Taiwan’s largest insurer Cathay Life Insurance has announced a detailed new strategy for customers coming alongside its latest operations in the health sector.
The ‘Health First’ strategy has risk identification as its core pillar, with the insurer utilizing technology to better serve insureds in various health-related areas, such as improvement in health awareness and suboptimal health, in addition to elderly care. Cathay Life has also increased commitment to spillover policies, encouraging customers to improve their health in return for a reduced premium or bonuses.
Last January, the Taiwanese insurer found itself at the clutches of the global pandemic as Cathay Life’s shares dipped after it revealed that pre-tax earnings fell short of analyst estimates.
“Cathay Life Insurance has eight million policyholders and services more than 20 million insurance policies in Taiwan,” said Able Lin, spokesperson for Cathay Life Insurance. “Facing challenges such as an ageing population, the pandemic, emerging technology, and the environment, it is necessary to approach insurance in a more agile and digital way to fulfill customer needs.”
Cathay Life’s spillover insurance policies date to 2018 and include a very successful wellness program. To date, the insurer has continued advocating for a transition from protection to prevention to engender a healthier society and for customers to utilize their policies as best they can.
A newly launched wellness program called “FitBack” serves as one of the four major areas in the strategy. The FitBack is embedded within the Cathay Life app and serves as a reminder and encouragement for customers to stay committed to their health goals, upgrade their membership levels, and reap the resulting rewards. Cathay Life’s partnerships with cross-industry partners also served to provide various other health-oriented tasks for customers.
As for generating awareness about the importance of staying healthy, Cathay Life has actively expanded its spillover insurance policy offerings in recent years, focusing on preemptive prevention and reduction of claims. The insurer currently ranks top when it comes to profits from spillover insurance policies, and Cathay Life seeks to retain and strengthen this position with the launch of an industry-first spillover insurance policy that combines membership levels with discounted premiums.
The area of suboptimal health is also an area of focus, with the Taiwanese insurer partnering with different local and renowned clinics to provide comprehensive care services. The created teams comprise doctors, nutritionists, pharmacists, and educators to craft healthcare services for policyholders, all personalized to their specific needs.
Finally, in the area of the elderly population, Cathay Life also noted that it is consistently improving its services for insureds that fall under the category. The company is training staff to be health consultants that are well-versed in elderly care and governmental resources and working with the Industrial Technology Research Institute to develop cognitive function testing services.
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