ePay believes more insurance customers will
choose "Buy Now, Pay Later" financing with more convenient access
to established premium financing companies.
AUSTIN,
Texas, May 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Three
premium finance companies have partnered with ePayPolicy as
part of the ongoing rollout of ePay's newest feature, Finance
Connect. US Premium Finance, AFCO Direct and People's Premium
Finance announced connections to the platform, in order to enable
easier access to premium financing for the insurance industry.
"Insurance organizations of all kinds are thinking about ways
they can improve the customer experience," said ePayPolicy CEO
Mark Engels. "This was such an
obvious win-win for our customers and their PFC partners. Access to
financing is vital, and we knew we could work together to improve
both the access and the experience."
Over the last several years, e-commerce customers have grown
increasingly familiar with "Buy Now, Pay Later" (BNPL)
options at checkout – the retail equivalent of installment plans.
Companies like Affirm and Klarna have become globally recognized
brands, as a surge in online shopping helped the top 5 lenders in
that space grow 970% from 2019 to 2021 (source – CFPB).
A recent AMEX / PYMNTS study indicated that half of Gen Z and
Millennials prefer the convenience of online payments when shopping
for insurance. With Finance Connect, premium finance companies can
now offer this level of payment flexibility to insureds.
"Central to the creation of Finance Connect was our intent to
preserve existing partnerships with PFCs," said Engels. "We didn't
want to try and take business from them, or create a marketplace.
We want to help both sides work together faster, for the
convenience of the insured."
By utilizing ePayPolicy's new feature, insureds can now enroll
in financing – complete with e-signed PFAs and automatic payments –
in a single online session, utilizing secure connections to the
PFC's systems and popular industry management systems.
"Many insurance customers pay their premiums just once a
year," said Nish Modi, CTO at
ePayPolicy. "If you only get one or a few interactions per year,
you want to make the most of that experience."
Traditional BNPL options have been estimated to increase
conversion rates by 20-30%, as well as increasing cart value by
30-50% (source). Modi believes, based on early product feedback,
that the feature will increase the number of customers who opt to
finance in the same way.
"Right away, we had agencies approaching us at trade shows and
other events asking when they could get started, because they
believed it removes a certain awkwardness they might feel at times
with the insured," said Modi. "They felt that by offering it, you'd
be suggesting they need to finance. And vice-versa, maybe
the insured feels too sheepish to ask. This removes that entirely
and puts the power in the insured's hands."
Finance Connect is live on ePayPolicy's payment pages, and has
already begun facilitating new financing agreements. Engels
indicated that more PFCs are expected to join in the coming weeks
and months.
"Companies say this all the time, but we really are just
getting started," said Engels. "We see this as the next
evolution of customer-centric flexibility, and we'll keep working
with our PFC and agency customers to build the tools that make
payments the easiest thing they do."
Key Features
- Allows insurance companies to work with their existing PFC
partners, including multiple PFCs on one payment page, with
dynamic routing
- Premium financing options presented at checkout alongside pay
in full options
- Simplified financing enrollment and upfront terms for
insureds
- Easily generates consolidated premium finance agreements
(PFAs)
- ePayPolicy is integrated with over 90% of the most popular
agency management systems, saving time and manual data entry
About ePayPolicy
ePayPolicy offers easier payment tools, built just for
insurance. ePayPolicy's products bring insurance payments up to
speed for agencies, carriers, MGAs and PFCs, with secure online
payment pages, automated check processing, payables reconciliation
and more. 8,000+ insurance companies trust ePayPolicy and their
expert, live support team to handle their payments every day. Learn
more: ePayPolicy.com.
Media Contact:
Justin Jaksha
844-372-9300
377313@email4pr.com
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SOURCE ePayPolicy