Few policyholder touchpoints are as operationally important as collecting premium payments. Besides providing revenue, some policyholders only interact with providers when they receive a bill or pay a premium, making these touchpoints the best opportunity some insurers have to provide the customer experience today’s consumers expect.

To help billers stay aligned with evolving customer payment preferences, InvoiceCloud ran an online survey in October of 2022 with the goal of better understanding payment trends and general behaviors around making bill payments. Then we partnered with PropertyCasualty360 to share highlights from the data with nearly 300 insurance organizations nationwide!

If you missed the webinar, don’t worry! You can watch the on-demand presentation right here or keep reading for a few important points from the webinar.

1. Mobile channels have overtaken online portals 

For the last two years, when gauging which payment channels are the most used and most preferred by customers, “Online portal (on my computer/laptop)” has always taken the top spot. However, for the first time, “Mobile device (on app or mobile browser)” has overtaken “Online portal” in both usage and preference.

Both preference and usage for “Online portal” is significantly down, having shrunk by 15% since 2020.

Considering its ranking as one of the most preferred payment options among all respondents, your organization should focus on providing an easy, intuitive mobile payment experience.

Here’s an interesting example from the details of this survey data: the vast majority of respondents — 92% — took this survey on their phone, yet only 30% say mobile devices are their preferred method for making a bill payment. Clearly, payers are very comfortable using their mobile phones for many things, but the payment experience must be severely lacking if almost as many payers are going to their computer/laptop to pay a bill.

2. Automatic payments are on-the-rise,​ especially for those older than 60

Another burgeoning trend that aligns with an emphasis on convenient digital payments is the rise of automatic payment (AutoPay) enrollment, which has climbed by 5% since last year. Considering that the “set it and forget it” nature of this payment channel offers maximum peace of mind and minimal friction for the bill payer, it makes sense that this convenient option would be gaining popularity among today’s customers.

However, despite the upward momentum of this payment option, there is still plenty of opportunity for adoption. The data shows that 88% of respondents are enrolled in AutoPay for at least some of their bills, but only 45% have signed up for AutoPay for more than half or all their bills.

One age group, in particular, has taken a growing interest in the convenience of AutoPay: respondents over 60 prefer automatic payments for bills more than any other age group. When asked which payment channel was their preference, 22% of respondents stated AutoPay was their favorite option — and respondents 60 and older were most likely to select AutoPay as their preference.

3. Despite the draw of digital premium payments, insurance lags

With flexible, digital payment options like mobile and AutoPay on the rise, it’s clear that convenience is king when it comes to consumer preferences today. In fact, when asked which words best describe their ideal bill payment experience 47% chose “convenience” as the defining trait.

However, the data also indicates an interesting disconnect: insurance premiums are much less likely to be paid digitally than other types of bills.

There is clearly some work to be done, across the insurance industry, to improve the digital billing and payment experience for policyholders. To hear more about why this disparity exists and how insurers can use our new data to drive the digital payment adoption levels other industries are experiencing, watch the free on-demand below!