Reducing Operational Costs Through User-Centric Design

Introducing “Skip Inspection” feature.

Buying car insurance requires a vehicle inspection to verify its condition and to prevent fraud.

However, cars maintaining their original condition are eligible to skip this step when renewing insurance.

The “inspection” step was both time-consuming for users and costly for the business. To streamline the purchase process and reduce operational costs, Azki introduced a pioneering “Skip Inspection” feature.

🔥Impact

Operational costs reduced by almost 10% and slight improvements in Net Promoter Score (NPS) as orders were processed faster and easier.

Market Gap and Business Challenges

No other platform offered this feature, making it a step forward

🌐 Each insurance company had its own rules, many of which didn’t align with current economic realities. These terms often created friction for users.
🤝 Convincing insurance companies to revise their terms for the benefit of customers was the main challenge. Azki’s strong reputation made this possible, but only if the feature worked as intended.

This was not just about a feature — it was about introducing something entirely new:

🌍 With no benchmarks or historical data, predicting user response to this new feature was uncertain.
👥 Only 20% of users were eligible for this feature, so we had to ensure it fit smoothly into the existing funnel without affecting the majority.
🌟 This feature was aimed at new users, so clarity and simplicity were essential to keep them engaged.

My Role

As the lead designer collaborating with another product designer, i conducted competitive benchmarking and market research. I also redefined the initial solution based on user needs. And ran usability tests to validate our approach.

🤝 In collaboration with:

UX writer to craft clear, user-friendly messaging.
Product director for alignment with business goals.
Development team to ensure feasibility.

A Closer Look at the Design Process

Understanding Users

I engaged with offline insurance agents to understand customer behavior and awareness. which revealed that:

Only half of eligible customers knew about the skip inspection rule.

The initial proposed solution documented by the previous product manager didn’t fully align with user insights. By presenting my findings, I gained stakeholder support to refine the solution.

Mapping user insights against the initial solution to identify high-impact areas for refinement and alignment with user needs.

Redefine Solution: User Flow Optimization

I utilized tools like Figma for wireframes and flow mapping while collaborating closely with stakeholders, including developers and UX writer, to align on feasibility and clarity.

Feedback sessions with the product team were useful in identifying pain points and iterating on the design. This process ensured that the final user flow not only met the project goals but also matched Azki’s usability standards.

Observe . Reflect . Make

Key considerations:

🗂️ Data Gaps: Users often lacked required data from previous policies.
🔀 User Retention: Avoiding drop-offs caused by confusion or inconvenience.

Through iterative testing and refinement, the final design successfully addressed these challenges.

Iterative Testing and Feedback

I conducted iterative testing of user flows with real users to address the identified challenges. This approach included multiple rounds of gathering feedback and refining designs.

During usability tests, we discovered that users were hesitant to skip the inspection without clear reassurance. By explaining the rule and its benefits in a concise form, users’ confidence improved significantly.

Additionally, task completion rate was increased by 20%, highlighting the success in these iterations.

Final solution: Dual Options for Inspection

The final design offered two clear paths: proceed with inspection for new coverage or skip it by continuing previous conditions.

🎯Achievments

For each option, benefits were transparently outlined, ensuring users felt informed and confident in their choices.

This included clear explanations of how skipping the inspection could save time without compromising policy validity.

Also, we created a flow in each option in case users changed their mind which converted 32% of users to skip the inspection process.

These changes were validated through user testing, which showed a 80% increase in users choosing the skip option. It also provided guidance for users missing required data.

Results

✅ Operational costs decreased by 10%.

✅ Conversion rates remained stable, with drop-off below 0.01%.

✅ Improved user experience and faster processing boosted NPS slightly.
Stakeholders were pleased with the results, but there’s always room for improvement.

Future plans

This feature has been live for over a year, providing valuable insights. If I were to approach this project again, I would:

Conduct a more thorough pre-design analysis to better plan the roadmap.
Simplify the user experience further by introducing a straightforward yes/no question (e.g., “Have you added anything new to your car?”) to eliminate unnecessary complexities.

Sana Darabi