Intellectual Property, Insurance Technology
PR Newswire | September 01, 2023
ISU Insurance Agency Network (ISU IAN) announces the launch of the proprietary ISU Quote&Bind Platform. The platform is the result of a collaboration between ISU Digital Partnerships, ISU preferred carriers, and CoverForce, an InsurTech API platform facilitating the insurance distribution process, to maximize the ease of doing business. The ISU Quote&Bind Platform works directly with ISU preferred carriers' APIs to simplify and streamline the production workflow, allowing ISU Members to access multiple quotes at once and bind policies in one click. The exclusive member benefit aims to reduce the cost of doing business for ISU preferred carriers, ISU members, and the members' prospects and clients through increased efficiency, speed, and transparency.
"The partnership between ISU and CoverForce is opening the door to the future of the insurance industry," says CEO TJ Ryan III. "Providing this cutting-edge technology to our members to increase the ease of doing business shows our investment and commitment to the independent insurance agent. ISU Quote&Bind eliminates the headaches of regional insurance coverage capacity, new market development, and at least half of the cost associated with producer management when used as business-to-consumer direct sales platform, which facilitates a national reach in the chosen vertical market."
ISU preferred carriers presently binding commercial policies from all 420 ISU IAN Members locations include AmTrust, Chubb, CNA, Employers, Great American, Liberty Mutual, Nationwide and Travelers. ISU plans to add more preferred carriers and expand lines of business on the platform throughout 2023 and 2024. ISU is the first organization in the country to quote and bind Great American's business owner's policy digitally. Members will also be the first group to access the latest digital products from the leading commercial carriers in America.
"We are excited to partner with ISU IAN to enable ISU members to digitally connect with their preferred carriers to maximize placement profitability and expand their books of business," says CoverForce CEO Cyrus Karai. "This partnership embodies our mission to strengthen the independent agent with digital capabilities."
Every ISU Member Coast to Coast™ is now taking advantage of the ISU Quote&Bind platform's convenience and speed to access preferred carriers and products, assure data security, usage control, and preferred compensation and coverage terms. In addition to quick and accurate access to bindable products, the ISU Quote&Bind platform incorporates the ISU Commercial Lines Placement Advisor©, a proprietary system delivering the most up to date carrier appetite guide on the market driven by industry classification, state, and line of business.
About ISU Insurance Agency Network
Founded in 1978, the mission of the ISU Insurance Agency Network (ISU IAN) is to help the independent insurance agent thrive. ISU is the largest independently owned and operated independent insurance agency network representing approximately $8 billion in written P&C premiums across 240+ members in 41 states. All ISU Members receive the best-in-class insurance solutions while leveraging the business benefits that come with being part of a large national organization to complement their local presence and independence. Visit www.joinisu.com for more information.
About CoverForce
CoverForce is the first core insurtech API platform working to bridge the gap between insurance distributors and their preferred P&C carrier partners. CoverForce was founded in 2020 at the University of Pennsylvania's Innovation Lab, in conjunction with insurance industry veterans from Travelers and The Hartford, and experienced software engineers from Amazon and Google. Investors include NYCA Partners (www.nyca.com), and QED Investors (www.qedinvestors.com). For more information, visit www.coverforce.com.
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Compliance
PR Newswire | September 21, 2023
NEXT Insurance, a leading digital small business insurer, today announced a differentiated new offering that will enable agents to fully customize coverage quotes to better meet the needs of their small business clients. NEXT's Coverage Builder represents a fundamental leap in allowing agents the ability to micro-tailor small business quotes for their clients, all while maintaining NEXT's superior instant bind capabilities. Coverage Builder is fast, easy to use, and tailored exclusively to agents pre-purchase, equipping them with the tools they need to select the appropriate limits and fully control the coverage they're quoting.
With Coverage Builder, agents can select their base policy limits, add or remove coverage or update limits post-purchase, all while benefiting from the convenience of instant underwriting and price updates. This saves agents valuable time and money, allowing them to make changes automatically without the need to pick up the phone and connect directly with an underwriter. NEXT's Coverage Builder offering furthers the company's commitment to its agents by providing a user-friendly and accessible digital quoting experience, 100% online. Coverage Builder is also available to all NEXT customers post-purchase, allowing small business owners to tailor their policies with immediate price updates and seamless policy management.
"NEXT's Coverage Builder feature is 100% hassle-free," said Cody L Slocum Lammers, Commercial Lines Agent & Broker at Affordable Insurance Solutions. "This new feature sets NEXT Insurance to a new level, above its competitors, as this allows agents the flexibility to customize policies to fit the needs of each individual small business. It's user-friendly and simple to understand- this is truly a game changer for NEXT Insurance agents!"
"Agents are the go-to insurance experts and know exactly the unique types of coverage small business owners need - that's why we're offering them the opportunity to customize policies for their clients instead of standardized coverage packages," said Jack Ramsey, Vice President of Agent Business at NEXT Insurance. "Now, with NEXT's Coverage Builder, we are empowering agents to instantly quote and easily customize and bind policies that will best serve their customers. As a result, small business owners will gain the peace of mind that they're only paying for the coverage they need to protect their business and livelihood."
