How insurance companies can speak their customers’ language

By Kristin Quinlan

The process of filing an insurance claim can be daunting—and even more so for the 1 in 5 U.S. residents who speak a language other than English at home. Language barriers make it difficult for people with limited English proficiency to file claims and gain access to information about everything from business hours to policy renewal procedures, claim status, policy changes and more.

Forward-thinking insurers are increasingly recognizing the value of language services as a customer experience differentiator. Language services are a powerful way to improve claim efficiency statistics and reduce costs by ensuring that agents and customers exchange accurate info the first time they talk, bolstering first-contact resolution rates. Working with interpreters can also reduce frustration around language barriers for the agent as well as the customer.

Language services are increasing in importance

The LEP population in the U.S. has roughly tripled since 1980, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Now, about two-thirds of the LEP community, or nearly 42 million people, speak Spanish at home, followed by Chinese (spoken by 3.49 million in U.S. homes), Tagalog (1.7 million), Vietnamese (1.5 million) and Arabic (1.2 million).

But while requests for Spanish-speaking interpreters consistently dominate, demand for the hundreds of other languages spoken in the U.S. is constantly evolving. The languages your customers speak will ebb and flow as communities of immigrants, refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants shift. This makes understanding your customer base critical to ensuring that your teams can effectively communicate with the people they serve.

Customers want to communicate in their language of choice

Customers want and expect to speak to someone in their preferred language, and they often take language support into account when choosing the companies they will do business with. In fact, a survey by CSA Research found that 76% of people say they’re more likely to purchase from the same brand again if customer service is offered in their language. Further, 70% of end users say they feel more loyal to companies that provide support in their native language.

When businesses engage with customers in their preferred languages, they forge deeper connections, improving the overall customer experience. This helps companies both attract new customers and retain existing ones, serving as a powerful competitive differentiator.

Putting it into action

If you’re wondering how to begin supporting the LEP community, start small. You don’t have to staff up to serve the more than 350 languages spoken in the U.S.—that would be almost impossible, and quite certainly cost-prohibitive to do. Here are a few steps to help you get started in a way that makes sense for your business.

Track the languages your customers speak: Ask your customers what their preferred language is and document that in their file. This will give your employees easy visibility into when they will need to request an interpreter — and in which language — for customers you can’t communicate with through bilingual agents. It can also be useful to note in a customer’s file when an interpreter was used.

Evaluate whether it makes sense to translate your help documents or website: One study found that 91% of people would use an online knowledge base if it were available and tailored to their needs, and another survey found that nearly two-thirds of people prefer online content in their language. Consider whether translating help documents or web pages into Spanish (as well as other languages many of your customers speak) would help you better serve your policyholders.

Assess your bilingual employees: Many insurers hire bilingual employees to serve their customers, with resources often focused on the most common languages spoken. Consider formally assessing your bilingual employees for language proficiency, whether in-house or using a third-party service, to ensure they can truly support your LEP customers in language.

Consider partnering with a language services provider: Whether you’re looking to support your customers with languages your employees don’t speak or you want to provide overflow support for your bilingual customer service agents, a language services partner can help you provide great service to all your customers. Qualified interpreters keep calls flowing as quickly as possible, reducing the handle time for calls that might otherwise run longer if an unqualified interpreter needs to ask for repetition or has trouble correctly interpreting complex terminology. Ask prospective partners about their contact center metrics — average speed of answer, connection time to an interpreter and so on — as well as their onboarding and interpreter qualification processes.

Get the word out about the language services you offer: Finally, make sure that customers and prospects know about any multilingual services you offer. Promoting that you offer interpreters and translated materials on your website and advertising in spaces your customers frequent (online or in person) can help you reach new customers and increase the loyalty of existing ones.

In today’s increasingly multilingual world, you can’t afford to focus solely on English-speaking customers. Everyone deserves to be able to communicate with the insurers they do business with in their preferred language, whether they’re looking for coverage for a new home or managing the aftermath of a traffic collision. By taking steps to ensure that you’re accommodating your customers’ language preferences, you can boost customer loyalty and reach new communities of people who are hesitant to engage with an insurer who doesn’t speak their language.

Kristin Quinlan is the CEO of Certified Languages International (CLI), a U.S.-based interpreting company founded in 1996. CLI specializes in remote interpreting services in 230+ languages, handling 20,000–30,000 calls daily across various industries. Contact her at [email protected].