When a natural disaster strikes, insurance companies face a challenge beyond the physical damage itself—the overwhelming surge of claims that follows. Take Storm Boris in September 2024. After it swept through Central Europe, insurers faced an estimated €2 billion to €3 billion in claims, primarily due to extensive flooding and structural damage. In November, devastating floods in Valencia cost insurers over €3.5 billion, based solely on the first 72,000 claims received.
These storms are a tall order for any insurance firm still relying on traditional claims processing. One simply has to start adding up all the workhours that are required for in-person assessments and manual approvals to realize why so many homeowners and businesses have to wait for weeks or even months for their reimbursements.
At PortalPRO, a service economy platform that helps property managers and owners coordinate repairs more efficiently, we have seen how AI-driven tools can be of great use for insurance companies during peak claims periods.
How bottlenecks strain traditional insurance processing
The insurance claims process hasn't changed significantly for years. Damage is reported, and an adjuster is scheduled for an on-site inspection. Paperwork ten moves between departments, and eventually the payout or repair offer reaches policyholders.
This whole process can take weeks or even months and is often burdened by all sorts of delays. This is especially true after natural disasters, when thousands of claims pour in simultaneously. Considering that insured losses from catastrophic events exceeded $135 billion for the fifth consecutive year, it's easy to understand why the system gets overloaded. It's also clear that it can no longer function as it used to and needs to find a way to process claims faster.
With AI-powered tools, clients can report property damage online by uploading photos and have the damage assessed in seconds.
Last year, we observed this principle being applied to the insurance field after a major storm hit Lithuania. Insurance companies were receiving up to 300 claims every day. After implementing AI-powered tools, insurers were able to reduce their processing times by 80%. What would've typically taken about 50 days required only a few, and people who had their homes damaged by the storm were able to proceed with repairs much faster. This new insurance damage claims self-service solution became a bridge between insurers, property owners, and repair specialists, ensuring that claims weren't just approved quickly but translated into real action.
Why a smarter approach to claims processing matters
For insurers, streamlining claims means more than just efficiency. It reduces administrative costs, minimizes fraud—which makes up about 10% of all insurance claims costs—and helps policyholders navigate one of the most stressful moments of their lives with greater ease. By integrating structured digital workflows, insurers can cut out unnecessary back-and-forth and ensure claims move seamlessly from reporting to resolution.
The impact is just as important for policyholders. They get quicker access to funds and repairs when they need them most, a smoother claims experience overall, and more transparency throughout the process. And it matters—Accenture found that 83% of customers with easy claims experience are likely to renew their policies. Insurers that don't embrace the advantages such technology provides aren't just falling behind in efficiency; they risk losing customers to faster competitors.
As extreme weather becomes more frequent, insurers face mounting pressure to process a rapidly growing number of claims. The challenge isn't just about keeping up—it's about maintaining accuracy, fairness, and trust in a system that policyholders rely on during their most vulnerable moments. Structured, data-driven solutions that don't just speed up the process but also use the expertise of repair specialists have the potential to remove bottlenecks and significantly improve policyholder's experience.
