NU Online News Service, Oct. 2, 2:00 p.m. EDT
American Family Insurance said it is providing new cell phone applications customers can use to file a claim, pay insurance bills, check their accounts and locate the nearest American Family agent.
The Madison, Wis.-based carrier said the new applications are designed for Apple iPhone and BlackBerry Storm users and a new, streamlined version of the company's Web site is available to all mobile phone users.
Bill Simon, American Family Insurance's digital marketing director, said, "People rely on mobile technology so they can do business with us from virtually anywhere at any time."
The company said the new applications and mobile Web site deliver a better user experience on mobile devices with smaller screens and potentially slower Internet connections, because by eliminating much of the graphic and multimedia extras, the clean interface quickly links users to business functions.
American Family said the iPhone and BlackBerry applications are downloadable programs that allow the user to quickly access commonly used functions of the company's Internet site.
As an example, the firm said the new applications will allow customers to immediately report a claim from the scene of an accident and locate nearby vendors that can help repair their vehicle.
American Family said the iPhone application is now available for download from the iPhone App Store and amfam.com. and the BlackBerry application, for Storm model only, will be available soon from amfam.com and the Built for BlackBerry store.
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