What’s the one thing you can’t live without? It probably took you .07 of a second to answer, “My phone, of course!”

Our phones are indispensable. Without our phone, we can’t look anything up, listen to music, communicate with others, or purchase anything. It’s our lifeline and your constant companion.

So why are we still asked to abandon the “smart” part of our smartphones and use the same old dialing method when transacting with insurance companies? Admittedly, some are getting better at putting the customer experience on the smartphone. There are some great examples, like Lemonade, Metromile, and GEICO.

But – and here’s the big but! – there’s still too much friction when you try to file a claim after disaster occurs. You have to look up a phone number, call the number, sit on hold, speak to three different people, provide your policyholder number (and who knows where to find that number anyway?) and wait another 15 minutes until you’re given some kind of assurance that you’re being taken seriously and someone will look into your claim.

Or maybe you go to your insurer’s website and open up one of those dreaded chat windows. You can bet the uncertainty and delays only get worse when hundreds of other people are trying to get answers online after a major disaster.

As J.D. Power notes, “most insurers’ digital offerings are lacking in insurance-specific capabilities such as processing claims, effective shopping and servicing of policies.”

It shouldn’t be this difficult for the consumer.

Fortunately, two breakthroughs have converged to ease the pain of the interminable claims process:

1. Parametric insurance has shortened the time to payment.
2. Mobile technology has made it immediate.

You can now have a claims payment hitting your bank account within hours, with no hassle or human interaction.

The problem has been around forever: Too many things happen during a disaster that aren’t covered by a typical homeowners policy. With the exception of the dwelling and contents, few things damaged or destroyed are covered. Historically that put consumers in a bind, until advanced data science and computing came along and made it possible to insure all these additional risks. In fact, if it doesn’t appear in your homeowners policy, a supplemental hurricane policy will cover it.

Here’s an example of how parametric and mobile are teaming up to help people recover faster. Let’s say you live in Florida and a hurricane passes through your town, toppling a huge tree in your driveway. Now you’re stranded because your car is stuck in the garage. To make matters worse, you lost power, your food is spoiling, and you can’t get out to restock until the tree has been removed.

Few of us would have the cash sitting around to take care of these urgent matters quickly. If you’ve been through a hurricane, tornado, or similar disaster, you know the first 24 to 48 hours can be paralyzing. Your world is turned upside down.

However, if you had purchased a StormPeace policy, you can get the money you need almost instantly. There’s a painless claims process because the computer instantly calculates how much dough you’re eligible to collect. The amount is based on the strength of the storm and its distance from where you live.

So, you’re sitting on your front step lamenting your situation when all of a sudden you get an email saying you’re eligible for a claims payment. All you have to do is click “accept” attesting to the loss claims amount, and the money is wired to your bank. It’s like “found money” because you even forgot you purchased that parametric policy! And it’s a good thing your insurer notified you electronically, because your phone is about the only thing you own that’s working at the moment.

Applying for a StormPeace policy couldn’t be simpler:

• Submit your name and address
• Select a limit
• Click buy

Parametric insurance has been around for a while, used by many businesses. But StormPeace is one of the first companies to deliver this valuable tool to homeowners and other consumers. It provides the peace of mind that they’ll have money in their pocket to handle those surprise expenses that pop up, like needing to buy a generator, repair a pool cage or boat dock, or replant landscaping. They can also use the funds to meet their homeowners’ deductible, which can run into the thousands. Without meeting that deductible, repair work on your house will be delayed even longer.

Thanks to StormPeace, all you need is your smartphone to buy an insurance policy and get paid after the storm! You can still call us, too. Visit www.stormpeace.com to get started.