Innovation intelligence brief
Innovation intelligence brief
Added by the 2026 Swiss InsurTech research from public sources, not by the original academic study (Stoeckli, Dremel & Uebernickel). These innovations predate the 2021–2026 window; its 2016 and 2017 classifications apply the original taxonomy definitions but were not validated by that study. All innovations in this cohort · Methodology ↗
Insurer-initiated claims notification after hail: Baloise uses meteoradar.ch hail data to identify where a hailstorm of damaging intensity hit, sends affected customers an automatically generated, personalised SMS or e-mail asking whether their vehicle was damaged, and lets them confirm the claim through a link, after which they are connected with a partner garage.
Research profile · Swiss Innovation · to 2021
Classification notes · Record renamed and re-dated from the 2023 Rapid Damage Cockpit to the 2019 innovation; the cockpit and its people's choice award (November 2023) are a later milestone. 'Proactive warnings' / 'Predictive prevention, proactive warnings' (researcher's leaves) removed: the 2019 innovation contacts customers after the event; the pre-storm SMS was still being implemented in 2023. Replaced by 'New data sources' (weather radar data used in claims) and TC3 'Automated claims processing and verification' (data-driven, automated identification of probable claims). Strategic evolution 'expanded': the 2019 process covered hail damage to motor vehicles, with extension to other lines announced; the 2023 cockpit addresses customers affected by severe weather events generally and adds a planned pre-storm warning. No business-model-shift code applies (line extension within an insurer's claims process is not evidenced as a new insurance line). Company status 'corporate-initiative' (Helvetia Baloise group). Maturity 'unclear': no evidence after the 1 July 2026 merger of Baloise's Swiss insurers into Helvetia. Relevance 'moderate' is an interpretation.
What became of it
Reviewed · Medium confidence · Last verified 2026-10-18
At launch
Reversing the claims process after hail (2019): instead of waiting for calls, Baloise used radar hail data to identify customers whose vehicles were probably damaged and invited them by personalised SMS or e-mail to confirm the claim with one link, routing them to partner garages.
2026 reality
By November 2023 the approach had become the Rapid Damage Cockpit: a map identifies customers affected by a severe weather event, who automatically receive an e-mail or SMS form to report damage the same day; an automated pre-storm SMS warning was being implemented. On 1 July 2026 Baloise Versicherung AG merged into Helvetia Schweizerische Versicherungsgesellschaft AG; new contracts are issued by Helvetia and Baloise contracts remain valid. Whether the cockpit continues in the merged company was not verified.
Launched by June 2019 for hail damage to motor vehicles, with extension to other areas announced. In May 2019 Baloise also moved claims follow-up questions in Switzerland to personalised SMS/e-mail links. By 2023 the outreach had been extended into the map-based Rapid Damage Cockpit for severe weather events, with pre-storm SMS warnings in implementation; it won the people's choice award at the Swiss Insurance Innovation Awards in November 2023.
an early Swiss example of event-triggered, insurer-initiated FNOL for nat-cat claims in a hail-exposed market; complements Baloise's physical hail drive-ins and its 2018 hail-prevention flight pilot.
Third taxonomy
REVIEW · Reworked for the 'to 2021' window: re-dated from 2023 (Rapid Damage Cockpit award) to 2019-06 (Baloise media release of 20 June 2019, cash-online 21 June 2019, Moneycab 2 July 2019), renamed and re-keyed to the 2019 innovation; the 2023 cockpit is now a milestone. swissConnection.type 'swiss-insurer-product' (invalid) -> 'headquarters'. Added the Helvetia merger (1 July 2026) source and milestone and the May 2019 digital claims-contact release. Legacy leaves: removed proactive-warning leaves (pre-storm SMS not confirmed live), added 'New data sources' and TC3 'Automated claims processing and verification'. Strategic evolution unclear -> expanded; value chain risk-prevention removed; business model + risk-transfer (calibrated to other Baloise records); relevance limited -> moderate. REVIEWED rather than COMPLETED because the post-merger status is unverified.
Research interpretation
Classified by the Swiss Innovation · to 2021 research, applying the original models' definitions. Not a classification by the original study.