Applied Systems Unveils Agency-Carrier Link

By Ara C. Trembly , Technology Editor

NU Online News Service, Oct. 22, 10:03 a.m. EST, LasVegas?Applied Systems, Inc., an agency management systemvendor, has announced an initiative aimed at installing real-timeinterface transactions within all agencies using its systems.

The vendor said their setup automatically enables communicationswith the major insurers they represent.

Applied, based in University Park, Ill., made its announcementduring the ASCnet's 17^th Annual Education Conferenceheld here Oct. 20-23.

The company said it has automatically set up all of its agencycustomers with IVANS Transformation Station accounts,"pre-configured for real-time interface with the companies theyrepresent." ASCnet is the user group for Applied Systems agencymanagement products.

Transformation Station is a managed Internet data exchange forreal-time insurance transactions. Real time interface using IVANSTransformation station utilizes ACORD XML and the Internet "toreduce the time and expense for both the agency and the company inprocessing sales and service transactions," said Applied.

The initiative, dubbed the "Light ?Em Up Campaign," allowsagents to process insurance company transactions and retrievecarrier account status information directly from their agencysystems "at exactly the time they need it," Applied stated. "Acustomer has a request, and "click," the agent has ananswer?without delays, phone calls or faxes."

Eight insurance companies are participating in the initialcampaign by pre-authorizing real-time communication access, usingACORD XML transactions, for their Applied Systems agencies, thevendor said. The carriers include Travelers Property Casualty, TheSt. Paul, Progressive, Encompass Insurance, Acuity, Ohio CasualtyGroup, The Hartford, and Kemper Auto and Home.

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

A monthly update patch provided to Applied agency managementusers registers them for Transformation Station via a "wizard"tutorial that takes them through the necessary upgrade steps, saidDoug Johnston, executive vice president of WARP Interface Servicesfor Applied. The update applies to users of Applied's The AgencyManager (version 6.3 or higher) and The Agency Manager VisionSeries, Applied noted.

"The combination of agency accounts and authorized companiesrepresents more than 15,000 communicating pair relationships," Mr.Johnston added. According to Jim Kellner, president and chiefexecutive officer of Applied, that figure represents "90,000desktops and $75 billion in written premium." Upgrades are providedto the Applied users as part of their monthly maintenance fees, headded.

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

The new agency-company real-time interface transactions include:policy rating and issuance; first notice of loss reporting; inquiryfor policy status, billing status, claim status and loss run, anddata bridging between agency systems and company Web sites, saidApplied.

Mr. Kellner noted, however, that not all of the companiesparticipating offer all of the transactions.

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

"I am impressed with the breadth of transactions these carriersare providing access for," stated Anna England, vice president,Insurance E-Commerce Solutions, for Old Greenwich, Conn.-basedIVANS. "Agencies and these eight companies will realize benefitsimmediately." She added that 23 insurers have now licensedTransformation Station for real-time communications with theiragents and brokers.