DATA RECOVERYApplied Systems Inc., University Park, Ill., launched a service to prevent critical data of an agency's business from being lost or destroyed due to a disaster or catastrophe. The agency data is stored and transmitted via a secure Internet connection as part of an automated weekly utility within The Agency Manager. The service is initiated weekly as part of a scheduled routine. Data is streamed over a high-speed line such as DSL cable or T1 and stored at a secure, state-of-the-art data center. For a monthly fee, the service is available to customers on the Agency Manager 6.3 and newer.
PRODUCER CONTRACTS
New York-based The BISYS Group Inc. released an Internet-based solution called producercontracting.com, which automates the time- and paper-intensive process insurers go through to complete contract agreements with producers. The Internet-based process reduces the time it takes for new producers to begin selling by enabling carriers and agencies to manage and distribute contracting forms online.
COMPETITIVE RATING TOOL
Fiserv FSC Inc., a unit of Brookfield, Wis.-based Fiserv Inc., has introduced the newest version of CapFSC, a competitive analysis tool for insurance companies and managing general agencies. CapFSC is a Windows-based product that gives insurance professionals the opportunity to compare their rates against the competition in a particular territory with specific rating criteria. The newest release of CapFSC includes several enhancements, including the ability to select a moving target for dollar and percent difference output calculations, a new company name search, and a "Show Selected Only" feature in the Quotes and Companies tabs to assist in identifying the items selected.
InSURANCE GLOSSARY
Atlanta-based LOMA has revised its Glossary of Insurance and Financial Services Terms. The new glossary contains extensive cross-references, and "See also" and "Contrast with" entries to help readers explore numerous aspects of industry concepts. LOMA's Glossary also explains the meaning of dozens of industry acronyms such as CRVM (Commissioner Reserve Valuation Method), and defines the primary functions of dozens of organizations such as the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). An electronic version of LOMA's Glossary is also available, which may be incorporated into company intranets.
BUSINESS CONTINUITY
Dallas-based Docucorp International is offering a new business continuity service. Provided through its two application service provider (ASP) facilities, Docucorp's service enables companies to maintain critical document-driven operations, such as billing and form processing, should a disaster disable their own production capabilities.
P&C COMPONENT FRAMEWORK
Dallas-based FirstApex Techno-logies Inc. released X-GEN 4.0 for the U.S. insurance market. X-GEN 4.0 is a component-based property/casualty framework designed to enable customers to integrate their existing solutions partially or fully into X-GEN 4.0. The framework is browser-based, scalable, and built using J2EE, COM+, XML, XSL and XHTML.
EPL UNDERWRITING GUIDE
Insurance Services Office Inc. (ISO), Jersey City, N.J. has added to the ISO Employers Advantage employment-practices liability (EPL) program with a comprehensive underwriting for evaluating exposure to employment-related liability claims and workplace lawsuits. The new guide includes an EPL application; commentary on essential underwriting considerations; evaluation of individual risk characteristics for bottom-line risk assessment; scoring of risks on a "point value" scale; and reference materials, which can also be used for training.
PRODUCER LICENSING
New York-based CT Insurance Services has launched the PINnacle Xchange Producer Licensing Database (XDB), a customizable and scaleable database that tracks and organizes producer demographic and licensure information, such as active licenses and appointments, for both individuals and agencies. The XDB features a set of standard fields, and also provides the ability to remove fields and add user-defined fields.
