Meet Hollard

Business Benefits

• Consolidated operational infrastructure from five fragmented legacy claims platforms onto a single cloud architecture
• Unlocked real-time visibility into portfolio metrics, slashing custom report generation from four days to just 15 minutes
• Accelerated digital self-service adoption by doubling online first notification of loss (FNOL) submission rates from 20% to 40% across brands

The Story

As a top insurer in Australia, The Hollard Insurance Company Pty Ltd delivers a diverse portfolio of products, spanning motor, home, contents, business, bicycle, and pet insurance. A commitment to scaling and massive partnership wins propelled Hollard from a $400 million business in 2015 to a $3.3 billion business. However, this rapid growth created an incredibly complex operational web of disjointed legacy applications.

Hollard recognized that complexity is the enemy of scale. Managing more than 130,000 new claims annually required a unified core infrastructure to streamline manual workarounds, support compliance, and protect customer relationships.

To establish this core foundation, Hollard executed a massive digital transformation, deploying ClaimCenter on Guidewire Cloud. As the first carrier in the region to adopt Guidewire's cloud-native claims engine, the team methodically consolidated its claims environments. This shift enabled immediate, automated coverage determinations directly at the first point of contact.

Transitioning from decades of custom legacy architecture required a strict commitment to standard cloud design. “We went backwards before we could go forward,” noted Daniel Dearsley, Head of Claims Transformation at Hollard. “The years of customization and integration that had been established through our legacy platforms was no longer the path. Moving to one consistent way of doing things means more efficiency, more scale, and ultimately better claims outcomes.”

A crucial element of reducing this complexity was Guidewire’s regional Australian content delivered directly within ClaimCenter. This out-of-the-box functionality became incredibly helpful for Hollard when navigating specific local regulatory issues, such as the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

“Taxation law in Australia is complex,” stated Paige Vincent, Chief Operating Officer at Hollard. “Having that built and delivered by Guidewire reduced the complexity of our implementation. We're looking forward to additional local market content that Guidewire is investing in.”

By leveraging the Jutro Digital Platform alongside this regional framework, Hollard engineered a reusable digital front-end for FNOL workflows across its diverse distributor ecosystem. Digital self-service options immediately scaled, with online FNOL submission rates jumping from 20% to an average of 40% across its major insurance brands.

Simultaneously, Hollard integrated Guidewire Explore and Data Studio to help foster a data-driven culture. Previously, building complex portfolio reports or tracking user adoption required days of manual data manipulation. Today, teams generate granular operational insights in under fifteen minutes.

Automation and AI

With its cloud foundation secure, Hollard is testing automated, AI-driven efficiencies.

“We established a mission to elevate the expertise of claims adjusters by harnessing the power of AI, with the goal of leading to more accurate decision making, increased efficiency, and better all-round experiences for our customers, brokers, and our people,” Dearsley said. “Through generative AI capabilities and our partnership with Guidewire, we have gone into a pilot phase of Claims Summarization.”

Guidewire's Generative AI-powered Claims Summarization tool condenses complex, multi-page case notes into clear paragraphs. Early pilot results from Hollard subject matter experts highlight a 70% reduction in case review times.

“If we deployed this tomorrow, even in the current format, it would provide a tremendous upside, especially during catastrophe times,” stated Dearsley. “The reality of a fast return when you’re dealing with a portfolio of claims that has exploded based on a catastrophe is seriously viable. As we learn, we get better, and I think we make more intelligent decisions for our customers, our brokers, and ourselves.”

Hollard also plans to roll out ProNavigator within its Guidewire environment over the next six months, to enable its front-end teams to better support customers. “ProNavigator will enable our frontline staff to access the training they need for a complex situation right in the moment,” said Dearsley. “And then our goal is that ProNavigator will guide them through the conversation, help them draft some written communications for the customer, and then help devise the medium to long-term support strategy for that customer. It's a really simple premise, but very, very powerful.”