Winn Group selects low-code app development platform Toca to underpin transformation

UK accident claims services provider Winn Group has selected low-code enterprise development solution provider Toca to reverse its dependency on outsourcing and help drive the businesses’ wider digital transformation plans.

The Winn Group provides accident management, legal, health care and medico-legal services across the UK. After experiencing a four-fold increase in business leads, a new solution was required to manage the influx of invoices and claims being processed by the On Hire division – which provides replacement vehicles and repair management for road users.

Managing repair invoices involves a degree of manual tasks for On Hire employees, with all the key details and exemption criteria needing to be carefully checked. By harnessing Toca’s low-code apps and automation platform, Winn Group is in the process of developing new applications within its On Hire department to help automate its motor claims process end-to-end. The new, fully automated system will process over 1,000 repair invoices monthly with greater speed and accuracy, saving more than 160 hours of staff time each month.

Chief information officer at Winn Group, Clint Milnes, is responsible for the advancement and deployment of IT and automation. He said: “As the business continues to grow, we needed a solution to reduce our case handling duration so that we could process more claims while maintaining an excellent client experience. Toca was the perfect solution. By introducing automation to the process, we will benefit from greater speed and accuracy, and save significant staff time.”

Given the nature of the business and the need to connect with multiple suppliers across the vehicle hire process, there was a growing need to create bespoke Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to connect the systems of partners with the organisation. Previously, Winn Group did not have any in-house .net developers, meaning such work had to be outsourced, creating cost and delays to the business.

In partnering with Toca, Winn Group has reduced its reliance on outsourcing partners and taken greater control over its digital transformation. It has also allowed its in-house IT team to build applications and automate processes by using Toca’s low-code platform. The low-code functionality enables technically minded employees within Winn Group to create new systems and automate processes, without the need to write code themselves. This dramatically increases the speed at which Winn Group can build new solutions.

“Our API backlog was growing because we just didn’t have the internal capabilities to build middleware without a .Net developer,” Milnes said. “While most of our tech team is adept at using our bespoke case management system, they are not trained in using C-Sharp or .Net. Outsourcing was proving to be difficult, expensive, and often not fruitful. Now, we have internal developers using the platform to build new solutions and integrations, giving us much more control. We plan to roll out Toca to more internal staff throughout the year so that it can be used in every division across the group.”

In the future, Winn Group plans to move even more development in house, creating solutions that help to drive innovation across the business. “We see huge potential for the platform. There are areas of the business – such as wills, trust and probate – which are ripe for digital disruption. We are extremely excited at the prospect for Toca to transform our business. I keep jumping around when thinking about how much it can do for our company – and the list is endless. This is hopefully the start of a long relationship,” said Milnes.