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Insurance Abstract
Methods and apparatus for selecting an insurance carrier for an
online insurance policy purchase are disclosed. A user at a client
device, such as a personal computer connected to the Internet, receives
a plurality of business insurance quotes with minimal data input
requirements. A plurality of insurance carriers are narrowed down
to a few relevant insurance carriers based on geographic location,
type of business, desired insurance products, responses to a small
number of "kill" questions, and a customized insurance
application which is dynamically generated in response to previous
answers.
Insurance Claims
1. An apparatus structured to select a business insurance carrier
from a plurality of insurance carriers, the apparatus comprising:
an Internet receiver; an Internet transmitter; a memory device storing
information for the plurality of insurance carriers and a plurality
of kill questions, wherein each kill question is associated with
at least one of the insurance carriers; a web page generator operatively
coupled to the Internet receiver, the Internet transmitter, and
the memory device, the web page generator being structured to transmit
a first web page to a client device via the Internet transmitter,
the first web page including a business type information prompt
and a geographic location information prompt, the web page generator
being further structured to transmit a second web page to the client
device via Internet transmitter, the second web page including at
least one of the kill questions; an insurance carrier determination
module operatively coupled to the Internet receiver and the memory
device, the insurance carrier determination module being structured
to select a subset of the plurality of insurance carriers from the
memory device based on business type information and geographic
location information input in the first web page at the client device
and received via the Internet receiver the insurance carrier determination
module being further structured to select at least one candidate
insurance carrier from the subset of insurance carriers based on
responses to the at least one kill question input in the second
web page at the client device and received via the Internet receiver;
and a kill question selector operatively coupled to the memory device,
the kill question selector being structured to retrieve kill questions
from the memory device that are associated with the insurance carriers
in the subset of insurance carriers for use by the web page generator
in generating the second web page.
2. An apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the web page generator
is further structured to determine a plurality of available insurance
products based on the received business type information and transmit
a third web page to the client device via the Internet transmitter,
the third web page including the plurality of available insurance
products.
3. An apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein the web page generator
is further structured to receive at least one insurance product
selection for the insurance products on the third web page from
the client device via the Internet receiver and the insurance carrier
determination module is further structured to select the subset
of insurance carriers from the plurality of insurance carriers based
on the information input in the first and third web pages.
4. An apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the web page generator
is further structured to receive application data from the client
device via the Internet receiver and to transmit at least a portion
of the application data to the candidate insurance carrier via Internet
transmitter.
5. An apparatus as defined in claim 4, wherein the web page generator
is further structured to receive a quote response from the candidate
insurance carrier via the Internet receiver and transmit a third
web page to the client device via the Internet transmitter, the
third web page including at least a portion of the quote response.
6. An apparatus as defined in claim 5, further comprising a translation
unit, the translation unit being structured to convert the portion
of the quote response from a first data format to a second data
format, the first data format being different than the second data
format.
7. An apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the business type
information comprises a standard industrial code (SIC).
8. An apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the geographic location
information comprises a zip code.
9. A method of selling business insurance, the method comprising:
transmitting a business type information prompt and a geographic
location information prompt to a client device via a network; receiving
business type information and geographic location information from
the client device via the network; selecting a subset of a plurality
of available insurance carriers based on the business type information
and the geographic location information; retrieving kill questions
associated with the insurance carriers in the subset of insurance
carriers from a memory device; transmitting the retrieved kill questions
to the client device via the network; receiving responses to the
kill questions from the client device via the network; and selecting
at least one candidate insurance carrier from the subset of insurance
carriers based on the responses to the kill questions.
10. A method as defined in claim 9, further comprising: generating
a customized insurance application based on the at least one candidate
insurance carrier; and transmitting the customized insurance application
to the client device via the network.
11. A method as defined in claim 10, further comprising: receiving
an answer to the customized insurance application from the client
device via the network; and generating a further customized insurance
application based on the received answer.
