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Connected Claims Intelligence: Better Data at FNOL

Carla McDonald

Director, Product Management, U.K. and Ireland

 A solar eclipse, a hit-and-run, and a lesson in claims data

On the night of the solar eclipse, a colleague parked in a busy car park near a local beach to watch the phenomenon safely through a kitchen colander. Less than an hour later, she returned to find the nearside headlight smashed, the bumper scraped and dented, and the bonnet bent by the force of a collision with another vehicle.

It had all the hallmarks of a hit-and-run: an innocent claimant and a third party nowhere to be seen. She was fortunate that a witness (a former police officer, as it happened) saw the collision and stayed long enough to share his details and, crucially, the third party's vehicle registration number (VRN).

Notifying the insurance broker was straightforward. The claims handler was calm and efficient, asking about the circumstances, witness information, the make and model of the third-party vehicle and the VRN. They were able to confirm quickly that the third-party vehicle was insured. The car hire company requested the same detailed information. The repairer asked for further details, and the legal team requested a recap of the collision. There was also a courtesy call by the claims management company.

Because my colleague could not exchange details directly with the third party, multiple parties in the claim appeared to be asking for, checking or rekeying the same basic facts: her vehicle, the third-party vehicle, contact details and insurance cover.

She was also shaken enough that she nearly drove home without checking whether the witness had noted the VRN. That response may not be unusual. Research from LexisNexis® Risk Solutions found that seven in 10 drivers either lack full confidence in their ability to exchange the necessary information after a collision or believe the stress of the situation could affect their ability to take or provide the right information.

At a time when claims volumes remain under pressure, vehicle complexity is increasing and fraud risks continue to evolve, claims costs continue to rise. In the Financial Conduct Authority’s 2025 Measures and Values data, 59% of motor premiums were paid out in claims in 2025, even as premiums themselves fell by 7% over the same period . Against that backdrop, customers who are used to the speed and transparency of online banking and retail are bringing those same expectations to their insurance provider. 

Where the real inefficiency lies

This is where connected claims intelligence available at FNOL could improve claims efficiency and reduce friction. Because this was a hit-and-run, if my colleague had been in or near the car at the time of the collision, what chance would she have had of stopping the other driver and obtaining their details? Where a VRN can be identified through connected claims intelligence, the third-party vehicle’s identity and insurance status could be validated automatically, eliminating the need for the claimant to capture and provide that information themselves. In addition, data on my colleague’s Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and windscreen specifications could also have helped confirm the right repairer and speed up the claim. For insurance providers, MGAs, hire companies, repair networks and the wider claims supply chain, time spent chasing information is costly in a market where speed is increasingly becoming a competitive differentiator.

If the claims ecosystem could draw on connected claims intelligence at FNOL to provide a more consistent, shared and trusted view of the core facts about the vehicles and individuals involved, decisions would be faster, more consistent and easier to stand behind later. That could support better triage, reduce avoidable indemnity leakage, improve customer experience and, ultimately, contribute to stronger claims outcomes. 

Almost three weeks later, my colleague was still waiting for her car to be collected for repair. Chasing an update, she discovered the repairer had lost the email containing photos of the damage. Fortunately, she had delayed the car hire agreement until the car had been taken to the garage - otherwise a lost email could have added unnecessary hire costs to the claim.

That delay was a process failure, not a data failure, but it illustrates how a small communications error can carry a real financial cost. The same is true of poor claims decisions made with incomplete data, which can lead to rework, misrouting and delay. Both add to the cost’s insurance providers bear and, ultimately, feed into the cost of cover for customers.

Claims intelligence at FNOL can reduce uncertainty from decisions made earlier in the claims journey, helping claims progress faster and more consistently while giving insurance providers greater confidence in those decisions. What builds customer trust is not just resolving claims correctly but resolving them without asking customers to compensate for disconnected processes across the industry.

 ILexisNexis Risk Solutions Research. The questions were asked as part of a nationwide omnibus survey by TLF Research conducted among 2,741 U.K. consumers from 10 to 29 June 2026consumers from a mix of age groups, genders, and geographical locations. 2348 of those respondents were drivers.

iihttps://www.fca.org.uk/data/general-insurance-value-measures-data-2025