Best’s Review Recognizes American General for Successful Innovation: DecisionXchange

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--American General Life Companies (American General) has been recognized by Best’s Review magazine’s Innovation Showcase for a life insurance innovation: DecisionXchange: a software package that performs automated, expert underwriting using table-driven and case-based reasoning to provide consistent underwriting decisions on cases it approves and on cases it refers to further underwriting review. Details of American General’s innovation are available in the January edition of the magazine, at http://www3.ambest.com/bestweek/getpublication.asp?issueid=9c3baaf9&pageid=21.

Innovation Showcase is a forum for recognizing forward thinking among insurance organizations. A panel of insurance industry experts assessed the relative merits of the submissions.

In reviewing American General’s DecisionXchange, Bill Jenkins, Managing Partner, Agile Insurance Analytics, said, “The risk prequalification system they have put together…is providing the organization significant benefits: efficiency gains, improved time-to-market and the use of information to increase their underwriting appetite and increase their revenue. The use of up-front underwriting rules and edits along with the use of collected information has increased the company’s straight-through processing percentage and is providing significant efficiencies at this juncture of the insurance work flow....Good use of technology and data.”

Jim Mallon, President of American General, said, “Intelligent underwriting through DecisionXchange is an example of the many innovations we’ve made as part of our ongoing commitment to help our distribution partners work more efficiently and effectively. Agents face intense pressure regarding how they do business and at what cost; therefore, continuing to streamline the distribution process through key tools like DecisionXchange remains a top priority for American General.”

Best’s Review is published by the A.M. Best Co. for insurance professionals, including home office executives, agents and brokers. Founded in 1899, A.M. Best Co. is the world’s oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source.

American General Life Companies, www.americangeneral.com, is the marketing name for a group of affiliated domestic life insurers. American General Life Companies insurers offer a broad spectrum of life insurance, fixed annuities and accident & health products to serve the financial and estate planning needs of its customers throughout the United States.