Policy adminstration

EL SEGUNDO--Computer Sciences Corporation today announced the availability of new releases of its life insurance, annuity, property and casualty (P&C) insurance, and reinsurance software components that implement the company's enterprise integration architecture, CSC e4. By using the CSC e4 framework, clients can exploit both the potential of new technologies and the embedded value in their legacy systems.

COLUMBUS, Ohio-- Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., one of the country's largest property and casualty insurance companies, has received more than 22,000 claims in the past week for damages from Hurricane Charley. Overall, Nationwide estimates it will receive more than 50,000 claims and losses approaching $400 million.

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.--A small but growing group of customers are turning to the Internet rather than phone calls or office visits to communicate with their auto insurance provider, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2004 National Auto Insurance Study released today.

ING has made enhancements to its online services for employer groups. The enhanced services include online reports, online documents, online evidence of insurability and online billing for self-accounting customers.

DAYTON, Ohio-- The Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund (MAIF), created by the Maryland State Legislature to provide insurance coverage for the state's most at-risk drivers, has chosen RiskWise solutions from LexisNexis, an information solution provider, to help screen information provided by applicants and claimants in an effort to proactively identify rate evasion and claims fraud.

To help doctors understand the role of return-to-work in recovery, CIGNA Group Insurance introduced a new Physicians' Disability Toolkit, an informational Web site for health care providers and their office staff is designed to aid patients' treatment and recovery plans.

GREENVILLE, S.C-- RBC Insurance is providing consumers the ability to acquire life insurance in as little as 15 minutes at its Web site located at www.rbcexpressterm.com.

INDIANAPOLIS--Consumers will be able to enjoy more options and flexibility to pay for health care expenses, gain more control over their health care dollars, reap tax benefits and plan for retirement as a result of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield's (Anthem) introduction of its Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).

A lot has been made about insurers' attempt to comply with federal regulations, such as The USA Patriot Act and Sarbanes-Oxley, but lost often in the shuffle are the ongoing state-level regulations with which insurers must contend.

NEEDHAM, Mass.-- North American insurers currently are pursuing global expansion at a pace rivaling that of European insurers' entry into US markets in the early 1990s. TowerGroup finds that more favorable economics, key demographic trends and the gradual dissolution of international barriers to entry underscore the high growth possible for U.S. insurers in key emerging markets.

To provide customers with an "ideal buying experience" can sometimes mean practicing what you preach.That axiom is being practiced by business and information technology executives at Amica Life Insurance Co., a Lincoln, R.I.-based provider of term and universal life, annuities and structured settlement insurance products. The "Ideal Buying Experience" is Amica Life's recently launched new business selling program which focused on automating the front-end capability of the carrier's business-from electronic applications and new business submission, to paperless underwriting and automatic issue within its core administration system.

In recent years, insurance companies have spent more money on legacy system maintenance than on packaged software applications, according to industry experts.There are several factors influencing this trend, but one undoubtedly stands out: Many insurers concur that there's a lack of robust software application options to fulfill their needs.

Many insurers have indicated that reining in claims handling costs is a priority this year and beyond. After examining the root cause of inefficient claims management, insurers have concurred that the onus is on the absence of historical databases.In a customer poll conducted by Jersey City, N.J.-based Insurance Services Office Inc. (ISO), 46% of U.S. insurance organizations identified the lack of historical databases as a major cause of poor claims management.

With apologies to Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman, there is a free lunch after all. Blue Cross of California has expanded a unique technology initiative to give 1,200 physicians either a complete desktop computer system or a personal digital assistant (PDAs)-free of charge.This is the second wave of the 21st century technology give-away program in the state, and targets physicians taking part in two safety-net health care plans-called the Medi-Cal and Healthy Family Insurance programs-for poor, uninsured or low-income patients.

The days of endless rows of file cabinets chock-full with customer files are numbered as more companies provide their customers with online access to policies, billing statements and claims reporting.As insurers grapple with regulatory changes, mergers and acquisitions and fast-changing technologies, enhancing operational efficiency and providing top-notch customer service has never been more important.

SEATTLE, Aug. 2--Safeco today announced it has completed the sale of its Life & Investments (L&I) operation to an investor group led by White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd., and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Safeco completed the sales of Safeco Trust Company in April 2004 and Talbot Financial Corporation in July 2004.

PEARL RIVER, NY--41 states are now accepting the ACORD Life Form Life Application Part 1, ACORD announced. This is a major step in a multi-year initiative and is supported by numerous life insurance companies and associations, including NAILBA and NAVA.

PORTLAND, Ore.-- Standard Insurance Company, a subsidiary of StanCorp Financial Group, Inc. has appointed Brad Nantz as vice president of Sales and Ellen Steel as vice president of Operations for the Employee Benefits Division.

Grange Insurance, Columbus, Ohio, has licensed EDR InSight, a set of solutions designed for claims professionals to facilitate the use of automotive Event Data Recorder (EDR) or "black box" data in the claims evaluation process.Grange will use EDR InSight, provided by Injury Sciences LLC, San Antonio, to identify vehicles with harvestable black box data. Grange claim representatives will use EDR InSight to schedule harvesting services from a network of mobile service providers and for analysis and interpretation of the EDR data.

BOSTON--John Hancock Life Insurance Company has quadrupled the long-term care insurance (LTCI) operations professionals who support the sale of its LTCI products from 6 staff members to 24. The expanded support enhances service for its existing LTCI channels including career agents, its national account team, managing general agents (MGAs) and banks, and allows the company to serve two new channels, brokerage general agents (BGAs) and broker-dealers.