Customer service

The Hartford Financial Services Group is making an effort to help employers de-stress. As the finale of a three-part direct mail campaign, the group benefits carrier recently sent stress balls to leaders at nearly 2,000 large companies. Each executive received a hand-sized, squeezable ball printed with the Web address for The Hartford Experience (http://thehartfordexperience.com/).

Hotels and retailers top Forrester Research’s latest customer experience ranking, Customer Experience Index (CxPi). Insurers, though, rank among the bottom four industries on the list.

Global wealth management technology spending by banks, brokerages and insurance companies is set to reach $3.7 billion by the end of 2010, up 5% from 2009, according to a report released January 7 by Boston-based research firm Celent.

Sircon, a wholly owned subsidiary of Vertafore Inc., took to the road the past 14 months to facilitate discussions between Sircon and representatives from a number of insurance companies. Stopping in cities such as New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago and Philadelphia, Sircon’s insurance-industry solutions team provided attendees with insights into upcoming product developments, industry trends and challenges, and provided hands-on training and question-and-answer sessions on pressing topics.

CSE Insurance Group, released its second iPhone application, the CSE Accident Tool Kit application for the Apple iPhone and iTouch. The mobile application is designed to have everything policyholders need to report an auto accident and file a claim from an iPhone or iTouch.

While still seen by many as a double-edged sword, social media helps insurers bring bring about new innovation.

The Guardian Investor Services subsidiary launched the funds due to consumers' increased appetite for fixed-income investment options.

New report designed to assist agents in creating their own social media practices and policies.

In an effort to boost sub-par fixed-income annuity sales, AIG has renamed one of its subsidiaries in an effort to distance the brand from its tarnished image.

The health care reform bill passed by the Senate on Christmas Eve includes several improvements advocated by the organizations that represent insurance brokers and advisers in Washington. For the most part, however, those groups remain opposed to the Senate bill — and more so the version approved by the House.

Bank of America Corp.'s lawsuit against MGIC Investment Corp. reflects escalating tensions in the industry over mortgage insurers' denials of claims that lenders submit for defaulted home loans.

Countrywide Financial Corp., now owned by Bank of America Corp., will have to reimburse as many as 17 million victims of the breach free and offer credit monitoring as a result of a settlement that was approved by a U.S. District Court Judge Thomas B. Russell in Kentucky. The Associated Press reports that the settlement calls for Countrywide give the victims, including anyone who obtained a mortgage and anyone who used Countrywide to service a mortgage before July 1, 2008, free credit monitoring and up to $50,000 in reimbursements per instance of identity theft, provided they actually lost something of value, were not reimbursed and can prove the loss more likely than not stemmed from the Countrywide breach.

Boston-based Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company is closing its recently formed MassMutual Retirement Income (MMRI) unit, according to a report in Investment News. The unit was formed in April 2007 to deliver “advisor-focused solutions for customers’ accumulation and guaranteed lifetime income needs.”

Search is now generating thousands of new policies for agents and carriers, making it an indispensable part of their marketing strategy.

Across categories, 66% of claimants who give their carriers high satisfaction scores will renew their policies, but only 49% who give carriers low satisfaction scores plan to renew.

Survey results show younger generation more open to being approached via non-traditional channels.

Despite research indicating that 41% of online insurance consumers are interested in PAYD policies, why hasn't this seemingly innovative and intuitive program been adopted by more states, or backed by regulatory groups?

The few insurers that have released mobile apps have but, eventually, every insurer that has invested in a Web-based channel will be taking full advantage of every mobile device.

A panel of insurance technology experts share tips and tricks for putting innovation into play.

Rollout of service designed to bring ease and efficiency to managing insurance product transactions.