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Life / Health Professional Risk Assessment - A Traditional Service |
 Sabine Fischer-Hamm Head, Systems +49 221 9738 563 |
Specializing in Substandard Risks
Traditionally, risk assessment of individual lives is one of Gen Re's strengths. For over 100 years, we have specialized in assessing even the most difficult risks, obtaining profitable conditions for all parties involved.
Gen Re offers consulting in all areas of risk assessment, for medical, non-medical and financial risks. The level of qualification, experience and diversity of our staff enables us to provide excellent support for our clients.
Software Systems
Over 15 years ago, we began to develop risk assessment software for primary insurers. Since most insurance applicants qualify for ordinary rates, the focus was to design a system that could identify and accept standard risks as opposed to devising a tool to assist with the small percentage of complicated substandard cases.
Gen Re was one of the first companies to develop software systems for processing the majority of life and health insurance applications, allowing insurers to finalize business without the involvement of an underwriter. Our underwriting system is currently used for reflexive questioning in a talk between agent and client, in a tele-underwriting enviroment and directly on the Internet.
COMPASS (Cologne Re's Medical and Professional Assessment System)
The global expert underwriting system COMPASS was completed in 1993 and is now used by numerous companies and markets, processing more than 15,000 applications each day.
COMPASS evaluates and underwrites life and disability applications. Depending on the product type, underwriting actions suggested can include policy issue, request for additional information, referral to an underwriter and decline.
The system includes basic assessments for 20,000 occupations, 16,000 medical disorders, a comprehensive range of pursuits (advocations), foreign travel and more.
Principally, two COMPASS versions are available:
- The Head Office Version is for use in a head office or branch offices. The assessment is based on the information included in a static application form.
- The Point-of-Sale Version is designed for use by an agent interviewing a client, at a bank counter during a bancassurance sale, during telephone sales or directly by a client processing the internet version. A user-friendly graphical interface guides the interviewer through the questions on the application form. In most cases the client can be informed of the underwriting decision on the spot.
Point-of-Sale Version: The graphical user interface leading through the application questions |
Since Gen Re conducts business with insurers around the world, the development of a truly global expert system that could be adapted to the needs of each country and work well in different languages became desirable.
Country-specific versions of COMPASS are available, geared to not only different languages but also diverse underwriting approaches and benefits.
While COMPASS is supplied with a set of Gen Re underwriting standards, all of these rules can be easily adapted by means of a user-friendly maintenance program to reflect each company's own underwriting philosophy. This maintenance program has been designed to be used by an underwriter who can be trained within 3 days in the usage.
Keeping pace with development
Gen Re guarantees commitment to its underwriting systems. COMPASS will keep pace with both technological and industry developments. We will supply our users with regular updates and system refinements. COMPASS is in use world-wide: currently clients in Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Poland, Malaysia, Hong Kong, South Korea and Australia enjoy the benefits of our underwriting systems.
CLUE (Cologne Re Life Underwriting Expert)
The first version of CLUE, Gen Re's electronic underwriting manual for life, critical illness and disability insurance, was introduced in October 1996. Since 2007 it is available on the Web. The manual is intended for beginners and seasoned practitioners alike, focusing on underwriters' needs and offering immediate and user-friendly access to relevant information.
CLUE features medical underwriting guidelines, concise narratives, sections on drugs and laboratory tests, anatomical illustrations and easy-to-use extra mortality and morbidity calculators for height, weight, hyperlipidaemia, diabetes and blood pressure. Also included are guidelines for financial underwriting as well as rating guidelines for occupations, pursuits, foreign travel and residence.
CLUE is unique in that it was developed for underwriters by underwriters who are involved in daily risk selection and are in touch with the ever-changing medical scene, new discoveries, treatments and impairments. The electronic tool, which has received unanimous approval from our clients around the world, is being constantly enhanced through our ongoing research activities.
LTC Manual
The international Long Term Care Manual has undergone a thorough review. In 2006 it has been published for the first time in a web-based format making it easily accessible to our treaty clients worldwide.
The LTC manual includes extensive medical background information and detailed rating assessment hints. It is being constantly enhanced through our ongoing research activities.
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