After working with Key, the equity release firm, Aveni.ai has developed an AI-powered model to detect customer vulnerability.
Embedding Aveni.ai into the heart of its contact centre technology, Key can now monitor conversations in real-time to identify possible vulnerable customers.
Ordinarily, detecting vulnerability is almost always left to the judgement of an individual advisor. For businesses that operate in highly regulated industries, such as finance, this approach to dealing with vulnerable customers often misses the mark.
After all, the following statistics highlight the alarming percentage of vulnerable customers across the industry:
- 4 million people have taken payment deferrals on mortgages and other credit products (FCA Perimeter Report, 2020)
- 22% of people who said they were shielding due to the pandemic have fallen behind on household bills, compared to 6% of people who are not shielding (Citizens Advice)
However, by monitoring 100% of customer conversations, the AI automatically detects signs of vulnerability. These include asking unrelated questions, making irrelevant points, using phrases such as: “My partner used to handle these things,” and much more.
By spotting such troublesome patterns, Key can reimagine its customer vulnerability processes. Harnessing AI, the equity firm will make its vulnerability framework as transparent and robust as possible. In doing so, they strengthen both the customer and advisor experience.
Making this point, Will Hale, CEO of Key, says:
Beyond efficiency, this partnership will allow us to drive greater transparency and oversight, and help us to better identify vulnerable and other high-risk customers, all of which contribute towards ensuring the best possible outcomes for our customers.
Those identified as vulnerable will receive specialist support from Key’s “vulnerability champions”. These contact centre agents receive extensive training, covering a range of vulnerabilities. From age to ill-health (both mental and physical), socio-economic status to illiteracy, these agents understand how to support all types of vulnerable customers.
Aveni.ai will also work with Key to power superior advisor training and oversight processes while bolstering their quality assurance (QA) programme. As a Natural Language Processing (NLP) specialist, the AI provider can uncover a wide range of customer and agent insights. These go beyond customer vulnerability.
