AscendantOne's Automated Rate Maintenance, Web Enablement and ISO's Content Let QBE Focus on Core Distribution and Strategic Growth
NASHUA, N.H., Oct. 21, 2003 — QBE the Americas (QBE) has selected AscendantOne®, a unit of ISO, to provide multistate, multiline commercial lines rate-quote, underwriting, policy administration and account management capabilities for its direct insurance operations. QBE will deploy AscendantOne's browser-based sales and service solutions to its Managing General Agents (MGAs) and their sub-producers. AscendantOne's solutions, which combine tool-based rate management with turnkey ISO content, will help QBE to enhance the servicing of its current business, while allowing QBE to modify or customize ISO-based programs.
QBE will use ISO advisory prospective loss costs, manual rules and forms for eight commercial lines, delivered on AscendantOne's browser-based platform — Commercial Package Policy, Businessowners Program 2002, Commercial Auto, Commercial General Liability, Commercial Property, Commercial Umbrella, Crime and Inland Marine. The flexibility of AscendantOne's rate management tools will allow QBE to maintain and customize all rating, underwriting and quoting interfaces more cost effectively. QBE plans to further centralize the administration of its rating and policy systems, while extending AscendantOne's real-time quoting, account management and contract administration capabilities (including automated renewal processing and out-of-sequence endorsements) to its sales and service channels.
According to QBE, AscendantOne's financial strength, access to ISO-validated content, program customization capabilities and total cost of ownership advantages contributed to their decision.
"QBE the Americas wanted to acquire a solution that easily integrated business content with proven technology. AscendantOne's solutions provide a superior base inventory and interpretation of ISO content, while allowing for needed company deviations and custom rating schemes," stated Tim Kenny, president and CEO of QBE. "Ease of product maintenance and integration with third-party solutions allows for rapid deployment," added John LaCava, senior vice president and chief information officer of QBE. "AscendantOne will accelerate QBE's product development strategies, while freeing QBE from the constraints and costs of traditional rate maintenance. Our efforts can be focused on extending ISO-based content, rules-based underwriting and web-ready policy service to our MGAs and their sub-producers. AscendantOne's workflow components will likewise extend product management and analysis to QBE's internal staff for greater operational efficiencies."
"AscendantOne is committed to helping QBE achieve its vision of improved distribution reach and customer responsiveness through our scalable rate-quote and policy management infrastructure," said Chuck Boodro, president of ISO's AscendantOne unit. "We look forward to leveraging our inventory of ISO content — together with our web-addressable solutions — to optimize QBE's pricing-underwriting, quoting and policy service needs. QBE writes all major commercial lines in upwards of 40 states, and our patent-pending inheritance and base-exception rate management methodology will further enhance their business objectives," Boodro added.
About QBE
QBE Insurance Group Limited is one of Australia's largest general insurance and reinsurance groups publicly traded on the Australian Stock Exchange. Its history dates back over 117 years when the Company was founded in Australia. QBE the Americas operations commenced in 1986 when the QBE Insurance Group established a presence in the U.S. QBE the Americas now conducts general insurance and reinsurance business through its six companies: QBE Reinsurance Corporation; QBE Insurance Corporation; QBE Specialty Insurance Company; QBE Aseguradora de Riesgos del Trabajo S.A., Argentina; QBE Del Istmo, Panama;and QBE Brasil Seguros S.A., Brazil. QBE Reinsurance Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiaries QBE Insurance Corporation and QBE Specialty Insurance Company are rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best and carry a Standard & Poor's rating of A+.
For more information, visit www.qbe.com.
About AscendantOne
AscendantOne, a unit of ISO based in Nashua, N.H., features the Solution Suite — a comprehensive, browser-based property/casualty rate-quote, underwriting, policy and account-management capability, powered by ISO's manual rules, advisory prospective loss costs and forms. Our scalable, XML-driven solutions complement existing IT infrastructures, delivering new network-based economic value to insurers. With distinctive and leverage-able business methodologies, the Solution Suite facilitates efficient pricing and policy service for all commercial and personal lines. AscendantOne's best-of-breed web-services architecture enables highly collaborative and cost-effective new-business-to-renewal workflows — anytime, anywhere and for any property/casualty distributor or demand-chain participant.
For more information, see www.AscendantOne.com.
About ISO
ISO is a leading source of information, products and services related to property and liability risk. For a broad spectrum of commercial and personal lines of insurance, ISO provides data, analytical and decision-support products; consulting; data processing; and technical, statistical and actuarial services. ISO field services include on-site rating and underwriting services and the evaluation of community loss-mitigation efforts. ISO's products help customers with sales and prospecting, underwriting, rating and quoting, customer management, policy administration, product development, claims administration and fraud detection. ISO's AIR Worldwide subsidiary provides technologies to assess and manage natural and man-made extreme-event risk. Through its ISO Claims Services, Inc. (iiX unit) and Intellicorp subsidiaries, ISO provides motor vehicle reports and criminal-records information and through its AscendantOne unit delivers rating, quoting and policy-administration solutions. In the United States and around the world, ISO serves insurers, reinsurers, agents, brokers, self-insureds, risk managers, insurance regulators and other government agencies.
Release: Immediate
Contacts:
Giuseppe Barone / Erica Helton
MWW Group (for ISO)
201-507-9500
gbarone@mww.com / ehelton@mww.com
Massood Abolfazli (AscendantOne)
603-546-2432
massood@AscendantOne.com