Norwich Union Goes Hi-Tech With Network Broker Solution

by Stewart Douglas

Story link: Norwich Union Goes Hi-Tech With Network Broker Solution

Norwich Union has today become the first mainstream UK insurance company to establish a wholly online network environment from which its agents and brokers can access central core materials relating to their policies and product lines, in an attempt to step up efficiency and save on distribution costs.

The insurance firm has today launched its own private extranet across its significant body of brokers and agents, whereby all those party to the firm’s insurance offerings will be given access to a central database of important documents relating to the products on sale, ultimately giving brokers more direct access to the papers they require.

The documents will be made available online through the secure, uniform PDF format which enables a uniform document display and quick-print functionality. The format means that the documents are interchangeable with most operating systems to prevent platform discrepancies whilst they can be printed easily and efficiently to a high quality within the individual broker office.

Furthermore the documents can be accessed within a secure environment, making the most of available technology to prevent unauthorised modification of files or access without permission to protect the commercial interests of Norwich Union, its brokers and indeed its product lines presently on offer.

The system is based around the creation of Skywire Software, a software management consultancy firm specialising in network creation and establishment for secure, stabe virtual environments. Its custom designed CCM (customer communications management) solution currently handles 10,000 processed documents each day throughout the Norwich Union network.

Norwich Union brokers look set to benefit from savings in paper and postage costs, as well as increased efficiency benefits from operating the system on a virtual basis. It remains to be seen whether similar strategies will be adopted amongst some of the other large insurance broker networks.