A practical guide to underwriting workbenches

In the insurance industry’s dynamic and competitive landscape, staying ahead requires embracing new and innovative solutions that streamline processes and improve risk decisions. A new solution that many insurers are exploring is the underwriting workbench. It is an invaluable tool across the many lines of business insurers write. Underwriting workbench helps insurers manage incoming risk better, to monitor their risk profile and to manage this in line with risk appetite. Insurers have realised that compliance with regulations around risk management requires more sophisticated tools to monitor risk, and there are many other benefits as ,e benefits of underwriting workbenches include:

• Improved risk management
• Reduction in loss ratio
• Improved efficiency and workflow management.
• Greater insight

These benefits are driving insurers to explore underwriting workbenches as part of their technology upgrades. In this blog series, Dani Katz, Co Founder of Optalitix, will share the key considerations and lessons learned from his extensive experience deploying workbenches for insurers.

‍What Models are used in an underwriting workbench?

‍When selecting a workbench, evaluating the types of models it can host is crucial. Insurers engage with a multitude of model platforms, by far the most common is Excel. Having implemented many different workbenches and insurance product lines, the underwriting platforms must support every possible model type, especially spreadsheets, but also Python, cu models, and specialized insurance pricing software. Every insurer needs their underwriting workbench to have the flexibility to use existing models or to create new ones tailored to their specific underwriting needs.

‍Essential underwriting workbench features

‍An underwriting workbench must provide certain essential features, including quote triaging, underwriting request tracking, quote documentation and issuance, client and broker interactions, quote binding, and secure data transfers. Ensuring that your workbench fulfils these requirements will enhance your underwriting efficiency and enable smoother and easier collaboration with other departments in your organisation. In our next blog, we will consider the impact of underwriting workflow on the implementation of the underwriting workbench.