When insurers talk about mobile technology, the conversationusually revolves around smartphones — but at some point soon suchdiscussions will likely be broadened to include the possible use ofdrone aircraft for claims management.

Insurance isn't the only industry considering the potential fordrone observation. Ranchers may use them to help keep track ofstray livestock. Filmmakers could employ drones to enhance actionfootage. Firefighters may depend on them to assess conditionsbefore entering a burning building. Police could deploy them tolook for perpetrators and their vehicles if suspects are on therun. Security firms could keep an eye on large properties from highabove the ground.

Energy companies may send drones to inspect oil and gaspipelines in remote regions. Online booksellers have alreadyspeculated about trying to reduce delivery time with such aircraft.News organizations are eager to capitalize on the exclusive pointof view drones could offer, particularly when covering a disasteror a celebrity wedding.

Imagine the possibilities for insurance claims managers. Atornado devastates a community. Roads are impassable because ofdebris and downed power lines, and access is being restricted tofirst responders in their emergency and law enforcement vehicles.Insurance claims adjusters may be unable to do any on-site surveysof the damage to insured properties for days.

Instead of waiting for the roads to clear, why not send a droneinto the area and at least get started with a basic claimsassessment? Not only would insurers be able to deliver more timelysettlements to policyholders, but adjusters could cover a widerarea than by traveling around on the ground. Drones might alsospare adjusters from being exposed to the hazards of inspectingcatastrophe claims in areas that often resemble a war zone.

Whatever the catastrophe may be — a wind event, flood,earthquake, mudslide, or wildfire — drones could support insurerefforts to get a handle on the damages by flying right over thescene and transmitting real-time images back to an adjuster'stablet or smartphone, as well as directly to the home office.

Drones could support claims management in certainnon-catastrophe situations as well. Consider home- or businessowners filing claims for roof damage after a hail storm or somelesser weather event. An adjuster could literally get a bird's eyeview by sending a drone up to take a closer look and record imagesfor the official record.

Challenges remain

Of course, however valuable they may eventually turn out to be,the incorporation of drones into a claims management arsenal islikely to take time as a number of variables need to be sorted outfirst.

For one, the Federal Aviation Administration has yet todetermine exactly how to regulate drones flown by hobbyists, letalone commercial enterprises. Insurers, perhaps more than anyone,should appreciate such precautions as sound risk management. Wecan't just have people launching drones into the sky abovepopulated areas willy-nilly, which could end up causing more harmthan good.

However, even after government regulations are in place,insurers will have hurdles to clear. For example, those actuallycontrolling the drones for claims management will need to betrained and perhaps even certified to demonstrate they've masteredthe necessary skills. That raises the question of whether carrierswill equip their own adjusters with drones, or hire a third partywith the equipment, expertise, and regulatory clearance to respondas needed on demand.

Then there are the liability implications to consider. Shouldthis idea catch on, it's possible that multiple insurers coulddeploy dozens of drones at the same time, particularly if we'retalking about a widespread disaster area. That could increase thepossibility of midair collisions in a suddenly crowded,low-altitude airspace. And even under the best of conditions, withno other such aircraft in the vicinity, drones could malfunction orbe misdirected and end up crashing, hurting people or damagingproperty beneath them.

One way to limit this liability could be cooperation amonginsurers, especially in a disaster area. Multiple carriers withinsured properties on the ground could work through a single vendoror share data from one or a handful of drones deployed on behalf ofa group of company adjusters to limit the amount of air traffic andthe possibility of an accident, while spreading the liabilityaround.

Still, carriers will need to make sure they are covered forbodily injury and property damage claims in case one of their dronemissions goes awry, particularly if they contract with an outsidevendor. Indeed, an entirely new sector of the aviation marketcould emerge should commercial use of domestic drones expanddramatically, in the insurance industry and beyond.

These are all important matters to address, but the biggestquestion is whether the expense and risk of using drones can bejustified after calculating the value of their potential benefitsfor claims management.

While drones may sound like a “pie in the sky” idea to some, Ihave a feeling that in time this technology will be a standardcomponent of claims adjusting, especially in a disaster situation.Given the increasingly ubiquitous presence of surveillance camerasposted on city streets and highways, as well as those attached tostores and other buildings, making such observation capabilitiesmore mobile appears to be a logical next step.

Before long, the next time you look up, your insurer may belooking back at you!