Europ Assistance is part of the Generali Group, one of the largest insurance groups in the world. The Europ Assistance branch in the Czech Republic operates as a key service center, processing invoices from 119 countries. They handle up to 20,000 invoices monthly, placing high demands on the efficiency and accuracy of our processes.

Challenge

Europ Assistance in the Czech Republic faced significant challenges in invoice processing. The high volume of processed documents required more efficient and accurate processes. The main reasons for digitizing and automating accounting were:

1. Increasing Invoice Processing Efficiency: By automating routine tasks, they were able to handle a larger volume of invoices faster and with less risk of errors.
2. Optimizing Human Resource Utilization: Instead of terminating the employment of highly qualified employees, they reallocated them from manual tasks to more strategic and beneficial activities.
3. Addressing the Lack of Qualified Workforce: They aimed to solve the problem of the shortage of qualified workers in the labor market through automation, without having to reduce the number of employees.

Why Digitoo

Digitoo was selected based on a tender process in which future users participated in the testing of potential systems. The project first went through the project committee, followed by the compliance process, the procurement process, and cybersecurity considerations within the holding. Subsequently, internal systems were adjusted and integrated with the CRM. After these steps, testing began, followed by deployment into production.

Adaptation among users was easier thanks to the testing environment. Users positively evaluate the pleasant and functional user interface, the quick and simple communication when needed, and they quickly adapted to using new internal applications necessary for working with Digitoo.

Process Before

Invoices were received in electronic or paper form through the mail. Paper invoices were laboriously scanned into electronic form, and all electronic invoices were then manually entered into the accounting system. Invoice approvers had to log into the accounting system, where manual validation of each invoice was conducted according to internal guidelines. Validated invoices were then imported for individual payment and accounting.

Solution

• Integration of Digitoo engine API into the business system
• Automation of data transcription using AI
• Creation and integration of Europ Assistance validation system with Digitoo
• Report overview for returned invoices with the ability for quick adjustments

Process After Digitoo

1. Electronic invoices are sent to an internal application (internal case records)
2. Then to the Digitoo application, where the invoices are automatically read
3. They are sent to the accounting system and automatically validated
4. In case of discrepancies, the invoice is returned to Digitoo for manual correction

Results

• Collaboration began in February 2022
• 79% of invoices are processed automatically without human intervention
• Elimination of the step of manual data entry from invoices
• Clear digital archiving of all liabilities
• Significant error reduction
• Improved data quality for reporting
• Created space for more specialized activities of qualified workers
• Quick adaptation of accountants to the system thanks to a testing environment

"With Digitoo, we eliminated repetitive, unproductive, and irritating manual tasks for accountants, reduced errors, sped up invoice processing, and created space for specialized activities." ~ Anna Ševčíková, Financial Manager of Europ Assistance

Next steps

For Europ Assistance, the goal is now to continuously increase the ratio of 100% correctly processed invoices without the need for human intervention. The next steps are to refine the validation system and provide Digitoo’s artificial intelligence with enough data to improve extraction accuracy.