Fiserv, Inc., has announced the results of its online survey on property/casualty insurance technology, which revealed leading insurance carriers have become adept at dealing with customers and business partners online. However, the report showed virtually all carriers recognize not only is there room for improvement but they continuously must improve their underlying technology to better serve their customers and enhance their competitive position. The results from the Fiserv survey identify critical business needs and the projects and technologies insurance carriers have under way to address them.

Seventy-five percent of respondents agreed one of their next three large-scale projects would involve their core system for maintaining insurance coverage information. Access to complete and immediate information allows the carrier to respond more effectively and efficiently. Sixty-seven percent said agency interface or comparative rating would be on their list of projects planned. Billing and claims projects to make things smoother for the customer tied at 42 percent.

Respondents noted the top three most important technologies for their organization included a data access layer (67 percent) that allows easier availability of decision-making information; business process management (46 percent) to streamline processes for highest efficiency; and Java technology (42 percent).