Introduction
In the past two years the iLines team has been collaborating with a business
at a major London broker. Together we have developed a subscription market trading system.
It has been adopted by 15 top insurers and is fully operational. Xchanging has accepted the
“electronic output” as an alternative to the placed slip.
During the design phase we identified the characteristics that had
adversely affected previous e-trade initiatives. We carefully considered
the cultural impact of implementation. We avoided introducing a total
solution from the outset preferring a more evolutionary approach.
This has delivered
a generic system that can be customised to serve a wide range of businesses.
What is the scope?
iLines has targeted the quotation and negotiating phase of insurance broking.
It has introduced sufficient structure to support placement within the London market.
The process is recorded in an XML message. Versions of this are available for Xchanging, individual
insurers and the broker to supplement data on their existing systems.
Endorsements and renewals are part of the package.
Is it difficult to operate? ILines is paid
for and controlled by the Broker. System administration is via a “client” and involves the setup of
businesses, insurers and users. All other aspects of the application are accessed via a web browser
.
The system is very intuitive and easy to operate. Navigation is simple as there are
very few screens.
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Broker individuality?
ILines has the flexibility to support most classes of business.
It does this by means of a tool to generate a template or series
of templates for each class of business.
The administration user may define a form field by field. These
can conform to the relevant ACORD standards. Definitions also apply
to the presentation; colour and fonts are included. These can be
used to adopt corporate colour schemes.
Compliance?
ILines provides a balance between transparency and privacy.
All changes to data are displayed in a visible audit trail annotated
with a time & date stamp accompanied by the user’s identity.
This equally applies to authorisations.
Negotiations between broker and individual insurer are private and
are not visible to others insurers. However the record of the negotiation
is included in the export made available to Xchanging.
As mentioned earlier, each business can adopt ACORD standards.
How does iLines affect insurers?
The system may be accessed by means of email alerts or via a web
browser. When data is on the system an underwriter may receive an
alert. Clicking on a hyperlink and typing a password will take them
directly to the record for action. It couldn’t be easier.
No administration is required; the broker does it all.
Benefits of this method of trading include:
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Reduced broker queues |
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Improved time management |
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Less photocopying |
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Underwriting from any location |
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Data exports |
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Document management |
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