ACORD Solutions Group (ASG), the industry-owned subsidiary of insurance standard-setting body ACORD, has announced the implementation of its ACORD Data Exchange Platform & Translator (ADEPT) to perform automated, real-time premium accounting reconciliation between insurers and brokers. The platform was developed with some of the industry’s largest stakeholders, ASG said. The first data was exchanged by Aon and Zurich North America.
“While ACORD works closely with virtually all major brokers and carriers, we owe special gratitude to Aon and Zurich, who have been leading the way in defining and implementing this technology,” said Bijesh Jacob, senior vice president of technology and standards at ACORD. “Their contributions have been invaluable in launching an industry-wide platform to enable secure, digital data exchange and validation for brokers and carriers.”
ACORD, working with Aon and Zurich North America, said there were common issues and themes associated with the settlement process.
“The premium accounting process is a highly inefficient transactional service provided by brokers and carriers,” said Mark Schmalzer, global service delivery leader for Aon. “Leveraging the blockchain-based backbone of ADEPT will provide brokers and carriers with an industrial-strength platform to identify and resolve inconsistent transactions very early in the process. This industry innovation will not only drive out non-value-added transactions, but also provide clients a more seamless premium payment experience.”
ADEPT offers a secure, decentralized storage and access service that enables users to verify payment information. The platform greatly reduces the time and cost of reconciliation by structuring, translating, and validating data in real time, ACORD said.
“The insurance industry is experiencing unprecedented change, and technology is unlocking new and efficient ways of conducting business,” said Haug Scharnowski, head of financial operations for Zurich North America. “The ACORD ADEPT solution is well aligned with Zurich’s continued efforts to improve our customer experience and broker interactions through innovation. We are proud to be on the front end of this journey with ACORD and Aon, and are excited about ADEPT’s continued adoption within the insurance industry.”
ADEPT used the industry-accepted ACORD Data Standards to link trading partners with real-time data exchange, transformation and validation, ACORD said.
“We are honored to help pioneer the first data exchanged on the ADEPT platform,” said Joe Propati, chief operating officer for North America at Aon. “Our collaboration with ACORD showcases Aon’s continued commitment to innovation within the insurance industry. This technology will change the way we do business, boosting efficiency for insurance carriers and brokers, all while protecting the integrity of the data.”
“Thanks to the efforts of these visionary organizations, ADEPT is now in production and able to support millions of transactions,” Jacob said. “By improving operational efficiencies, strategic positioning, and customer satisfaction, ADEPT will truly transform the operating economics of our industry.”
