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March
31, 2004
Windows in Financial Services
Business and Auto Insurance Specialist profits from
flexibility offered by Nexsure
XDimensional Technologies Links The Hartford to
Independent Agents
For Connie Higginbotham, insurance agency management
systems were a challenge. She worked on all three of the
big names in the business, and they left her unimpressed,
or downright angry.
So 10 years ago, when she founded her own agency, Business
and Auto Insurance Specialists in Palatka, Fla.,
Higginbotham resolved to get the best technology
available, and keep it up to date. Today, with the
exception of life insurance, her agency writes a little
bit of everything, including such niches as horse
insurance and coverage for special events. True to her
earlier promise, the firm makes it a habit to keep its
technology fresh.
“I could see that if you bought new stuff and used it to
fullest capability you could have fewer people and make
more money,” said Higginbotham. “So I bought new computers
and keep them updated to latest capability.” She runs a
small office but does almost as much business as a
competitor down the street employing almost five times as
many people.
For her agency management system, Higginbotham uses
XDimensional’s Nexsure, which runs as an application
service provider (ASP). For someone who has been
frustrated by other agency management systems,
Higginbotham is pleased with the performance and ease of
use that Nexsure provides.
Skeptical about vendor claims after losing $50,000 on
another agency management system recalled after it was
installed, Higginbotham insisted on taking Nexsure for
some demanding test drives.
“The first thing I did was fill in an application to see
how easy it was to put the data in and to get the
application out.” Older systems make users hunt all over
the place for the right place to put data, she said, which
is why some require as much as three months of training.
Nexsure’s screens mimic ACORD forms.
“You fill in the blanks just like you were handwriting the
application, so a new agent can just read the screen and
type.”
To maximize efficiency, Business and Auto Insurance
Specialists uses all the capabilities in its computer
system.
“We use transactional filing – we keep everything in a
daily file, we scan any paper forms into the system and we
attach everything needed for the file, so when someone
calls we don’t have to pull a paper file. Everything
should be in the computer.”
Nexsure, developed by XDimensional Technologies, is a
comprehensive agency management system that has been
designed from the ground up for a Web architecture. It is
based completely on the Microsoft technology platform and
takes full advantage of the XML data format.
Using Nexsure, agents in Palatka can link directly to The
Hartford to check on policies with the click of a mouse
button, once they have set up their user identification
and password.
“You type in the policy number and the information comes
up in half a second. We can do that with several
companies.” The Hartford, which has invested in
XDimensional Technologies, has introduced a suite of
transactions for independent agents who use Nexsure.
“Independent agents want the flexibility to choose how
they want to work, so we continue to introduce ways to
make it easy for them to do business directly from their
agency management system. It’s part of The Hartford’s
commitment to help agents deliver the highest quality of
service to their customers,” said Lisa Cox, senior vice
president of ebusiness technology solutions at The
Hartford.
The Hartford is also working to make it easy for agents
using the Nexsure agency management system to get a more
accurate real-time quote for personal lines auto by
connecting directly with The Hartford using its real-time
rating service. It is one of the first insurers to have
this new technology available with Nexsure. It can accept
an ACORD XML personal auto quote request, perform the
rating and return the results.
“By working together with Microsoft, we can offer agents a
true Web-based service,” said Bob Juracka, president of
XDimensional Technologies.
For Higginbotham, the results are clear. “We are able to
write more business, and write it faster and easier.
Nexsure makes it so much simpler, and the accounting is
easy.”
Her favorite feature is Nexsure’s Reverse procedure. If an
agency employee makes a mistake on an invoice, you don’t
have to recalculate by hand.
“With Nexsure’s Reverse, it backs you out the way you put
the data in. Instead of three hours, you can back it out
and correct it in five minutes.” Voiding a check works
much the same way.
“It’s so easy – why didn’t somebody think about this 20
years ago when they first started developing agency
management systems?” With Nexsure, she can pay all of the
50 or so companies she works with in less than an hour. On
her old system, it took about three days.
“Nexsure integrates with Outlook Express and Word, so you
can email from within your management system.”
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