Suncorp New Zealand is ensuring its life insurance business Asteron Life, and its general insurance business Vero, will remain open for business from Thursday – in line with the government’s classification of insurance as an essential service.
The company has scaled up its work from home capacity to enable customer servicing and claims management to continue during the lock-down period. Both businesses are well equipped to work remotely, with many team members already used to working flexibly on a regular basis.
Suncorp New Zealand CEO Paul Smeaton says: “Insurance is vital in supporting the financial resilience of New Zealanders. We want to assure customers that we’re open and able to receive and process their claims.”
As the Vero and Asteron Life teams transition fully to working from home, there may be some practical constraints on how they operate, says Smeaton. Like many New Zealanders, many team members are balancing delivering for customers with caring for families.
“We’ll be doing our absolute best to prioritise helping you – please understand if it takes us a little longer than we’d like to take your call.”