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Mobile Appraiser Pro:
Leveraging AI to Repair a Vehicle
Overview
CCC Intelligent Solutions Inc. is the technology platform for the P&C insurance economy, helping to support connections between drivers, insurers, automotive manufacturers, and repair facilities. Mobile Appraiser Pro is one mobile application within their portfolio specifically to aid field appraisers in inspecting vehicles and writing accurate and timely repair cost estimates to help consumers get back on the road.
Why A Re-Design was Needed
• The photo capture flow of the application did not suit the user journey of a field appraiser. Thus, taking photos of a vehicle was a convoluted process from the user's point of view.
• A field appraiser's way of performing their job varies on an individual basis, as well as based on the location of the vehicle they are inspecting. The application did not provide any flexibility to the appraiser, instead only allowing a specific order in which tasks were completed.
• An additional feature would be added to the application: Low Touch Straight-Through Processing. Using an AI engine, this feature would automatically generate a list of likely car parts that would need to be repaired given the condition of the vehicle.
• A company-wide initiative was underway to create a consistent, polished design system across all applications.
Preliminary Research
To better understand field appraisers and how they used the original MAPro application, appraisers from insurance carriers such as Nationwide were interviewed. Behavior Impact Maps were used to gather data points on their work culture, anxieties, and goals. Those were then focused into user personas.
Experience
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I've been working in this field for 6 years and currently working for Nationwide.
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In the morning, I complete paperwork and respond to emails. Once that is done, I inspect damaged vehicles with open claims in the afternoon. I carry a phone and a laptop, and I use Verizon MiFi + cable for hotspot access. I require internet access for making a list of daily assignments, capturing vehicle damage, completing estimates, and submitting claims.
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In terms of digital tools, I use the legacy CCC mobile application to complete my daily tasks. Other than that, I mainly use email and Exposure (our internal system) to display and review my activity.
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If I'm in a hurry, I use my iPhone's native camera app to snap quick photos and use a cable connection to manually pull photos. (I skip the legacy app as it requires me to scan the VIN to take photos to begin with.) In areas with no signal, I use the iPhone camera as well and upload later. I typically don't annotate photos as I prefer my own documentation and write notes in the file on the desktop experience.
Tasks
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Get notifications of new claims assigned to me
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Checking to make sure the data in the claim is accurate
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Make a list of claims to complete for the day
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Go to the shop, tow yard, residence, etc. to check out the vehicle
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Have conversation with mechanics to get an idea of the vehicle condition and hear their judgement
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Collect photos, videos, and notes
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Talk to customers and answer their questions
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Evaluate the damage and write estimations
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(if I cannot capture the damage, I plan to go back later)
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Submit the estimate
Pain Points
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Inaccurate info about the vehicle and incident in the claim
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Time consuming (inconsistent) process to upload media on the app
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The app forces me to take pics in certain order and makes me go around the car and gives a lot of prompts
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Estimation errors of the app/AI model
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Long timing for the app to get the value for total
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Appraiser app is very slow and cumbersome to use for adjustor (good for customers)
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Old app could be attached to the cloud which was faster (Legacy app still does but it requires VIN capture which takes long)
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App recognizes exterior damages but not interior damages
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Lack of standards/norms for cars like Tesla
Preliminary Prototypes
Day 5 was the day of main solution selection via vote, as well as taking that solution and further refining the details and execution. Static prototypes of the AR solution for both the vehicle walk-around and damage close-up analysis were produced to help give a better idea before moving on to the final motion prototype and accompanying screens.
The Final Concept
The final concept video was made with both After Effects and some on-site filming. A film script was produced with certain user journey story beats in mind, to ensure that all aspects of the solution and experience would be represented in the recording. The UIUX elements were added after the fact over the video based on these notes to create a prototype that comes close to mimicking the real thing.
Accompanying mobile screens were also created to help tell the story of how this AR experience leads to a quick and efficient repair cost estimate generation. This idea can change the way consumers go through the claims process, as they can potentially inspect their vehicle themselves and decide with accurate predictions whether they should go through with filing the claim or paying out of pocket. The screens themselves were branded for State Farm, as this project was later used for a client-facing presentation with them.
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