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What is Remote Visual Inspection?

Remote visual inspection (RVI) is the practice of inspecting a vehicle, property, asset or piece of equipment over live video instead of in person. Using visual remote assistance, an expert — a claims adjuster, surveyor, underwriter or technician — guides the person on site (often a customer or policyholder) to point their smartphone camera at what needs to be examined, then directs the view, annotates the live image, freezes frames, and captures time-stamped, geotagged photos as documentation.

Because it runs in the mobile browser with no app to download, remote visual inspection works for anyone with a smartphone, which makes it practical at scale for consumer-facing inspections such as insurance claims, pre-policy risk surveys, and damage assessment.

Where remote visual inspection is used

  • Insurance claims & FNOL: assess vehicle or property damage live, decide remotely whether an adjuster visit is needed, and capture evidence to deter fraud.
  • Underwriting & risk surveys: inspect a property or asset before binding a policy without scheduling a field visit.
  • Field service & equipment: diagnose machinery or installations remotely before dispatching a technician.

Benefits

  • Fewer site visits — resolve or triage remotely; the auto industry’s shift from under 15% to roughly 60% virtual claims handling shows how far this can go (LexisNexis Risk Solutions).
  • Faster cycle times & lower cost — claims digitization can cut loss adjustment expense by 25–30% (McKinsey).
  • Stronger evidence & fraud defense — live, time-stamped, geotagged capture beats after-the-fact reconstruction, important given that an estimated 10–20% of P&C claims involve fraud (Insurance Information Institute).

Learn more about VSight

See how insurers use remote visual inspection for visual claims and FNOL.

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