on this first version with more content and features in the future.”
Allianz completes purchase of LV General Insurance Group and the General Insurance division of Legal & General
1. Allianz Holdings plc has completed the planned acquisition of the remaining 51 percent of the LV General Insurance Group (LV GIG) from Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society (LVFS). The total consideration by Allianz for 100 percent of LV GIG will be up to 1.078 billion pounds.
2. Allianz Holdings plc has completed the acquisition of 100 percent of the General Insurance division of Legal & General (L&G GI) for 242 million pounds. This business is being combined with LV GIG, although the Legal & General brand will continue to be used in the UK general insurance market for up to three years.
This follows the announcement of these transactions on May 31, 2019.
The completion of these deals positions Allianz Holdings plc as the number 2 general insurer in the UK, based on full year 2018 figures. The combined business had a gross written premium income of over 4 billion pounds and a market share of 9 percent.
Steve Treloar, Chief Executive Officer of LV GIG, will become a member of the Allianz Holdings plc Board, which oversees and manages all of Allianz UK’s legal entities. He will report to Jon Dye, Chief Executive Officer of Allianz Holdings plc. Steve, along with fellow LV GIG colleagues Kevin Wenzel (Chief Finance Officer) and Kieran O’Keeffe (Chief Risk Officer) will join the Allianz UK management board.
Mike Crane, current Managing Director of LV GIG Broker business, has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of L&G GI (subject to regulatory approval). He will continue to report into Steve Treloar and sit on the LV GIG Executive Committee as both Chief Executive Officer of L&G GI and Managing Director of LV GIG Broker.
Jon Dye said: “This is a pivotal moment in the history of Allianz in the UK. These two deals create a formidable player in the UK general insurance market with a balanced business across personal and commercial lines, tremendously strong brands and a great team of people, focused on delivering for our customers.
“We will be looking to build upon the great success of our joint venture with LV GIG in home and motor insurance, strengthened further by the acquisition of L&G GI. With Petplan already being the world leader in pet insurance and the Allianz position as Commercial Insurer of the Year in 2019, we have a strong platform to continue our profitable growth story.”
Steve Treloar added: “This is an exciting day for LV GIG and we’re very happy to now be part of Allianz and have our colleagues from L&G GI also join us. For the last few years, we’ve worked incredibly hard to make LV= the brand it is today and, although we’ve achieved an incredible amount, I believe that with the backing of Allianz, and L&G GI being part of our business, the best is truly yet to come. I’m excited to see what the future brings.”
LV= completes GI sale to Allianz and appoints new chief executive
LV= has completed the planned sale of its remaining 51% stake of its general insurance business (LV= GI) to Allianz Group.
Total consideration received by LV= for 100% of LV=GI is up to £1.078bn. This follows the announcement of the transaction by LV= on 31 May 2019.
Newly appointed chief executive Mark Hartigan, who is on an initial 12 month contract, was part of the senior leadership team at Zurich Insurance Group between 2009 and 2019. He held a variety of roles and was most recently head of operations for Zurich EMEA.
Before life at Zurich he was deputy chief executive officer of Nexus Group, the largest insurer in the Middle East. He started his career in the British Army and holds a masters degree from King’s University College of London.
LV= chairman Alan Cook said: “Mark Hartigan is the ideal candidate to lead LV= as we begin life as a standalone life and pensions business. He brings a wealth of knowledge of the life insurance market and has a strong track record of delivering financial success and business transformation in challenging and fast changing market conditions.”
Hartigan added: “LV= is a business I have long admired. As the company completes the sale of its general insurance business and starts 2020 as a focused life and pensions business it’s an exciting time to join. I look forward to working with all my new colleagues to build on LV=’s heritage and to serve our members, customers and partners.”