SMIC Goes Live on IDP’s AgentXpress

Following a two-month pilot, Security Mutual Insurance Co. (SMIC) has launched IDP's AgentXpress agent portal technology, allowing the Ithaca, N.Y.-based regional P&C carrier's 350 agent partners have Web-based access to claims and billing information, view policies online and generate loss run and expiration reports, as well as commission statements, according to the vendor.

The solution delivers ease of use to agents and creates substantial efficiencies for both agents and SMIC, according to Tom Ruane, the carrier's president. "Our agents no longer have to call an 800 number on behalf of insureds to obtain answers on matters such as payment amounts, due dates, renewal dates and basic claims and policy information," he says. "They can access that all online and give it to their client instantly."

Ruane characterizes the application's user-friendliness by relating his personal experience of using AgentXpress effectively without needing any training. "You can simply conduct a database search for a last name and find your insured," he says. That ease-of-use has cut down on the need for SMIC personnel to assist agents. For example, Ruane says, "an agency on Long Island had been calling us four times a day, but we no longer hear from them with routine inquiries."

According to IDP president and CEO Gary Gilbert, AgentXpress aims to solve the problem of companies SMIC's size that have data residing on a technical platform not accessible via Internet. "Our solution is to export data on a daily basis from legacy systems and update a Web-accessible database," he says. "That makes the legacy data instantly accessible for use by a company's agents and policyholders."

Anthony O'Donnell has covered technology in the insurance industry since 2000, when he joined the editorial staff of Insurance & Technology. As an editor and reporter for I&T and the InformationWeek Financial Services of TechWeb he has written on all areas of information ... View Full Bio