METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROCESSING OF DATA RELATED TO INSURANCE

• US 20120101856A1
• Filed: 12/28/2011
• Published: 04/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2003
• 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: Tran, Oai, Napolitan, Lisa, Nutkiewicz, Stanley, Statsky, Jane, Stoller, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 8,229,772 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/4
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance

Abstract

This invention relates generally to a computer system and method for integrating insurance policy underwriting. In one aspect it integrates the older legacy insurance policy generating systems to on line systems where users access the system through browsers. The computer system to perform the process of underwriting, rating, quoting, binding, and booking an insurance policy includes browsers, data bases, processors and a dispatcher that parses the information to select an insurance process. Suitable software programs review messages received from users to determine if certain messages are less than a prescribed limit. If a message is greater than the limit, then the message is parsed into a header information and one or more data fields whereby the header information is provided to a legacy processor and to policy generation software for further creation of policy related information and documentation.

Claims

1. A computer system for processing data related to insurance, comprising:

an intermediary computer system in communication with an insurance computer system and a network, the intermediary computer system comprising a processor and a memory device, and configured to generate instructions to the insurance computer system to perform one of a plurality of insurance processes wherein the insurance processes comprise a rating process and a create quote process;

the intermediary computer system being further configured to;

communicate via the network with a plurality of user devices having browsers maintained in a plurality of user-selected browser states, each of the browser states having an associated interface element corresponding to one of the insurance processes;

maintain a plurality of process states corresponding to the browser states;

receive data from the browsers; and

permit the user-selected browser state only subject to permission for the corresponding insurance process to be performed.

2. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the insurance processes have a sequence, the intermediary computer system is further configured to permit execution of one of the insurance processes only upon completion of a prior one of the plurality of insurance processes in the sequence, the rating process being prior to the create quote process.

3. The computer system of claim 2, wherein the insurance processes further comprise an underwriting worksheet process prior to the rating process and a create binder process subsequent to the create quote process.

4. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the intermediary computer system is further configured to, responsive to receipt of input data from one of the plurality of user devices, determine one of inquiry processing, new account processing and modify existing account processing to be performed.

5. The computer system of claim 4, wherein the intermediary computer system is further configured to, responsive to determining that inquiry processing is to be performed, access, for a selected account, policy detail data including policy limits or terms for the selected account, claims data relating to claims processed against the selected account, reinsurance data for the selected account;

and billing data including invoice and payment data for the selected account.

6. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the intermediary computer system is further is further configured to communicate employing a message comprising a user identification portion, a state identification portion identifying a state associated with one of the insurance processes, a state function identification portion, a state switch indication portion and an allow next state indication portion.

7. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the intermediary computer system is configured to cause the browsers to generate a graphical user interface configured to display one of the associated interface elements associated with one of the insurance processes and simultaneously display an indication associated with each of the other insurance processes, wherein user selection of the indication causes data indicative of user selection of the insurance process associated with the indication to be provided to the intermediary computer system.

8. The computer system of claim 7, wherein the intermediary computer system is further configured to permit execution of one of the insurance processes only upon completion of a prior one of the plurality of insurance processes in a sequence, the rating process being prior to the create quote process in the sequence, and the insurance processes further comprise an account summary process, an underwriting worksheet process subsequent to the account summary process in the sequence and prior to the rating process in the sequence, a create binder process subsequent to the create quote process in the sequence, a book and bill process subsequent to the create binder process in the sequence, and an issue policy process subsequent to the book and bill process in the sequence.

9. The computer system of claim 8, wherein the interface element associated with the account summary process prompts the user for insured name and contact data, agent data and product data.

10. A computer-implemented method for processing data related to insurance, comprising:

generating instructions by an intermediary computer system to an insurance computer system to perform one of a plurality of insurance processes wherein the processes comprise a rating process and a create quote process;

communicating by the intermediary computer system via a network with a plurality of user devices having browsers maintained in a plurality of user-selected browser states, each of the browser states having an associated interface element corresponding to one of the insurance processes;

maintaining by the intermediary computer system a plurality of process states corresponding to the browser states;

receiving by the intermediary computer system data from the browsers via the network; and

permitting by the intermediary computer system the user-selected browser state only subject to permission for the corresponding insurance process to be performed.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising permitting execution of one of the insurance processes only upon completion of a prior one of the plurality of insurance processes, the rating process being prior to the create quote process.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, further comprising causing one of the browsers to generate a graphical user interface configured to display one of the associated interface elements associated with one of the insurance processes and simultaneously display an indication associated with each of the other insurance processes, and to receive data indicative of user selection of one of the insurance processes responsive to display of the indications.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the rating process comprises defining debits or credits and calculating premium options.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 13, wherein the create quote process comprises generating a quote letter by accessing a template quote letter from a database stored on a data storage device in communication with the intermediary computer system, invoking a word processing program including program instructions stored on a computer-readable medium to present the template quote letter on a user device, and providing a user option to select one or more premium options calculated in the rating process.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising receiving data from the one or more browsers and providing the received data to the insurance computer system for storage in a database in a data storage device associated with the insurance computer system.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium, having computer-readable instructions stored thereon, which instructions, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

generate instructions to an insurance computer system to perform one of a plurality of insurance processes wherein the processes comprise a rating process and a create quote process;

communicate via a network with a plurality of user devices having browsers maintained in a plurality of user-selected browser states, each of the browser states having an associated interface element corresponding to one of the insurance processes;

maintain a plurality of process states corresponding to the browser states;

receive data from the browsers via the network; and

permit the user-selected browser state only subject to permission for the corresponding insurance process to be performed.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to permit execution of one of the insurance processes only upon completion of a prior one of the plurality of insurance processes, the rating process being prior to the create quote process.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the insurance processes further comprise an underwriting worksheet process prior to the rating process and a create binder process subsequent to the create quote process.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to cause the browsers to generate a graphical user interface configured to display one of the interface elements associated with one of the insurance processes and simultaneously display an indication associated with at least one of the other insurance processes, the graphical user interface being configured to cause data indicative of user selection of the insurance process associated with the indication to be furnished to the processor responsive to user selection of the indication.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to execute a search of data in a database associated with the insurance computer system.