Underwriting and pricing effectiveness

Given unrelenting economic uncertainty and prolonged low interest rates, insurers face significant profit- and growth-related pressures and thus must improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their underwriting capabilities.

One way to improve risk selection and pricing is leveraging data to embrace more sophisticated segmentation. However, success will ultimately depend on adopting enhanced analytical and modeling techniques.

We can help you optimize the following:

• Assessment

  Insurers must improve their underwriting and pricing operations to create consistency in their processes, while enhancing insight-driven decision-making, team collaboration, cross-sell/up-sell growth and account management. We review your organization’s current underwriting and pricing performance, measure it against industry standards to determine where to make investments and provide technology solutions to fill operational gaps.

• Business and solution architecture

  We offer program management, functional and technical design, integration, configuration and testing and deployment. We also assist in the technology selection process, helping you narrow the wide spectrum of underwriting automation components and applications.

• Underwriting workstation solution implementation

  We assist you with the full spectrum of implementation services for underwriting solutions, including rules engine point solutions (typically selected by personal and small commercial line insurers) and robust underwriting stations (typically selected by middle market, specialty and large/multi-national insurers).

  Unlike policy administration and billing systems, underwriting solutions can involve customization and extensive integration. We support the full implementation cycle, from requirements scoping to vendor software selection to deployment. We also provide important change management services to help you establish new roles and responsibilities in the new underwriting environment.

Policy administration and billing transformation

Insurers are under constant pressure to reduce underwriting operations costs, while continuing to grow their customer base without increasing headcount. They also face tougher demands from producers and customers who want faster quoting, more accurate policy issuance, diversified billing and payment options and real-time self-service capabilities.

We can help you optimize the following:

• Assessment

  We perform a detailed assessment of the current state of operational efficiency using our proven cost-related tools across rating, quoting, issuance and billing activities. This assessment can include an evaluation and quantification of the total cost of ownership for legacy policy and billing systems.

• Business and solution architecture

  We develop a business architecture and implementation roadmap that sequences deployment of functionality by product line, geography, channel and transaction type. Our business case frameworks can accelerate measurement of business and technology cost reductions as aligned to the roadmap.

• Policy administration and billing solution implementation

  We provide a full range of implementation services including solution selection, requirements, design, configuration, integration and deployment. We also assist with the change management aspects of these programs, helping establish new processes and controls to improve regulatory and internal audit compliance.

  Working with leading policy and billing solution providers, we present you with objective insights to navigate the complex vendor landscape. Our extensive delivery experience with vendors helps with software selection and guides you through project delivery to achieve cost reductions and process improvements.

Product development and delivery

Incompatible systems, organizational silos and disjointed processes perpetuate costly and low- quality product development approaches. As a result, many insurers have redundant product portfolios that complicate underwriting, operations and claims processes.

As insurers look to refresh and expand their products, these issues restrict their ability to react to market changes and satisfy their customers.

Product design and delivery architecture are central to innovation and fulfilment across the insurance enterprise, and they must be integrated into both business processes and technology solutions.

We can help your organization take the following steps to develop a robust suite of products designed for specific customer needs:

• Assessment

  We review your current product development, processes, systems data, interfaces and delivery capabilities to increase speed to market. We offer tools to evaluate your products, learn if there are ways to simplify them and help reduce costs.

• Business and solution architecture development

  We help you properly align organizational needs and technical priorities for product development. We ensure assessment and future state definition can be delivered using best market practices. By applying our proprietary tools, maturity models, product design know-how and business case frameworks, we assist with architecture assessment and help insurers deliver future solutions that are in line with best market practices.

• Product development workstation

  We align and integrate product development workstation capabilities with other underwriting and policy administration systems. This includes developing a target solution architecture, as well as selection, design, configuration, integration and deployment of an effective workstation.

Claims transformation

Our offerings enable transformational or step changes in claims capabilities. Our expertise and analytical insight can help you achieve better claims outcomes and expense management.

Our team can help insurers in the following ways:

• Claims performance analysis

  An independent review can help your organization identify areas of claims inefficiencies and processes that can lead to failed implementation or claims overpayments.

