Jewellery and niche insurance claims expert Independent Validation Advisory Australia (IVAA) says its proprietary cloud-based software Loupe helped it diversify into insurance categories outside its jewellery portfolio as it developed digital tools with service providers to help insurers manage claims.

IAG worked with IVAA to “fill the void” caused as insurance-related businesses and retail organisations had to restructure operations to remain viable during COVID restrictions. New ways of working in categories vacated by larger corporate retailers were proposed, IAG Lead of Category Management, Model Performance, Property & Niche Claims Paul Jospe says.

“IVAA has worked hand-in-hand with our company to innovate to take advantage of this new gap in the market, collaborating on a proposal to relaunch within the IAG insurer business the General

Sporting, Fitness, Camping Fishing and Outdoors category,” Mr Jospe said.

“While retaining good commercial outcomes for insurers, this will also mean that IVAA will create local employment for potentially displaced staff who are specialists in this category."

IVAA has been shortlisted as a finalist for the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF) Service Provider to the Industry award, which Brisbane-based IVAA won in both 2019 and 2018.

IVAA MD Matthew McHutchison has been nominated in Australia as Young Insurance Professional of the Year. He was also a finalist in Australia in 2019.

“Our teams have worked very hard to ensure that our industry partners – insurers, jewellers and retailers – have survived and thrived in what has been for many, the toughest year for our

industry and our communities,” Mr McHutchison said. "I see achieving the awards shortlist as further support for the innovations that IVAA has been consistently working on.”

Last year, IVAA launched a ‘Remote Concierge’ service – an initiative to support insurers and suppliers to overcome the unique challenges of COVID. The online tool hosts a database of

suppliers that can provide virtual appointments, design services and zero-contact/remote fulfilment services, providing alternative options to fulfil claims when customers were not able to physically visit a jeweller/supplier due to lockdowns.

It also diversifed into hearing aids, furniture, sporting, fitness and leisure items, and processed 34,767 items from the Loupe platform across Australia and New Zealand, and introduced a free IVAA ClaimsPortal.io for insurance staff which was built by IVAA and JB Hi-Fi to help insurers search products and settle claims quickly.

A wide range of jewellers and retailers have added their products to the portal, it says.

The ANZIIF award winners will be announced tomorrow in Australia and on November 17 at the Cordis in Auckland.