NAILBA Perspectives Virtual Symposium Special Edition | Page 22
UNDERWRITING
The art of
Underwriting Advocacy
Risk assessment
is both an art and
a science.
Christopher Bottaro is the Senior
Vice President of Insurance for
Valmark Financial Group. He is
responsible for the vision, strategy
and execution of life insurance
marketing, underwriting, new
business and in force insurance
solutions. [email protected]
Plato once wrote, “Necessity is the mother of invention.”
Winston Churchill stressed “Never let a good crisis go to waste”
and Albert Einstein philosophized that “in the middle of difficulty,
lies opportunity.”
Each of these well-known adages from history’s best thinkers is apropos to the impact of
COVID-19 on the life insurance underwriting and new business process. To continue to offer
coverage, manufacturers, distributors and advisors alike have been forced to find creative
process solutions. Underwriting and new business processes have seen some of the largest
transformations of any area during this time. The integration of automation, technology and
new data sources have dramatically changed the process of assigning a rate class and issuing
a policy. The pandemic has truly been a watershed moment, moving underwriting processes
forward several years in a matter of mere months!
At Valmark Financial Group, we view underwriting as having two facets: pricing (rate class)
and the administrative aspects of placing a contract in force. During this time of change, our
Underwriting Advocacy process has come to the forefront as we partner with carriers and
advisors to distribute life insurance using evolving digital processes.
Defining Underwriting Advocacy
We define Underwriting Advocacy as “the art of packaging, clarifying, and negotiating to
obtain the optimal underwriting class for the client in the least intrusive and fastest manner
possible.” Risk assessment is both an art and a science. The only truly negotiable aspect of
an insurance contract is the underwriting class assigned by the insurance company.
To secure the best possible price for a client, the ability to thoroughly shop and understand
the marketplace is critical. Data on which carriers “play well” in certain niches is helpful to
ensure a smooth process and optimal outcome. And, because the underwriting space is
complex and remarkably fluid right now, it’s critical to have in house talent with top-notch
technical expertise, resources and relationships to advocate on behalf of producers and their
clients with carrier underwriters who may not have access to a complete, traditional file.
Inviting strangers in the home
Paramed exam challenges, for example, have been exacerbated by “quarantine life” as
proposed insureds balk at the idea of inviting a stranger into their home. Enhancements
to accelerated processes to allow for more policies issued without a paramed exam has
been critical to securing coverage. Each carrier’s accelerated process is different in terms of
guidelines, restrictions, and success rates. At Valmark, Underwriting Advocacy involves closely
tracking the nuances of each process, including keeping data on the percentage of cases
moving to issue without an exam at each carrier. Arming our team of underwriting experts
with data allows them to provide guidance to advisors, enabling them to target the best
carrier for a case and helping to ensure an efficient client experience.
22 Perspectives Q3 Special Edition 2020