The Digital Frontier In Insurance Automation Has Arrived

Originally posted at MRS Blog.

 

One of the coolest things going on in the life insurance industry is the rapid adoption of a digital underwriting process that seeks to streamline the process of applying for life insurance.  This so-called “automated underwriting” seeks to simplify everyone’s life by using various datasets to quickly approve (or not approve) an applicant for life insurance.

 

We’ve watched several life insurers roll out, and re-roll out, this concept during the last decade.  I can say from first-hand experience that when it works correctly it’s one of the most fantastic innovation launched by the life insurance industry.

 

Automated Underwriting What Is It?

 

Let’s start by giving everyone a basic understanding of automated underwriting and what it so beautifully accomplishes.  To appreciate it, we must understand the system life insurers used for decades to evaluate an applicant.

 

For years, when someone decided that he or she wanted to buy life insurance, he/she first sat down with a life insurance agent and filled out an application.  The application was a few (at first) and then many (as it is now) pages of particular details concerning the life insurance policy desired.  The application often included several disclosures and collected a substantial amount of medical history on the applicant.

 

The agent filled out the application and collected signatures from the applicant before sending it off to the insurance company for review.

 

Once in receipt of the application, someone at the company typed most of the information in the application into a database system where it was later reviewed by an underwriter.

 

Contemporaneously, the agent (or insurance company) ordered a medical exam for the applicant.  This exam required a medically trained (nurse-like medical background) individual to meet with the applicant and collect the following information:

 

·         Physical measurements

·         Thorough medical background (often already collected by the agent)

·         Blood sample

·         Urine Sample

·         EKG (in some cases)

·         Saliva Sample (rarely)

 

Sometimes, depending on the age of the applicant or the amount of life insurance requested, the applicant needed to complete the exam with a doctor.  Some of the time, the applicant also needed a stress test performed as part of the medical exam.

 

Once the information from the application was in the database and results from the medical exam sent to the life insurance company, an underwriter would review the information and approve or not approve the applicant.  In many cases, the underwriter would determine he/she needed more information and would require the applicant’s medical records before making a decision.

 

This entire process often spanned at least three months and that was usually regarded as quick in the life insurance application process.

 

So regular people looking to buy life insurance needed to wait (at times) months to actually buy the policy they wanted.  This caused a lot of frustration for all parties.

 

Enter The Automation Process

 

Automated underwriting is taking over the manual process.

 

Management Research Services, Inc. (MRS) has built a more sophisticated, No-Code platform that offers a more streamlined application process.  Leveraging information compiled by data aggregators, and using advanced mathematical procedures closely related to those that created and continue to improve artificial intelligence, MRS has built its platform to be customized to fit a client’s needs, or it can directly be plugged into the client’s network organically.

 

Now instead of subjecting someone to the cumbersome process of traditional life underwriting, the insurer uses a medical questionnaire and several databases to evaluate the applicant.  If everything checks out, a decision for approval can take place immediately.

 

The MRS Platform cuts the application process down significantly to give instant underwriting decisions.  As you might expect, this vastly improves the buying experience for life insurance product.

 

Connect with MRS to find out how you can test-drive a demo of our top-of-the-line insurance services technology today.