How To Speed Underwriting

–Compliancelinked to control. This would relate to any number of medical conditions. For example, if the applicant has diabetes, does the person take insulin or other prescribed medication and follow the doctors orders? Does the person exercise and take good care of him or herself?

If so, that person is compliant. Conversely, as another example, if your applicant has had bypass surgery yet continues to smoke, he or she is non-compliant.

–Family historyand needed facts. In the evaluation of any risk, more information on family history is often needed. If your applicant has a family history of a condition that might cause him or her to be rated, that could be crucial information that should be should be provided in a cover letter (see related story) to the home office underwriting department.

–Thorough informationhonestly presented. The importance of agents presenting complete and honest information cant be emphasized too often. Without both, the agent is doing a disservice to the client/prospect, the carrier, and the industry he/she represents.

Reproduced from National Underwriter Life & Health/Financial Services Edition, November 12, 2001. Copyright 2001 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.

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