The Italian Insurance Industry Is Testing The Blockchain Technology For Out-Of-Court Claim Dispute Resolution

In Italy, the National Association of Insurance Companies (ANIA) is undertaking a Blockchain Pilot Project that seeks to determine the effectiveness of the technology in dispute resolution. The association is focusing on car claims components and they are hoping that the outcomes of the project will enable them to roll out the Blockchain technology to other policies and across the member companies.

This is according to the ANIA president, Maria Bianca Farina. She stated that the “benefits from the experiments will be applied to “all companies.”

An Alternative Dispute Resolution

According to reports from Italy, the Blockchain networks will be used as an Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanism before the aggrieved party heads to court to seek redress. This will not only give the individual companies a different perspective in determining their liability from the perspective of the insurable interests but enable the claimants to get a fair verdict in the claim processing process. It is basically an out of court and insurer to insured alternative dispute resolution.

To launch a successful trial, the ANIA group is liaising with the Research Centre on Technology, Innovation and Financial Services (CeTIF). The institute, situated in Milan, is a brainchild of the Institute for Insurance Supervision (IVASS) and the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart. The group is, therefore, in a better position to apply the Blockchain Technology on an insurance claim perspective to enable ANIA to find the appropriate results before going forward in the adoption of the digital ledgers in Insurance dispute resolution.

How The Trial Is Undertaken

The pilot project is modeled in a way that allows the insurers, insureds and relevant entities to interact in a supervised virtual framework. From here, the different parties will avail information to each other in a peer-to-peer relationship so that each party can follow through with the process.

The Blockchain will provide transparency, and clarity that is the key to claim settlement decision. The whole on-platform interactions will then be tracked by the relevant bodies such as CeTIF, IVASS, ANIA and relevant parties who will constitute a Scientific Committee.

With the involvement of many players, the process will be verifiable and likely to be acceptable to the policyholder. This means that in the event that the matter is taken for litigation, the courts will likely uphold the decision of the committee as they are competent in their various capacities.

The pilot project will be undertaken in various phases. Additionally, the legal representative the claimant will be involved in certifying the smart contract backed in the blockchain network.

The program is also wide scaled as it involves other nonmembers of ANIA such as Zurich, Sara, Cargeas-Cardif, Cattolica, Helvetia, and Axa Insurances.

The Blockchain Technology Is Increasingly Becoming Part Of Insurance

The Popularity of the Blockchain in Insurance is growing by the day: A trend that is identical all over the world. For instance, the American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS) has contracted IBM to get a Blockchain solution for Insurance regulatory purposes.