A tornado cuts a path across a small rural townleaving broken businesses and homes in its wake. An unexpectedhurricane devastates a coastal region and impacts thousands. And anout-of-control wildfire rapidly spreads across state borders. Thesenatural disasters are unpredictable andunforeseen, and leave a path of devastation and destruction intheir wake.

For insurance organizations, natural disasters can bring addedpressure. Timing is everything in these critical situations andtoday's organizations must be ready to respond immediately,efficiently and effectively. From claims adjusters to customerservice representatives, catastrophes represent an“all-hands-on-deck” situation for insurers.

Fortunately, new technologies are changing the way insurersprepare for and respond to catastrophes. Disruptive technologiesare evolving at a rapid pace and quickly transforming theindustry's ability to prepare for and respond to naturaldisasters.

From cell phones and mobile technology to the rise of drones,how is disruption impacting the way insurance organizations reactto catastrophes?

Technology provides early warnings

During the past 35 years, disasters have resulted in anestimated 2.5 million deaths and cost more than $1.5 billion, saysSciDevNet. In fact, according to AccuWeather, natural disasters now affect 217million people every single year. With the number of natural andgeophysical disasters on the rise — and climate-relatedcatastrophes increasing by 80 percent since 1980 — early detectionis becoming far more critical to protecting lives and property. Itis clear that early warning is a basic and necessary component ofany disaster risk reduction strategy.

Within the insurance industry, technology has introduced anumber of systems that enable individuals to prepare for and evenprevent catastrophes. Thanks to the evolution of technology,weather forecasting apps have become increasingly accurate inproviding early warning of pending disasters. Specific apps are nowavailable to track and provide alerts based on an individual'sgeographic location.

Related: Fallout: The price of disaster[Infographic]

In addition, mobile carriers recently rolled out the WirelessEmergency Alert (WEA) system — emergency messages sent byauthorized government alerting authorities through your mobilecarrier. These disaster alert systems are allowing individuals toreceive advance warning of catastrophes and plan accordingly.Already the system has been used effectively in the wake of theBoston Marathon bombing, during Hurricane Sandy, and in the 2013New York City blizzard.

Closer to home, monitoring and sensor systems are now beingintroduced to the consumer market. These home systems enable usersto remotely track key elements including smoke detectors and waterdamage. As a result, individuals are able to receive alerts ifthere is anything amiss at home.

These technologies are reducing the number and even severity ofinsurance claims. Insureds are able to protect their properties andthemselves before a disaster hits, diminishing any potentialdamages and costs. In fact, many insurance organizations areproviding discounts and other cost-savings to insureds who utilizemonitoring and censoring systems.

(Photo: Shutterstock)

Improving CAT assessment

During a disaster situation, insurance organizations must beready to respond immediately and effectively to adequately meet theneeds of their insureds. Assessing the damage is a key part ofdetermining the response required and pinpointing the key areas ofneed.

Drones have begun to play an important role within the insuranceclaims process. Organizations are currently using drone technologyto assist in the claims process following disasters, as well as toprevent fraud. Frequently when appraising claims, adjustersencounter hazardous and dangerous situations — from climbingscaffoldings and ladders to examining fire-damaged buildings andnavigating disaster scenes.

Related: Worldwide natural catastrophe losses at theirhighest in four years, says Munich Re

During catastrophes they encounter damaged and blocked roads,broken power lines, debris and other hazards on their way toevaluate losses, affecting their ability to quickly assessclaims.

Now drones provide assistance in collecting data and photographsof affected areas, expediting the time needed to respond todisaster claims. According to Cognizant, drone usage is predicted to makeadjusters' workflow 40 to 50 percent more efficient. They canquickly cover large areas of property and evaluate the situationthrough sensors and high-resolution images.

The prevalence of user-based information (UBI), telematics andon-board device (OBD) systems are further impacting theeffectiveness of insurance organizations in assessing andresponding to disasters. These systems provide insurers withreal-time, factual data that can be used to determine the breadthand severity of a situation.

This data is often seen as more credible since it is not basedon recollection but actual data and facts. Already, the use of UBIhas skyrocketed, with the number of consumers with a UBI policydoubling in the past year. Wide-spread use of UBI will continue toassist insurers in gathering and verifying information with studiespredicting its continued growth.

(Photo: iStock)

Changing how insurers respond

When a disaster strikes, insurers must react quickly to answerquestions, address victims' concerns and help initiate the claimsassessment process. Sometimes connecting with consumers can be achallenge. However, social media and new mobile applications arechanging the way insurance companies respond.

Social media has become a key communication platform sinceindividuals facing a disastrous situation frequently turn to socialmedia to share their stories and gather information. According toTwitter, more than 20 million event-relatedtweets were published in the wake of Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Thistotal exceeds the 13.7 million tweets published during the SuperBowl.

Recognizing the potential audience and influence of socialmedia, insurers are using the platform as an informationdissemination resource. Organizations are sharing their contactinformation, directions on where to find claims reportinginformation, the location of available assistance, policy coverageinformation, storm updates and even links to local, state andnational resources to help with disaster cleanup.

In addition, some insurers are monitoring social media to gathervital information to assist in the claims adjusting process.Organizations are using posts to track roads that are closed, viewlive images and videos, and get close-up information. Extractingthis information from social media outlets allows them to develop afuller picture of the situation and determine their responseneeds.

Beyond social media, new mobile applications for claims enablepolicyholders to jump start and streamline the claims process.Through these apps, insureds are able to photograph damage withtheir cellphones and submit it to their insurance carriers. Thisprovides claims adjusters with a better idea of the scope of damageand allows them to start the process before even arriving on thescene. In today's market, where the customer experience isparamount, the ability to shorten the claims timeline is a vitalpart of remaining competitive.

Technology is changing the way the world does business. Withinthe insurance industry, disrupters are impacting the preparationfor, assessment of and response to disaster scenarios. Astechnology continues to change at a break-neck pace, insuranceorganizations must adapt and evolve in order to best address theircustomers' needs. Only those that embrace this innovation will findfuture success.

Dave Coons ([email protected])is senior vice president of The Jacobson Group, a global providerof talent to the insurance industry.