Customer experience

Englewood, Colo. - InsureMe, a consumer-agent link for buying insurance online, announced the creation of a blog to help online marketers succeed in the affiliate marketing industry by sharing tips, tools and news.

Santa Monica, Calif. – National Planning Holdings Inc. has added a library of direct sponsor forms and applications to its Web-based representative workstation system, Electronic Order Entry (EOE). NPH is a broker-dealer holding company and an affiliate of Lansing, Mich.-based Jackson National Life Insurance Co.With thousands of providers and products represented on EOE, the new direct sponsor functionality is the latest step in NPH's effort to provide technology solutions that help representatives improve the efficiency of their practices.

Warren, N.J.- Applications for professional and management liability insurance products from the Chubb Group of Insurance Cos. can now be submitted entirely online with an electronic signature. Previously, Chubb's eApplications required a "wet" signature before a policy could be bound."The launch of our new electronic signature capability is another step in making it even easier to do business with Chubb. We've now eliminated the need to send a signed hard copy of the application through the mail," says Judy Cook, vice president, Chubb & Son, and e-business manager, Chubb Specialty Insurance. "Our policy application process for these products is now completely electronic--an integral component of our expanding e-commerce capabilities. This important advancement will help speed up the application process for our customers, agents and brokers."

Wausau, Wis. - The people and technology that are making Wausau Insurance easier to do business with are main attractions on the newly designed Wausau.com, according to Wausau Insurance."At Wausau, we're proud to be both a high-tech and high-touch company that is improving our 'ease of doing business' with our agents, brokers and customers," says Wausau President and Chief Operating Officer Mark Fiebrink. "Our new look on Wausau.com conveys the essence of our Wausau TotalValue brand promise--that is, our people and technology translate into superior commercial insurance products and service."

Kansas City, Mo. - The top three reasons consumers filed formal complaints against their insurance companies in 2005 were delays, denials and unsatisfactory settlement offers, according to data collected by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).Following these claims handling issues, consumers complained most about policy cancellations and premiums/insurance rating issues. That complaint pattern has remained relatively consistent during the past four years. A total of 199,639 complaints were filed by consumers in 2005, a 22.5% decrease from 2004.

Costa Mesa - NADAguides.com, the N.A.D.A. Appraisal Guides vehicle information Web site, and Geico, the Washington, D.C.-based private passenger auto insurer, have formed a partnership, whereby Geico becomes the exclusive provider of automotive insurance for millions of NADAguides.com consumers looking to insure their new or used car, truck, van or SUV online at www.nadaguides.com.In turn, visitors to Geico.com are now able to access NADAguides.com vehicle pricing and specification information. NADAguides.com links are available at Geico.com within the automotive, motorcycle, boats and manufactured housing sections and the marketing partner section of the Geico Web site.

Framingham, Mass. - A recent survey of 802 consumers carrying health insurance, conducted by IDC's Health Industry Insights, reveals one in three respondents (33%) cite medical information being made accessible on the Internet as a primary reason for feeling less comfortable about sharing information with primary care physicians (PCPs).Nearly half of respondents (47%) who are uncomfortable sharing information with PCPs also indicated "wanting control over who accesses their personal health information" as a reason, while 14% do not trust the health plan to adequately protect personal health information.

Atlanta - The Professional Insurance Marketing Association (PIMA), Fort Worth, Texas, selected Online Insight Inc., as its bronze medal winner for the company's end-to-end sales solution for a major healthcare client. The award was distributed as part of PIMA's Marketing Methods Competition.

Columbus, Ohio - Customers of Nationwide can now monitor their damaged vehicle repairs online through Nationwide AutoWatch--an Internet-based software tool. AutoWatch is currently being piloted in multiple states and may be rolled out as an optional service in the coming months."The Web site enables customers to log on 24 hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year to monitor their vehicle at different points during the repair process at participating Nationwide/Allied Insurance Blue Ribbon Repair Shops," says Terry Fortner, Nationwide associate vice president of claims.

Chicago - InsuranceNoodle Inc. has received U.S. Patent Office notification that the patent application claims relating to innovations for its "Methods and Apparatus for Selecting an Insurance Carrier for an Online Insurance Policy Purchase" have been allowed for issuance within the next few months."We are extremely excited the Patent Office has made this decision after four years of extensive application review," says InsuranceNoodle CEO Kathryn Emmerson. "This approval--as well as the fact that more than 2,500 agencies across the country are active NoodleNetwork partners--supports and validates our proprietary, Web-based technology platform and its capability to provide fast, efficient online quoting from multiple carriers for a variety of commercial products."