Core systems

The incentive of insurers to explore online learning, beside the low travel costs and reduction of lost agent and employee productivity, is the fact that carriers can turn around training relatively quickly. This is essential with so many new products, regulatory compliance requirements and other liability issues nipping at their heels.

BOSTON--According to an analysis conducted by AIR Worldwide (AIR), a leading risk modeling company, the 2004 hurricane season should not be considered rare. The analysis, based on the AIR hurricane model, revealed that insurers should expect to see four hurricanes make landfall in the U.S. approximately once every 12 years. The expected frequency of four loss producing hurricanes in Florida is about once every 150 years--still within the range to which most insurance companies manage their catastrophe risk.

PORTLAND, Ore.-- Standard Insurance Company, a subsidiary of StanCorp Financial Group, Inc., today announced the release of The Standard Select(SM) suite of insurance products, which feature enhancements to the company's Group Life, Long Term Disability (LTD) and Short Term Disability (STD) insurance options for small businesses.

Troy, NY--A survey of more than 130 insurance industry executives and IT managers, conducted by MapInfo Corp., shows increasing adoption of Web services and integration technology.

As it pertains to information technology strategies, life insurers are regarded by many industry experts as trailing their counterparts in the property/casualty and even health insurance sector.But when Waterloo, Ont.-based Manulife Financial of Canada in September announced plans to partner with CGI Group on a $100 million IT application outsourcing initiative, it presented further evidence that life insurance companies might be collectively poised to make a bolder commitment to IT strategy.

Although lending institutions have been using credit scores since the 1990s, most consumers still don't know what their credit score measures, what good and bad scores are, or how their scores can be improved.What's more, most consumers (81%) know that mortgage lenders use credit scores, but fewer (47%) know that insurers use them when underwriting homeowners policies.

Reducing costs and stimulating corporate growth can be a tough proposition for insurance companies. Often, reducing costs only serves to inhibit growth as a reduction in spending undermines targeted growth areas.A new study released by three insurance industry technology providers delves into the challenge life and annuity insurers are facing as they strive to remove costs from the equation while ensuring corporate prosperity, as defined by profitability.

Insurance companies that have learned to use technology to become information users rather than information gatherers have a decisive competitive advantage over their peers. But few insurance companies have "turned that corner."This is the assessment of John Bareiss, senior director at Fitch Ratings, New York. Fitch and Pearl River, N.Y.-based ACORD recently released a strategic briefing to provide insight into how the rating agency evaluates the technological capabilities of insurance companies, reinsurers and intermediaries.

The Contracts Update section includes announcements of contracts insurance information technology companies have signed with customers in recent weeks. Contract news can be faxed to Insurance Networking News magazine at (312) 913-1366 or by electronic mail to Stephen.Dwyer thomsonmedia.com Adobe Systems Inc.

NEW YORK, NY--The Tillinghast business of Towers Perrin today announced that the EPIC Consulting staff has joined its property/casualty insurance practice. Consulting actuaries Michael Miller, Klayton Southwood, Richard Smith and Kenneth Leonard are among the new hires.

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.--Workscape, Inc., a proven provider of outsourced benefits and workforce management solutions, today announced the introduction of its new nationwide partner program. Known as the Workscape Broker Alliance Program, it is available to insurance brokers and consultants that service employers with greater than 2,500 benefits-eligible employees and wish to supplement their offering with Workscape's benefits administration solution, OneForce/Benefits.

HARTFORD, Conn.-- MassMutual Financial Group today introduced Web-based enrollment for its Strategic Edge group universal and group variable universal life insurance products, making participant enrollment fast, easy and accurate.

WARREN, N.J.--The Chubb Corporation today reported that net income in the third quarter of 2004 was $364.0 million or $1.88 per share, compared to $259.8 million ($1.37 per share) in the third quarter of 2003.

LOUISVILLE, Ky.-- In response to the growing need for affordable health benefit plans for small and mid-size employers, Humana Inc. today launched SmartExpress, a family of health insurance plans designed for businesses with 2 to 299 employees that want to better control and predict health care costs while giving their employees expanded benefits and a better health plan experience.

HONG KONG-- New York Life Insurance Company announced today that Joseph Gilmour, 48, executive vice president and chief financial officer of New York Life International, the company's overseas arm with operations in nine markets, will succeed Gary G. Benanav, 58, as chief executive of New York Life International effective March 1, 2005. At that time Mr. Gilmour will become president and CEO of International, and Mr. Benanav will remain chairman until March 1, 2006.

Newark, Calif.-- Risk Management Solutions (RMS), the world's leading provider of products and services for the management of catastrophe risk, is now offering software developer tools for its RiskLink and RiskBrowser systems. The RiskTools software development kit allows companies to efficiently integrate key components of RMS products into their internal underwriting and portfolio management systems, allowing users to access RMS decision support tools via internal system interfaces.

ACORD's Board of Directors approved a motion appointing the members of the new ACORD Standards Committee (ASC). The 15-member ASC is comprised of Domain Steering Committee and Subcommittee Chairs as well as three ACORD Board directors who will be collectively responsible for leading the ACORD standards process at all levels.

Commercial property/casualty insurance premiums continued to decline significantly during the third quarter of this year, with two-thirds of all large and medium accounts experiencing drops of up to 20 percent and an additional 11 percent of large accounts seeing premiums down between 20-30 percent.

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Jefferson Pilot Financial, one of the nation's leading providers of universal and variable universal life insurance and fixed annuities, recently expanded its continuing education program for insurance agents with five new courses of study.

LONDON and PRINCETON--Aon Re International has today announced that it has licensed the Pivot Point insurance transaction system from CATEX Inc. Pivot Point is a web-based system handling the full reinsurance process from business production and quoting through to IBA ledger.