Technology Issue • Special Sponsored Section
Life Underwriting … in minutes!
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roundbreaking innovation from eNoah iSolution could transform the life insurance industry by providing underwriters with the ability to make informed decisions in minutes. eNoah, a global leader in digital solutions, brings the speed that term life insurance has typically enjoyed to permanent insurance by unleashing the power of machine learning, artificial intelligence, cognitive computing and predictive analytics. eNoah challenges traditional models and adopts innovative tech for ways to speed up the underwriting process and empower underwriters to make informed decisions that help place policies quickly, resulting in faster payout to brokerage general agents (BGAs), brokers and agents, and ensuring customer satisfaction that leads to repeat busiManoj Sherman ness with higher retention. These new advances have the huge potential to improve cycle time by several days and thereby speed up policy issuance. In short, underwriters using eNoah’s software can run full medical history reports — including attending physician statements (APSs) — in about 10 to 15 minutes, rather than the days it typically takes. That shorter wait time has more clients filling out permanent applications and thus handing more agents larger commissions; it also has carriers issuing a greater number of policies while saving time and money in the process. This ensures faster insurance coverage to applicants. In the Q&A that follows, Manoj Sherman, eNoah’s senior vice president, shares an in-depth look at what makes eNoah’s platform eXtract Plus™ so game-changing for underwriting.
Q: What is the biggest challenge for insurance underwriting? Manoj: The capacity to adapt to evolving market needs. Traditional insurance models are severely challenged by disruptive new technologies, and companies need to adopt new models of engagement to meet today’s customer expectations of ease of use and speed of delivery. Insurance at large is one of the slowest sectors to adopt new technologies, as per industry surveys. To survive in this highly competitive ecosystem, there is increasing pressure on underwriting to lower costs while making quick and accurate decisions. That’s essentially a herculean task, because the amount of data in medical histories that underwriters need to review keeps growing. Those histories range from 100 to well over 1,000 pages each, and might include lab slips, medications, EKGs, clinic notes, follow-up notes, surgery procedures, X-rays and other documents. This is a very laborious process as every page needs to be reviewed, case by case, to look for vital conditions that impact the decision. It can take anywhere from a few days to a week for a carrier to make an informed decision on a case. Customers today don’t have the patience to wait that long anymore, even if it means accessing long-lasting coverage that they can use for retirement, loans and emergency cash access.
Q: How do eNoah’s products, such as eXtract Plus™, speed up this process and take pressure off underwriters? Manoj: The job of an underwriter is a very challenging and important one. It requires a lot of patience, attention to detail, and years of experience and knowledge.
Source: The Internet of Things, www.ey.com
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InsuranceNewsNet Magazine » November 2019