System, program product and method for segmenting and underwriting using voting status

• US 8,285,618 B1
• Filed: 09/30/2011
• Issued: 10/09/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Safeco Insurance Company of America (Liberty Mutual Holding Company)
• Original Assignee: Safeco Insurance Company of America (Liberty Mutual Holding Company)
• Inventors: Strannigan, Gary, Dye, Tammy
• Primary Examiner(s): Havan, Thu Thao
• Application Number:
  US13/250,474
• Time in Patent Office: 375 Days
• Field of Search: 705/4, 705 35- 40
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance

Abstract

A system, method and computer program product for utilizing a person'"'"'s voting status as a factor in segmenting a population, and in various aspects of selling, underwriting, or rating insurance. In defining voting status, recent voting, voting frequency, or other voting history may optionally take into account the type of election or the turnout for the election, or both. Voting status may be used together with other factors such as age, gender, driving distance to place of employment, or residence location. A risk model for insurance purposes is provided, including segmentation of a population into groups based factors including voting status; and determining risk parameters of each group. A rate structure corresponding to the segmented groups may be calculated, and insurance coverage limits and a premium proposed to a customer based on a group assignment. Persons to receive insurance sales solicitations may be identified based on voting status.

Claims

1. A method for identifying persons to receive insurance sales solicitations, comprising:

obtaining, via a processor, voting status information associated with one or more persons, wherein the voting status information comprises an indication of at least one of voter registration status or voting history;

generating, with the processor, a list of persons whose voting status information comprises an affirmative indication of at least one of registration to vote, eligibility for voter registration, an instance of recent voting, or a minimum voting frequency; and

based at least in part on at least one such affirmative voting status indication, directing an insurance sales solicitation to one or more persons on said list.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein directing a sales solicitation comprises sending the solicitation via a computer network.

3. A method for constructing a segmentation-based model for insurance underwriting expressed in the form of actuarial rules, comprising:

based at least in part on information providing voting status of members of a population, generating, via a processor, a segmentation-based risk model by segmenting the population into groups and calculating insurance underwriting risk parameters of each group, the insurance underwriting risk parameters including at least one of predicted insurance claim frequency or insurance claim severity; and

determining actuarial rules of the risk model;

wherein the voting status information of members of a first group comprises an affirmative indication of at least one of registration to vote, eligibility for voter registration, an instance of recent voting, or a minimum voting frequency, wherein the voting status information of members of a second group does not comprise an affirmative indication of at least one of registration to vote, eligibility for voter registration, an instance of recent voting, or a minimum voting frequency, and wherein the risk model indicates a relatively lower predicted insurance claim frequency or insurance claim severity for the first group than for the second group.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising applying the actuarial rules in insurance underwriting to approve or deny an applicant for insurance.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the actuarial rules define a risk group and its level of risk.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein segmenting the population into groups is based additionally on one or more of age, gender, driving distance to place of employment, or location.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein segmenting the population into groups is based on internal information of an insurance provider and data from one or more external sources.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the one or more external sources includes a commercial vendor source for a voter file.

9. The method system of claim 7, wherein the one or more external sources includes a governmental source for a voter file.

10. A method for underwriting and rating an insurance policy based on a segmentation-based risk model, comprising:

receiving information providing voting status of members of a population;

based at least in part on the voting status information, generating, via a processor, a segmentation-based risk model by segmenting the population into groups and calculating insurance underwriting risk parameters of each group;

receiving voting status information characterizing an applicant for insurance;

determining, based at least in part on the voting status information characterizing the applicant, into which segmented group the applicant falls; and

determining to offer an insurance policy to the applicant in an instance in which the group into which the applicant falls comprises at least one member having voting status information comprising an affirmative indication of at least one of registration to vote, eligibility for voter registration, an instance of recent voting, or a minimum voting frequency.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising determining a rate structure corresponding to the segmented groups, and proposing insurance coverage limits and a premium to the applicant based on the group into which the applicant falls.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the risk parameters include at least one of predicted claim frequency or claim severity.

13. A computing system for segmenting a population, comprising:

a data storage device;

a voting status generator module programmed to obtain information providing voting status of members of a population;

a predictive modeling module programmed to segment the population into groups based at least in part on voting status information stored in the data storage device and to calculate risk parameters of each group, wherein the voting status information of members of a first group comprises an affirmative indication of at least one of registration to vote, eligibility for voter registration, an instance of recent voting, or a minimum voting frequency, wherein the voting status information of members of a second group does not comprise an affirmative indication of at least one of registration to vote, eligibility for voter registration, an instance of recent voting, or a minimum voting frequency, and wherein the risk parameters of the first group indicate a relatively lower predicted insurance claim frequency or insurance claim severity than the risk parameters for the second group; and

an input/output system to transfer incoming voting status information obtained by the voting status generator module to the data storage device and to output information relating to the groups and their respective risk parameters.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the risk parameters include at least one of predicted claim frequency or claim severity.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein calculating risk parameters includes weighing an individual'"'"'s voting status based on one of:

election type, election turnout, or election type and turnout.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the predictive modeling module is programmed to segment the population into groups based additionally on one or more of age, gender, driving distance to place of employment, or location.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the predictive modeling module is programmed to segment the population into groups based on data stored in the data storage device received from one or more internal data sources of an insurance provider and one or more external data sources, the external data sources including at least one of a commercial vendor source for a voter file or a governmental source for a voter file.