• Claims analytics and predictive modelling

  Predictive modelling techniques are crucial to improving your claims operations. Our teams have a deep understanding of these techniques and can use the resulting analytics to assist organizations in several ways:

  • - Identifying drivers of unexpected claims development
  • - Providing data guidance
  • - Implementing models
  • - Prioritizing processes via loss mitigation strategies

  When combined with data from our claims leakage analysis teams, these analytics can be incorporated into a program that reduces overall claims costs and expenses and enhances underwriting practices.

• Claims capability maturity assessment

  This assessment benchmarks your current business claims processes and capabilities against industry-leading practices. By knowing where your organization stands, you are one step closer to a strategic business and technology program.

• Claims target operating model and organizational design

  We help organizations redesign their claims organizations, processes, governance and technology to align to business and operational strategies. We serve you by focusing on performance, process excellence, skill specialization, shared services, sourcing and continuous improvement.

• Claims transformation business case development

  Our deep industry knowledge helps us prioritize claims initiatives that will provide the best return on an insurer’s investment.

• Claims technology enablement

  Our full-service claims system selection, design and implementation capabilities leverage onshore- and offshore-based functional and technical claims professionals. They provide extensive delivery experience in project management, business analysis, process design, business and systems architecture, product configuration, systems integration, conversion and testing.

• Claims change management

  We offer a compelling vision so you can drive change, improve stakeholder engagement and communications and boost operational readiness. We also help you support training and align human resource processes (such as career paths and performance management) to encourage desired behavior and sustain results.

• Claims customer experience strategy

  A review of the claims customer experience can result in a differentiating, multi-channel design that aligns with an insurer’s corporate customer strategy. By bringing industry insights and experience to the process, we provide guidance in developing a customer experience roadmap that is tailored to claims strategic initiatives and practical to implement.

Are you ready for Solvency II?

At the recent Trilogue meeting, the European Commission proposed a deferral of the implementation date of Solvency II to January 1, 2015, but the proposal did not reach consensus.

• Solvency II contacts

Are you ready?

Related content

Recovery and resolution planning for insurers

After a long scrutiny of banks, regulators are turning to insurers. Understand the scope and timing of their directives and how you need to prepare.

Risk-based capital in the Chilean market

Chile’s insurance regulatory agency has issued its first risk-based capital model. Learn why the model marks an important shift for the country’s insurance market.

Solvency II readiness: progress and challenges

Our survey of the European insurance industry reports slow but steady movement toward compliance. See which countries are best prepared and which are falling behind.

Actuarial and risk management strategies

As the insurance market undergoes radical change, insurance companies face a difficult balancing act. They must identify and assess new options for value creation while continuing to manage risks and meet emerging regulatory requirements such as Solvency II and IFRS.

See where our more than 1000 actuarial and insurance risk professionals serve clients around the world. The combination of our dedicated actuarial and risk professionals and close partnerships with related practices across EY provides truly integrated services across all disciplines in the insurance industry.

Our deep global knowledge comes from our work with insurance companies, banks, pension funds, private equity firms, sovereign funds and local regulators.

Leverage that knowledge by contacting our actuarial insurance team leaders in EMEIA, the Americas, Asia-Pacific or Japan.

Learn how our actuarial services drive transformation, financial reporting, risk and financial management and value generation.

• Risk and capital

  As capital becomes scarce and competition from other financial institutions increases, insurers are evolving from static to dynamic optimization of risk portfolios. We help companies optimize their risk portfolios under current rules as well as expected new regulations such as Solvency II.

• Customers and growth

  The insurance industry faces many challenges: political changes, economics, product innovation, technology advances, competition from other financial sectors and changing customer behavior. We prepare companies for these changes by providing practical insights on consumer buying patterns. We also help you understand which customers truly create value so you can build strategies to enhance these high-value relationships.

• Financial reporting

  The global insurance industry is facing a wave of new regulations and reporting requirements. It is crucial for companies to understand the micro and macro effects of new reporting requirements—the importance of reported figures and the wider implications for strategy and operations. We help companies understand and prepare efficient external and internal reporting frameworks by providing actuarial services that are part of integrated multi-disciplinary solutions.

• Actuarial transformation and offshoring

  To improve cost-effectiveness, insurance companies have a broad range of options: integrated finance solutions, actuarial and risk reporting processes, selective offshoring and shared service centers for improving standardization and output quality. We help companies simplify their actuarial infrastructure and achieve cost efficiency by streamlining or offshoring/outsourcing their actuarial and finance reporting processes. 

