System for the acquisition of technology risk mitigation information associated with insurance

• US 20050055248A1
• Filed: 09/04/2003
• Published: 03/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hartford Fire Insurance Company (The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hartford Fire Insurance Company (The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc.)
• Inventors: Helitzer, Jonathon, Kempton, Casey Ellen, Murchie, G. Stewart, Frey, Kelly L., Carvalko, Joseph R. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 7,610,210 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/4
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance

Abstract

The invention herein generally pertains to underwriting an insurance policy utilizing sensors to detect, determine, measure and assess one or more conditions, states of affairs, physical properties and process as each relates an insurable property interest. More specifically is disclosed a method and computerized system for managing the underwriting, quoting and binding an insurance policy with regard to the technology used to militate against the financial consequences of certain property losses. The significance of operable safety related devices or system loads are important diagnostic safety markers for measuring one or more properties affecting the safety or risk aversion and for underwriting an insurable interest. This invention also relates to a system and a method for acquiring and assessing the qualities, variables and parameters that affect the underwriting premium for a building structure (commercial or residential), vehicle, aircraft, marine craft or cargo.

Claims

1. A system for underwriting an insurance policy comprising:

one or more means to detect one or more conditions relating to a property interest and a means to utilize said detection in underwriting an insurance policy pertaining to the property interest.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the property interest is a stationary structure.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the property interest is a building structure.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the property interest is a vehicle.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the property interest is a marine craft.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the property interest is an aircraft.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the property interest is a cargo.

11. The system of claim 5, wherein the stationary structure is a dam.

12. The system of claim 5, wherein the stationary structure is a utility.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the property interest is an insurable interest.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more conditions are selected from the group consisting of:

states of affairs, a physical properties, and processes.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein a means to detect includes sensors.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more conditions includes a measure of quality.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more properties of the conditions include a rate of travel.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more conditions include a level of gaseous substance.

22. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more conditions include a level of water.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein the variables affecting the insurable interest include a biological agent.

24. The system of claim 1, wherein the variables affecting insurable interest include a meteorological event.

25. The system of claim 1, wherein the variables affecting the insurable interest include friction.

26. The system of claim 1, wherein the variables affecting the insurable interest include vibration, pitch, yaw or roll.

27. The system of claim 1, wherein the variables affecting the insurable interest include aerodynamic features.

28. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include global position.

29. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include type of structure, vehicle and goods.

30. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include the age of the insurable interest.

31. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include a standard industrial code.

32. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include the business to which the insurable interest is engaged.

33. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include past insurance claims made against the insurable interest.

34. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include the financial status of the owners of the insurable interest.

35. The system of claim 1, wherein the conditions affecting the insurable interest include the type of goods stored in the insurable interest.

36. The system of claim 1, further including a means of communicating the measurements to a remote location.

37. The system of claim 1, further including a means of communicating the measurements over the Internet.

38. The system of claim 1, further including a means of communicating one or more control messages to a remote location to acquire measurements.

39. The system of claim 1, further including a means for computing a condition at a remote site.

40. The system of claim 1, further including a means for computing risk mitigation information and a program to evaluate the statistical variations between one or more conditions.

41. The system of claim 1, further including a means for determining the utilization of risk mitigation to reduce a premium associated with the insurance policy.

42. The system of claim 1, wherein the means to utilize said detection include an expert system to ascertain the affect a technology has on a premium associated with the insurance policy.

2. A system for underwriting an insurance policy comprising:

one or more means to determine one or more state of affairs relating to a property interest and a means to utilize said determination in underwriting an insurance policy pertaining to the property interest.

16. The system of claim 2, wherein a means to determine includes sensors.

3. A system for underwriting an insurance policy comprising:

one or more means to measure one or more physical properties relating to a property interest and a means to utilize said measure in underwriting an insurance policy pertaining to the property interest.

17. The system of claim 3, wherein a means to measure includes sensors.

4. A system for underwriting an insurance policy comprising:

one or more means to assess one or more processes relating to a property interest and a means to utilize said assessment in underwriting an insurance policy pertaining to the property interest.

18. The system of claim 4, wherein a means to assess includes sensors.

43. A system for underwriting an insurance premium comprising:

a means to measure safety or risk, a means to produce a transmission record of an indication of the safety or risk and transmit, said record communicated to a computer for analysis.

44. The system for underwriting an insurance premium in claim 43, further including a recorded medium having stored thereon one or more data structure selected from the group comprising:

a first field containing data representing an indication of the conformity to a prescribed level of risk due to the use of risk mitigation technology;

a second field containing data representing the address of an insurable interest associated with said first field data;

a third field containing data representing a premium;

a fourth field containing data representing a premium adjustment related to the utilization of the risk mitigation technology.

45. A method for underwriting an insurance premium comprising the steps of:

measuring the qualities affecting safety or risk aversion at a remote site;

communicating the measurements affecting the safety or risk aversion; and

computing the underwriting premium utilizing one or more of the measurements.

46. A method of underwriting insurance by accounting for a technology that militate against loss comprising the steps of:

identifying a technology that mitigates a risk associated with a property loss for which an insured purchases insurance;

determining if the technology is present in an insurable interest and providing an insurance policy that accounts for the utilization of the technology.

47. A method of underwriting insurance in claim 46, further including the step of advising the prospective insured to obtain the technology.

48. A method of underwriting insurance claim 46, further including the step of advising the prospective insured about the cost and benefits of obtaining the technology.

49. A method of underwriting insurance claim 46, further including the step of providing a specification of best practices to mitigate losses through the application of a technology.

50. A method of underwriting insurance by account for a technology that militate against loss comprising:

maintaining a database identifying a plurality of technologies that reduce risk of loss suitable to an insurable interest;

maintaining a database of risk mitigation factors associated with said technologies and associated insurable interests;

identifying an insurable interest that requires insurance;

calculating the risk associated with the insurable interest;

accounting for the risk reduction resulting from incorporation of at least one of the plurality of technology into the insurable interest, maintaining a communication means between the insurable interest and an underwriting means;

creating an insurance policy for the insurable interest upon the verification of the incorporation of risk reduction technologies in the insurable interest.

51. A method of underwriting insurance in claim 50, further including the step of polling the insured interest to determine its compliance with incorporation of at least one of the plurality of technologies into the insurable interest.

52. A system for identifying matches between installed risk mitigation technology and risk mitigation technology listed in an insurance policy comprising:

a database storage means;

a processor programmed to;

maintain the database storage means wherein is identified installed risk mitigation technology;

communicate with an insurable interest to audit the insurable interest by acquiring sensor data relating to the risk mitigation technology;

compare the sensor data to the risk mitigation technology stored.

53. A computer readable medium having stored thereon one or more data structure selected from the group comprising of:

a first field containing data representing an indication of the conformity to a prescribed level of risk of safety or risk mitigation;

a second field containing data representing an indication of the quality of the sampled unit;

a third field containing data representing a metric relating to the quantity under consideration;

a fourth field containing data representing the result from a predetermined number of samples.