12. A method as defined in claim 9, further comprising: selecting
a plurality of available insurance products based on the received
business type information; transmitting a product selection page
to the client device via the network, the product selection page
including the selected insurance products; and receiving at least
one insurance product selection from the client device via the network,
wherein the step of selecting a subset of available insurance carriers
further comprises eliminating insurance carriers from the plurality
of available insurance carriers based on the received insurance
product selections.
13. A method as defined in claim 9, further comprising: receiving
application data from the client device via the network; transmitting
at least a portion of the application data to the at least one candidate
insurance carrier via the network; receiving a quote response from
the at least one candidate insurance carrier, the quote response
being transmitted in a first data format; generating a customer
quote page by converting the quote response from the first data
format to a second data format; and transmitting the customer quote
page to the client device via the network.
14. A method as defined in claim 13, further comprising transmitting
a notification e-mail message to the client device via the network,
the notification e-mail message including a hyperlink to the customer
quote page.
15. A method as defined in claim 9, wherein the business type information
comprises a standard industrial code (SIC).
16. A method as defined in claim 9, wherein the geographic location
information comprises a zip code.
17. An apparatus structured to sell an insurance policy, the apparatus
comprising: an Internet receiver; an Internet transmitter; a processing
unit operatively coupled to the Internet receiver and the Internet
transmitter; and a memory device operatively coupled to the processing
unit, the memory device storing a software program structured to
cause the processing unit to: transmit a business type information
prompt and a geographic location information prompt via the Internet
transmitter; select a subset of a plurality of available insurance
carriers in response to receiving business type information and
geographic location information via the Internet receiver; retrieve
kill questions associated with the insurance carriers in the subset
of available insurance carriers from the memory device; transmit
the retrieved kill questions via the Internet transmitter; and select
at least one candidate insurance carrier from the subset of available
insurance carriers based on responses to the kill questions received
via the Internet receiver.
18. An apparatus as defined in claim 17, wherein the software program
is further structured to cause the processing unit to: generate
a customized insurance application based on the at least one candidate
insurance carrier; and transmit the customized insurance application
via the Internet transmitter.
19. An apparatus as defined in claim 17, wherein the software program
is further structured to cause the processing unit to: select a
plurality of available insurance products based on the received
business type information; and transmit a product selection page
via the Internet transmitter, the product selection page including
the selected insurance products.
20. An apparatus as defined in claim 19, wherein the software program
is further structured to cause the processing unit to: receive application
data from via the Internet receiver; transmitting at least a portion
of the application data to the at least one candidate insurance
carrier via the via the Internet transceiver; receive a quote response
from the at least one candidate insurance carrier via the Internet
receiver, the quote response being transmitted in a first data format;
generate a customer quote page by converting the quote response
from the first data format to a second data format; and transmit
the customer quote page via the Internet transmitter.
21. An apparatus as defined in claim 17, wherein the business type
information comprises a standard industrial code (SIC).
22. An apparatus as defined in claim 17, wherein the geographic
location information comprises a zip code.
23. A computer readable medium storing a software program structured
to cause an Internet server to: transmit a business type information
prompt and a geographic location information prompt; select a subset
of a plurality of available insurance carriers in response to receiving
business type information and geographic location information; retrieve
kill questions associated with the insurance carriers in the subset
of insurance carriers; transmit the retrieved kill questions; and
select at least one candidate insurance carrier from the subset
of insurance carriers based on responses to the kill questions.
24. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 23, wherein
the wherein the software program is further structured to cause
an Internet server to: generate a customized insurance application
based on the at least one candidate insurance carrier; and transmit
the customized insurance application.
25. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 23, wherein
the business type information comprises a standard industrial code
(SIC).
26. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 23, wherein
the geographic location information comprises a zip code.
27. A method of selling business insurance, the method comprising:
transmitting a prompt for preliminary insurance carrier selection
information to a client device via a network; receiving preliminary
carrier selection information from the client device via the network;
selecting a subset of a plurality of available insurance carriers
based on the preliminary carrier selection information; retrieving
kill questions associated with the insurance carriers in the subset
of insurance carriers from a memory device; transmitting the retrieved
kill questions to the client device via the network; receiving responses
to the kill questions from the client device via the network; and
selecting at least one candidate insurance carrier from the subset
of insurance carriers based on the responses to the kill questions.
