Fastcomp® 8.0 To Bring New Features, New Value To Independent Insurance Agents And The Carriers They Represent
CLEVELAND, Nov. 5, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Fastcomp®, one of the nation's leading managing general agents and pioneer in online workers' compensation coverage, is preparing to roll out Fastcomp 8.0, the latest iteration of its groundbreaking cloud-based workers' comp toolset. The release will be loaded with new features to further support the independent agent at the heart of the commercial lines/workers' compensation sales cycle.
"Fastcomp 8.0 reflects our determination to defend the value of the independent agent, make it as easy as possible to write more business and allow them to be more profitable in doing so," says John Valko, Founder and CEO of Fastcomp. "It will include a new Agent Dashboard that will track the entire sales cycle – from risk submission all the way through to policy management while in force. Agents will have all the necessary information, literally in hand as long as they have an internet connection."
Granted, more and more business-to-business transactions are moving to the web as small business owners become increasingly comfortable with web- and mobile-based transactions. Many carriers are, or are considering, going direct for commercial lines.
But workers' compensation coverage is a major business expense that goes far beyond writing premium checks, to involve a whole host of loss-control, risk management and HR issues. And like an attorney or accountant, a trusted independent retail insurance agent can provide genuine value to a small business beyond off-loading the time-sucking task of obtaining necessary coverages.
Most small businesspeople simply don't have the detailed experience to classify risks accurately in a digital-direct insurance application. (After all, many classes that seem quite similar – Lawn Care vs. Landscaper, for example – actually carry two very different exposures and rates.) So while insureds would appear to benefit from automation, misclassified risk presents a clear problem: sooner or later, the error will be discovered and rectified by the carrier with a large lump-sum premium increase at audit.
Fastcomp's business model extends value to the carrier side of the business as well. A misclassed insured can eat away any savings a carrier might realize by going direct: from notifying departments of insurance and ratings bureaus of class code revisions to managing client outrage at unexpected additional premium, it's all extra work. That's why Fastcomp uses its network of approved agents to help with selection and screening to ensure the correct premium for the correct exposure.
Partnering with Fastcomp, today's agent can leverage both online convenience and highly accurate predictive modeling software that still includes the human element... a workers' compensation underwriter validating the risk... to assure that the client receives a quote on true premium for the correct exposure for each submission. And, while Fastcomp agents pay no membership fee, their franchise value is scrupulously protected.
"We know a totally automated online system is what everybody wants," observes Valko. "We know because we've tried for over a decade to develop one that actually protects the best interests of insureds, agents and carriers... and as good as they are, they just don't. That's why we believe so strongly that clients should partner with agents, and agents with companies that still validate each risk."
SOURCE Fastcomp.com
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