PJ Hayman improves digital travel insurance conversion with OpenDialog AI
PJ Hayman improves digital travel insurance conversion with OpenDialog AI How PJ Hayman used OpenDialog’s AI agent, Selma, to reduce friction in the Free Spirit journey, answer pre-purchase policy questions in real time, and help more customers buy with confidence online.
PJ Hayman wanted to make it easier for customers to buy travel insurance through their preferred digital channel, without unnecessary friction or a forced handoff to the phone.
OpenDialog’s AI agent, Selma, was deployed in the Free Spirit journey to answer quote and policy questions in real time, helping customers understand cover before purchase and even supporting quote changes through an API-led journey.
The result was a stronger online buying experience and measurable commercial impact: a 24% relative increase in quote-to-buy conversion, fewer simple queries routed to the travel team, and better insight into what customers need from the journey.
The challenge
As a leading travel insurance scheme provider with a broad customer base, PJ Hayman wanted to ensure a smooth and intuitive experience for customers using its digital journey.
The strategic goal was clear: reduce friction, improve the online experience, and help customers purchase via their channel of choice.
Just as importantly, PJ Hayman wanted to reduce demand on the travel team for simpler questions that could be resolved more effectively through an intelligent online solution.
Why OpenDialog?
PJ Hayman considered a range of options to support this strategic goal, but OpenDialog stood out as the natural fit. The team had been impressed by demonstrations of Jamie and Selma at BIBA and by how seamless the technology felt in practice.
OpenDialog offered a way to support customers without removing control from them. Instead of forcing people to call for help, the objective was to make customers feel informed, supported, and confident enough to complete the application online.
That mattered even more in a regulated environment. PJ Hayman needed confidence that any AI solution it implemented would be secure, transparent, and compliant.
OpenDialog’s approach gave the team assurance that it could support customers effectively while meeting those expectations.
The solution
PJ Hayman deployed Selma within the Free Spirit customer journey to support customers with quote and policy enquiries at the point of decision.
Selma is designed to answer the kinds of questions many customers have before they buy but may not find quickly in the policy wording. These include practical questions such as when to start a single-trip policy, whether cover applies per trip or across the full year, and what is included within a specific activity pack.
The implementation was intentionally simple. Selma integrates into the front-end B2C journey and can handle scenarios such as upgrading a quote from single trip to annual multi-trip through an API call into PJ Hayman’s software house.
The result is a straightforward, effective process with minimal technical implementation required.
The results
Since implementing Selma, PJ Hayman has seen a 24% relative increase in quote-to-buy conversion on the Free Spirit journey.
Selma has answered 191 customer queries, reducing the volume of simple questions referred to the travel team and enabling more customers to complete the journey through their chosen channel.
PJ Hayman has also seen an uplift in the number of customers who initially started with a single-trip policy and, after interacting with Selma, switched to an annual policy.
This suggests that better guidance at the point of purchase is helping customers choose the product that best fits their needs.
Beyond immediate conversion gains, the deployment has created a valuable feedback loop. By reviewing the questions customers ask and how Selma responds, PJ Hayman has gained insight into where the digital journey can improve. That insight has already informed two additional improvement sprints for their user experience.
As the technical landscape is evolving so rapidly, working with OpenDialog has enabled us to tackle some of our key business challenges with a robust, practical and reliable AI solution, putting customer needs at the forefront of this development.
