Is Automated Underwriting Essential For An Insurance Company
Is automating the underwriting system the only way for insurance companies to stay afloat in todays competitive market
? Before finding an answer to this question, it is necessary to understand a few things, of which the most significant is the advantages automated underwriting system offers for an insurance business.The system reduces insurance application processing time
The system minimises errors and inconsistencies
The system lowers processing costs
The system frees professional underwriters from the repetitive tasks
The system enhances customer experience
While competitive prices are essential for achieving success in the field of insurance, reduction in costs is also necessary. Moreover, as the insurance processing is done accurately and within a short time, it helps retain existing customers and build up on new customer base as well.
Automating the most vital part of insurance processing, underwriting, offers a number of advantages for a business. However, availing the advantages of the automated system depends on the success of the implementation. Proper planning is necessary before you choose an automated solution for your insurance underwriting.
Step 1: Analyse the current process. Understanding the way your present business works is essential for assessing the way to incorporate the automated system. The business processes and the individuals, teams and departments, including IT and sales, involved in these are important factors to consider in this analysis.
Step 2: Determine the requirements. Is your business completely based on paper-processing? If so, transition from this to complete automation of the risk assessment and decision making process may not be feasible. The specific requirements of your business are important considerations in this regard.
Step 3: Fix the budget. Every insurance company has specific budget regarding upgrading different aspects of business processes. It is better to set the budget, and get it approved from the authorities, before you start looking for automated risk assessment and underwriting solutions.
Step 4: Involve the right people. Along with the underwriting department, you would also need to involve the IT and the sales departments in the selection process. The selection, installation and implementation of the system would require the services of all these departments. Moreover, you would also have to think about the training necessary for this.
Step 5: Opt for the right solution. Different solutions are available for complete or partial automation. You may select partial automation of the underwriting process, where data collection is done manually but the assessing and decision making is automated or you may opt for automating the entire process with the right tools at the point of sale.
Automating the underwriting system offers insurance businesses the right edge in this competitive market. However, planning ahead is important to ensure that the automated underwriting solution you are implementing is suitable for your business and is capable of delivering the benefits you seek.
An efficient underwriting system proves advantageous for the insurance business, the agents and the customers; however, success is possible only when the right people take the right approach to determine the right solution.
by: Daniel Smith