Applied Systems Initiative Offers Real-Time Interface

The initiative, dubbed the "Light Em Up Campaign," allows agents to process insurance company transactions and retrieve carrier account status information directly from their agency systems "at exactly the time they need it," Applied stated. "A customer has a request, and 'click,' the agent has an answer–without delays, phone calls or faxes."

Eight insurance companies are participating in the initial campaign by pre-authorizing real-time communication access, using ACORD XML transactions, for their Applied Systems agencies, the vendor said. The carriers include Acuity, Encompass Insurance, The Hartford, Kemper Auto and Home, Ohio Casualty Group, Progressive, The St. Paul, and Travelers Property-Casualty.

According to Peter Anderson, president of ASCnet, these carriers can now leverage real-time e-commerce connections with "7,500 agencies that are switched on and ready to go."

A monthly update patch provided to Applied agency management system users registers them for Transformation Station via a "wizard" that takes them through the necessary upgrade steps, said Doug Johnston, executive vice president of WARP Interface Services for Applied. The update applies to users of Applieds "The Agency Manager" (version 6.3 or higher) and "The Agency Manager Vision Series," Applied noted.

"The combination of agency accounts and authorized companies represents more than 15,000 communicating-pair relationships," Mr. Johnston added.

According to Jim Kellner, president and CEO of Applied, that figure represents "90,000 desktops and $75 billion in written premium." Upgrades are provided to the Applied users as part of their monthly maintenance fees, he added.

"We are the only vendor that has ever truly achieved SEMCI," Mr. Kellner declared. "This is a tremendous cost savings for our industry."

The new agency-company real-time interface transactions include:

Policy rating and issuance.

First notice of loss reporting.

Inquiry for policy status, billing status, claim status, and loss run.

Data-bridging between agency systems and company Web sites,

However, Mr. Kellner noted that not all of the companies participating offer all of the above transaction capabilities.

The real-time interface allows agents to "send a request to an insurance company and get a response right away," said Mr. Johnston. "It makes download look archaic."

"I am impressed with the breadth of transactions these carriers are providing access for," said Anna England, vice president, insurance e-commerce solutions, for Old Greenwich, Conn.-based IVANS. "Agencies and these eight companies will realize benefits immediately."

She added that 23 insurers have now licensed Transformation Station for real-time communications with their agents and brokers.

Reproduced from National Underwriter Property & Casualty/Risk & Benefits Management Edition, October 28, 2002. Copyright 2002 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.