SMART HOME DEVICES
big-tech companies to provide insurance products directly . When it comes to companies like Google , Amazon and Apple – the same companies that make some of the most popular smart devices in our homes – there was a notable reduction in interest , with consumers on average three percentage points less likely to consider purchasing insurance from an alternative provider than when GlobalData asked the same set of questions last year .
Indeed , as the number of smart home devices increases , so too , it seems , does the extent of mistrust . In a survey conducted by software company Mortgage Cadence , nearly three-quarters of Americans ( 73 %) fear their smart home devices are spying on them .
Newton ’ s third law of gravity states that every action has an equal and opposite reaction – and perhaps the increasing normalisation of these devices in our homes is ramping up the suspicion that consumers now have towards tech providers . This may have a residual effect on insurers themselves , particularly those keen on extracting more data from their customers ’ smart home systems .
Distrust in insurers is growing too . In a survey of 10,000 financial services customers carried out by Forrester , many insurers achieved lower trust ratings than banks . In fact , of the US insurance companies that Forrester sought consumer opinion about , not one achieved better than a ‘ moderate ’ score – defined as a trustworthiness rating of more than 74 out of 100 . This may prove to be a sign of our times ; the opportunity exists for insurers to utilise connected devices in a smarter and more efficient way , but whether insured consumers have the confidence to allow it remains to be seen .
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