High-paced industries of all kinds can create busy office environments. The last thing you need is tripping over bulky fax machines. Faxing digital documents from your computer or mobile device retains all the traditional benefits of faxing while combining the modern conveniences of remote accessibility.
Given the enormous amount of data transmitted during the insurance claims process, online fax services like those offered by eFax have already created success stories with national insurance companies.
The Importance of Online Faxing in the Insurance Industry
The insurance industry is all about data. You use it for risk assessments, claim processing, fraud detection, trend forecasting, and more. With all this data transferring between many different departments within the business, one slight misstep can lead to a cascade of errors affecting everyone involved.
Secure storage of customers’ private information is crucial. This is where the limitations of email and other communication methods come into play. Emails are rarely encrypted, making them susceptible to interception and hacking. However, when you send a fax online, the information is encrypted and kept secure. The password protection of cloud storage also affords a high level of security compared to paper faxes sitting out on a traditional fax machine.
Benefits and Advantages of Digital Faxes for Insurance Companies
The benefits of digital faxing will give your insurance company peace of mind knowing you’re handling data safely and economically.
1. Streamlined Document Management and Workflow Efficiency
Online fax services such as eFax have robust features granting you complete control over handling your documents. They include automatically labeling and filing them, thus increasing workflow efficiency and reducing the risk of human error.
When an insurance company processes a claim, accuracy and speed are paramount in offering high-quality service. Having the system automatically organize your data accurately removes the need to check every detail manually. This improved efficiency reduces costs and allows your team more room for productivity.
Online fax services also offer the ability to integrate with third-party software. This allows you to connect with your customer relationship management (CRM) tool to easily track every aspect of your dealings with a customer while quickly accessing their documents.
Having everything linked can also help detect and analyze customer behavior patterns, allowing you to price your products better and identify potentially fraudulent claims.
2. Enhanced Layers of Security and Compliance With Insurance Regulations
As insurance companies deal with sensitive data like medical records, they are subject to strict regulations and must ensure they comply with high levels of security. Several industry regulators, such as HIPAA, SOX, and GLBA, among other state and federal agencies, oversee compliance. The consequences of poor compliance include fines, loss of licenses, not to mention substantial reputational damage.
Online fax services ensure your information is transmitted using end-to-end encryption, making it much more secure than traditional email. eFax stores incoming faxes in secure cloud fax servers, adding another safeguard to your data.
Other advanced fax features also further your company’s compliance. Online fax services offer audit trails and digital signatures, providing a comprehensive record of data transmissions and which parties have accessed them.
3. Improved Collaboration and Communication With Clients and Partners
Most companies use email to communicate both internally and externally. There are several advantages that an online fax service provides over traditional email without losing any of the convenience.
You can still send and receive a fax from an email address, so clients who only use email won’t know the difference. On the other hand, you’ll know the fax will arrive instantly and securely.
eFax also provides document conversion so the recipient gets the most suitable file type. If you send a client a life insurance agreement, a PDF file may be most appropriate. It’s easy to collaborate on a document with a colleague as a .docx file, then quickly convert it to a PDF before sending it to the client. Online fax services can also convert .xlsx and .txt files, not to mention allowing you to attach images to your faxes.
4. Cost Savings and Reduction in Paper Usage
Online fax services provide a great way to reduce costs and save on paper compared to traditional fax machines. You immediately save on overhead since you don’t have to buy and store a bulky fax machine, and then you save again with the reduction in operational maintenance costs.
If you still use a traditional fax machine, you may be wasting time and money digitizing all incoming faxes anyway. Take advantage of an online fax service and instantly save all your faxes in any file format you require.
5. Increased Accessibility and Mobility for Remote Operations
Using cloud-based fax services online grants mobility in today’s insurance industry. As in many industries today, insurance professionals have the opportunity to work from home more. But they need to remain just as connected as they were in the office.
It goes much deeper than that for insurance professionals and their clients. Some situations necessitate an on-the-ground adjuster. The ability to send secure faxes to a colleague’s email address right from your mobile phone can expedite the assessment process.
Elevate Your Insurance Operations With Online Faxing Service
You have seen how online fax services can revolutionize how your insurance company communicates internally and externally with clients. You not only benefit from security, which helps significantly with regulatory compliance, but it is also faster and more reliable than traditional email.
You can access and send your documents from anywhere without needing large, outdated fax machines. If you are ready to upgrade your communications, choose the best online fax service. At eFax, we have been number one in the industry for 20 years and have millions of customers.
Get in touch to find out more about HIPAA-compliant online faxing from eFax.