28. A method as defined in claim 27, further comprising: generating
a customized insurance application based on the at least one candidate
insurance carrier; and transmitting the customized insurance application
to the client device via the network.
29. A method as defined in claim 28, further comprising: receiving
an answer to the customized insurance application from the client
device via the network; and generating a further customized insurance
application based on the received answer.
30. A method as defined in claim 27, further comprising: selecting
a plurality of available insurance products based on the received
preliminary carrier selection information; transmitting a product
selection page to the client device via the network, the product
selection page including the selected insurance products; and receiving
at least one insurance product selection from the client device
via the network, wherein the step of selecting a subset of available
insurance carriers further comprises eliminating insurance carriers
from the plurality of available insurance carriers based on the
received insurance product selections.
31. A method as defined in claim 27, further comprising: receiving
application data from the client device via the network; transmitting
at least a portion of the application data to the at least one candidate
insurance carrier via the network; receiving a quote response from
the at least one candidate insurance carrier, the quote response
being transmitted in a first data format; generating a customer
quote page by converting the quote response from the first data
format to a second data format; and transmitting the customer quote
page to the client device via the network.
32. A method as defined in claim 27, wherein the preliminary carrier
selection information comprises a standard industrial code (SIC)
and a zip code.
Insurance Description
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 10/034,889, filed on Dec. 28, 2001, which is expressly
incorporated by reference herein.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates in general to electronic commerce
and, in particular, to methods and apparatus for selecting an insurance
carrier for an online insurance policy purchase.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Insurance companies issue policies to insure against different
types of risk. Whether a particular insurance carrier has an interest
in covering a particular type of risk is typically determined by
a set of rules that are applied based upon that carrier's historical
underwriting experience. Insurance agencies generally have multiple
contracts with different insurance carriers and act as an agent
for the end consumer or business. Based upon the industry and type
of risk, the agent makes a determination as to which of their insurance
carriers have an appetite to write insurance for the risk.
[0004] Historically insurance companies provide the agents with
documentation based upon geographic location and the U.S. Government
OSHA Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) coding system as to
what types of businesses they are interested in writing. When an
application for insurance is completed, the agent needs to make
a determination as to which carrier(s) they will send the application.
Typically, this determination is made by referring to the carriers'
documentation or from personal knowledge. Without accurate documentation
and/or personal knowledge, an application may be rejected as an
inappropriate submission by the insurance carrier, thereby delaying
the ability of the agent to provide coverage to the business.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] Features and advantages of the disclosed system will be
apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed
description of exemplary embodiments which is made with reference
to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided below.
[0006] FIG. 1 is a high level block diagram of a communications
system illustrating an exemplary environment of use for the present
invention.
[0007] FIG. 2 is a more detailed block diagram of one of the client
devices illustrated in FIG. 1.
[0008] FIG. 3 is a more detailed block diagram showing one embodiment
of the insurance broker server illustrated in FIG. 1.
[0009] FIG. 4 is a more detailed block diagram showing another
embodiment of the insurance broker server illustrated in FIG. 1.
[0010] FIGS. 5-6 are a flowchart of a process for selecting an
insurance carrier for an online insurance policy purchase.
[0011] FIG. 7 is a screen-shot of an exemplary informational web
page.
[0012] FIG. 8 is a screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
a text entry zip code prompt.
[0013] FIG. 9 is a screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
hierarchical hyperlinks for SIC selection and a SIC entry box.
[0014] FIG. 10 is a screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
a drop down SIC selection menu.
[0015] FIG. 11 is a screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
indications of selected insurance products.
[0016] FIGS. 12a-12b are a screen-shot of an exemplary web page
including kill questions.
[0017] FIG. 13 is a screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
dynamically generated questions.
[0018] FIG. 14 is a screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
insurance quotes.