• Modelling

  Actuarial and risk models are becoming increasingly crucial to business operations. Although a fast close of actuarial reporting remains important, regulatory focus and requirements to put a robust control environment around models are also increasing. We help companies make their actuarial and risk models efficient and fit for purpose.

• Audit and assurance

  With long experience as auditors and more broadly on assurance engagements, our multi-disciplinary actuarial teams give comfort to Boards on key strategic items including managing supplementary financial information and meeting regulatory requirements.

• Asset management

  Asset management is closely linked with capital optimization, product optimization and financial modeling. Facing innovation and competition from other financial sectors, insurers must develop optimal asset management strategies. We help companies with asset liability management, derivative pricing and performance management.

• Mergers and acquisitions

  As companies revisit and optimize their portfolios, they look to acquire and consolidate more attractive businesses, and dispose of businesses in markets where they cannot compete. With depressed valuations in many insurance markets and the shifting strategies of multinationals, the mergers and acquisitions market is poised to become more active. Our experienced Transaction Advisory team provides integrated services to help companies with valuations and post-merger integration.

Related content

• Economic capital framework and modelling challenges
• Recovery and resolution planning for insurers
• Financial Services: Bringing the broader perspective
• Five trends to watch in annuities
• Insurers prepare for market-consistent frameworks

Be prepared for IFRS/accounting changes

We are increasingly living in a global economy — with trade and inbound and outbound investment a fact of life. It's no wonder capital markets have long advocated for globally recognized accounting standards.

Until recently, that common accounting language has been a missing link. Now, policymakers, lawmakers and regulators are working alongside standard-setters to provide a single set of high-quality, global accounting principles.

Benefit from our timely insights as your prepare for this transition.

• IFRS insurance insights
• Insurance Accounting Alerts
   

Related content

European Insurance Finance and IFRS Conference

At the inaugural conference, delegates shared their insights and challenges around IFRS, Solvency II, integrated reporting and the future organization of the finance function.

IASB/FASB models for non-life insurers (replay)

Listen to this webcast replay and stay up-to-date on the IASB/FASB project on insurance contracts. Related webcasts cover the issue for life insurers and non-life insurers.

IASB/FASB models for life insurers (replay)

Listen to this webcast replay and stay up-to-date on the IASB/FASB project on insurance contracts. Related webcasts cover the issue for life insurers and non-life insurers.

IFRS insights: data, systems and processes

We explore the latest considerations for insurers around IFRS 4 Phase II, Solvency II and Pillar 3.

Customer agenda

The buying behaviors, attitudes and preferences of insurance customers worldwide are changing. To understand this transformation, insurers need to determine how they must adapt to attract, deepen and preserve customer relationships.

• The journey toward greater customer centricity
• Global Consumer Insurance Survey 2012
• Voice of the customer: time for insurers to rethink their relationship (webcast replay)

Governance facing the industry today

We, along with Tapestry Network, established the Insurance Governance Leadership Network (IGLN), a global network centered around non-executive directors from a select group of the largest insurers from Europe, North America and Asia. The IGLN provides a peer-to-peer platform for participants to discuss critical issues facing the industry globally. Its primary focus is the non-executive director, but it also engages senior management (notably chief risk officers) and regulators, all of whom are committed to outstanding governance and supervision in support of the mission to build strong, enduring, and trustworthy insurance institutions.

Tapestry Briefings – A View from the Boardroom:

• The challenge of aligning risk-based regulations
• Insurers face challenges implementing Solvency II
• Global insurance leaders find common ground amid economic and regulatory uncertainty
• Insurance industry facing real challenges: a view from the boardroom

The emergence of emerging markets

The global economy is at a turning point. Fast-growth economies in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe now form almost half of global GDP and, in 2010, they contributed 70% to overall global growth.

These trends are accelerating. By 2050, fast-growth economies are projected to account for 65% of the global economy. In contrast, most developed markets are still struggling to recover after the global recession.

For many businesses, their very survival depends on pursuing a growth agenda. This might include expanding into new markets and sectors, finding new ways to innovate or taking new approaches to talent.

But there’s one key question that must be answered: how can your insurance business make the most of the many opportunities that exist?
 

Related content

• Risk-based capital in the Chilean market
• Insurance M&A in Asia
• Risk-based capital in Latin America
• Growing Beyond
• Rapid-Growth Markets Forecast: Winter 2012
• Ernst & Young's Emerging Markets Center