trends

A half century ago, physicist and philosopher Thomas Kuhn first coined the phrase “paradigm shift” to describe a fundamental change in assumptions. The term has since been over-applied to everything  from economics to politics – even becoming the title of an episode of Star Trek! Yet while so often misused,  I believe the term paradigm shift perfectly describes what is happening in underwriting today.

If the insurance industry is informed about medical advancements, a huge advantage arises for future underwriting with regards to calculating ratings for specific diseases and also creating digital application forms with simplified underwriting.

The practice of life underwriting is undergoing a lot of change as insurers look to speed up and enhance the customer experience. Big data, artificial intelligence, pharmacy records, accelerated underwriting and more are playing a part.

Either through online application processes and simplified underwriting, or by more advanced data analysis – using, for example, facial recognition – the underwriting process is going to change. What the exact developments will be and how they finally affect our industry is not yet 100% clear.

This update is based largely upon findings from our 2018 New Business Critical Issues Survey. It was conducted over a span of six months stating in October 2017. Chief underwriters from 93 insurers offering individually underwritten life insurance participated in this survey.

What effect will changing—and challenging—economies, politics, and regulations have on life insurance companies worldwide?

The age of traditional business partnerships is long past. Today, strategic partnerships offer life insurers the ability to expand their businesses into new ecosystems. Whether investing in insurtechs or collaborating with partners in complementary industries, life insurers can build partnerships based not only on strategy, product and services but also on the merging of technology and the sharing of platforms.

At the 2018 Life Insurance Conference, industry leaders discussed important issues and strategies that will shape the future of the industry.

There have been a number of changes in the insurance landscape in the recent past which present challenges for the consumer, advisor and underwriter. Last year, some carriers changed their position on marijuana usage by offering their clients non-smoker rates. There have also been recent legislative changes regarding genetic testing that impact life insurers.

Progress in genomics is creating opportunities and threats for medical underwriting in both health and life insurance.