Agribusiness insurance is a vital sector, but agents are facing significant challenges in managing policy data due to inadequate download connections.
According to a recent survey from AUGIE Group, 61.5% of agents report growth in their agribusiness, but 75% struggle with getting policy data into their agency management systems. To worsen the issue, carriers often bundle agribusiness downloads with other lines of business, complicating tracking and management.
Donna LaGoy (pictured left), senior vice president of business systems at Highstreet Insurance Partners, shed light on the difficulties posed by this bundling. “One of the big issues is that agribusiness data often gets downloaded as part of a broader commercial package,” she explained. “This causes us to miss critical details, making it difficult to accurately track what’s in our agribusiness book. When everything is intermingled, it becomes challenging to build out specific agribusiness programs and run meaningful analytics.”
Cal Durland (pictured right), director of AUGIE Group, echoed this concern, noting that a dedicated agribusiness download would be far more effective. “It’s so much better when it’s done as a true agribusiness download versus the way the industry has been handling it,” she stated.
LaGoy emphasized that the limitations in current carrier systems are largely due to their inherent design. “It’s just the way they are built,” she said, noting that, “Agents want more data that’s specific to their business.”
The call for carriers to include more lines of business within their systems is reinforced by another key finding from AUGIE’s survey, which highlights a significant gap: 34.6% of respondents reported that their agency management systems do not download any agribusiness policy data, underscoring the urgent need for carriers to improve data integration capabilities.
LaGoy outlined the benefits of having separate agribusiness download connections. Without dedicated connections, agents often rely on insurance carrier portals or paper copies to retrieve data. “It’s frustrating because the amount of work involved with manually entering policies versus getting the download is significant,” LaGoy observed. “Manual entry often leads to errors and missed coverages. When data is downloaded, it processes consistently according to a standard, reducing inconsistencies and improving accuracy.”
Moreover, separate agribusiness download connections provide valuable data insights that can help companies better manage and monetize their portfolios.
“For instance, if you decide to sell your agribusiness book, the only way you can sell it is by knowing what policies actually fall under agriculture within your systems. It’s about being able to have the proper data so that you can look at your books for whatever you need,” said LaGoy.
To enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the agribusiness insurance sector, Durland stressed the importance of collective action from agents. “If agents push carriers to change their systems, things like this will get done,” she asserted.
Durland added: “Ideally, when we achieve [specialised agribusiness download connections], we’ll have a better understanding of what’s happening within the sector. It will mean less manual effort for everyone involved, which leaves more time for agents to focus on client relationships and selling.”