NEXT's Coverage Builder offering comes on the heels of the company's launch of commercial umbrella/excess liability coverage to support small businesses in their entrepreneurial journey. The digital small business insurer also recently announced its integration with Ivans Download™ for General Liability and Workers' Compensation policies and its strategic hire of Jack Ramsey as the company's Vice President of Agent Business. These developments are further evidence of NEXT's commitment to agents and dedication to providing them with a smoother, more intuitive insurance purchasing process for small business clients.
If you're interested in working with an insurance agent through NEXT Insurance, visit our website to find an expert to help you get the right coverage at the best price.
About NEXT Insurance
NEXT Insurance is transforming small business insurance with simple, digital, affordable and tailored coverage. Trusted by over 480,000 business owners, NEXT offers policies that are easy to buy and provides 24/7 access to Live Certificates of Insurance, additional insured, and more. Revolutionizing a historically complicated insurance industry, NEXT utilizes AI and machine learning to simplify the purchasing process and provide more affordable coverage. Founded in 2016, the company is headquartered in Palo Alto, has received a total of $881 million in venture capital funding, is rated "A- Excellent" by AM Best and has been recognized by CNBC Disruptor 50, Forbes Fintech 50, Inc.'s Best-Led Companies, and Forbes Best StartUp Employers. For more information, visit NEXTInsurance.com. Stay up to date on the latest with NEXT on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and our blog.
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Life Insurance, Insurance Technology
PR Newswire | August 29, 2023
LIBRA Insurance Partners (LIBRA), the largest independently-owned life insurance marketing organization (IMO) in the United States, announces a partnership with Highland Capital Brokerage (HCB), a national life insurance and annuity distribution company and a subsidiary of Osaic.
"Highland Capital Brokerage is a formidable organization and we are excited they have selected LIBRA as their strategic partner to help facilitate its growth and expansion initiatives," said William (Bill) Shelow, CLU®, ChFC®, CPCU®, LLIF, president and CEO of LIBRA.
HCB provides risk management strategies and solutions to help financial professionals protect and grow their clients' assets. As a national life insurance, annuity, disability, and longevity planning firm, HCB distributes these solutions across the wealth spectrum to both institutional and independent partners.
"The partnership with LIBRA is an important step in Highland's evolution. Our diversified sales organization will rely on the vast array of carriers and their products to provide risk management solutions to our clients," said Teague Wright, president of Highland Capital Brokerage. "We look forward to taking advantage of the breadth of tools and resources this affiliation makes available."
HCB is comprised of more than 300 employees nationwide with an exceptionally talented and tenured team.
"I have enjoyed having an association in various capacities with Highland Capital Brokerage since its inception. They embody everything that LIBRA and our partners symbolize," said J. Craig Collins, executive vice president and chief relationship officer of LIBRA. "Teague and her senior leadership team have built a first-class organization and will greatly complement the markets we serve and the carriers we represent. Their interest in LIBRA further demonstrates the great value that we bring to our partner firms with our focus on delivering industry-leading tools and resources that support their efforts."
Shelow added, "I believe this affiliation elevates the stature of both organizations."
LIBRA Insurance Partners takes a true partnership approach with each of its valued relationships with the core belief in "the strength of many and power of one." With unique reinsurance ownership opportunities, agent retention programs, business development consulting, live training events and robust sales and marketing resources, the firm provides an unparalleled community of comradery and commitment to the success of each of its shareholders.
By way of partnership, HCB further expands upon its expansive resources and capabilities with direct access to several additional proprietary advanced planning tools and benefits, including:
exclusive facultative underwriting program with RGA Reinsurance Group of America, Incorporated (RGA)
established relationships with an expanded lineup of affiliated carriers and reinsurers
a dedicated medical director
product white papers and benchmarking tools
a proprietary quick quoting and informal processing platform
About Highland Capital Brokerage (HCB)
Highland Capital Brokerage is a national life insurance, annuity, disability, and long-term care distribution company providing point-of-sale support, advanced marketing, and creative estate- and business-planning techniques to financial advisors and insurance professionals. We deliver these services in an efficient, client-focused environment that extends to carrier and product expertise, underwriting negotiation, and complete back-office processing. Highland offers objective access to major insurance carriers, advanced planning support, expertise in risk underwriting, and back-office processing to insurance brokers, financial planners, and various institutions such as banks, wirehouses, and certified public accountant firms. To learn more about Highland Capital Brokerage, visit www.highlandbrokerage.com.
About LIBRA Insurance Partners (LIBRA)
LIBRA Insurance Partners is an insurance marketing organization dedicated to serving independent insurance producers, brokers, and financial institutions. Formerly known as LifeMark Partners and BRAMCO Financial Resources, and through the merger with Insurance Designers of America (IDA) in 2022, the firm exists to leverage strategic relationships, expertise, and innovation to expand life insurance distribution for the benefit of all stakeholders. LIBRA Insurance Partners is dedicated to the ongoing development and enhancement of resources to differentiate partner agencies from the competition. Its firms benefit from robust proprietary service offerings, unparalleled partnership, product expertise, and access to industry-leading technologies and tools, including expansive underwriting support resources. To learn more about becoming a LIBRA partner firm, visit www.LIBRAInsurancePartners.com or call (410) 837-3022.
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