[0019] FIG. 15 is a screen-shot of an exemplary web page confirming
an insurance purchase.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
[0020] In general, the system described herein allows a user at
a client device, such as a personal computer connected to the Internet,
to receive a plurality of business insurance quotes with minimal
data input requirements. A plurality of insurance carriers are narrowed
down to a few relevant insurance carriers based on the user's zip
code, standard industrial code (SIC), desired insurance products,
a small number of "kill" questions, and a customized insurance
application which is dynamically generated in response to previous
answers.
[0021] A high level block diagram of an exemplary network communications
system 100 capable of employing the teachings of the present invention
is illustrated in FIG. 1. Typically, the system 100 includes one
or more client devices 102, one or more insurance broker website
servers 104, and one or more insurance carrier servers 106. Each
of these devices may communicate with each other via a connection
to the Internet or some other wide area network 108.
[0022] Typically, broker servers 104 store a plurality of files,
programs, and/or web pages for use by the client devices 102 and/or
the carrier servers 106. One broker server 104 may handle requests
from a large number of clients 102. Accordingly, each broker server
104 is typically a high end computer with a large storage capacity,
one or more fast microprocessors, and one or more high speed network
connections. Conversely, relative to a typical broker server 104,
each client device 102 typically includes less storage capacity,
a single microprocessor, and a single network connection.
[0023] A more detailed block diagram of a client device 102 is
illustrated in FIG. 2. The client device may be a personal computer
(PC), a personal digital assistant (PDA), an Internet appliance,
a cellular telephone, or any other communication device. The client
102 includes a controller 202 which preferably includes a central
processing unit 204 electrically coupled by an address/data bus
206 to a memory device 208 and an interface circuit 210. The CPU
204 may be any type of well known CPU, such as an Intel Pentium.TM.
processor. The memory device 208 preferably includes volatile memory
and non-volatile memory. Preferably, the memory device 208 stores
a software program that interacts with the broker server 104 as
described below. This program may be executed by the CPU 204 in
a well known manner. The memory device 208 may also store digital
data indicative of documents, files, programs, web pages, etc. retrieved
from a server 104, 106 and/or loaded via an input device 212.
[0024] The interface circuit 210 may be implemented using any type
of well known interface standard, such as an Ethernet interface
and/or a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface. One or more input
devices 212 may be connected to the interface circuit 210 for entering
data and commands into the controller 202. For example, the input
device 212 may be a keyboard, mouse, touch screen, track pad, track
ball, isopoint, and/or a voice recognition system.
[0025] One or more displays, printers, speakers, and/or other output
devices 214 may also be connected to the controller 202 via the
interface circuit 210. The display 214 may be cathode ray tube (CRTs),
liquid crystal displays (LCDs), or any other type of display. The
display 214 generates visual displays of data generated during operation
of the client 102. The display 214 is typically used to display
web pages received from the broker server 104. The visual displays
may include prompts for human operator input, calculated values,
etc.
[0026] The client 102 may also exchange data with other devices
via a connection to the network 108. The network connection may
be any type of network connection, such as an Ethernet connection,
digital subscriber line (DSL), telephone line, coaxial cable, etc.
Users of the system 100 are preferably required to register with
the broker server 104. In such an instance, each user may choose
a user identifier and a password which may be required for the activation
of services. The user identifier and password may be passed across
the Internet 108 using encryption built into the user's browser.
Alternatively, the user identifier and/or password may be assigned
by the broker server 104.
[0027] A more detailed block diagram of a broker server 104 is
illustrated in FIG. 3. Like the client device 102, the controller
302 in the broker server 104 preferably includes a central processing
unit 304 electrically coupled by an address/data bus 306 to a memory
device 308 and a network interface circuit 310. However, the sever
controller 302 is typically more powerful than the client controller
202. Again, the CPU 304 may be any type of well known CPU, such
as an Intel Pentium.TM. processor, and the memory device 308 preferably
includes volatile memory and non-volatile memory. Preferably, the
memory device 308 stores a software program that implements all
or part of the method described below. This program may be executed
by the CPU 304 in a well known manner. However, some of the steps
described in the method below may be performed manually or without
the use of the broker server 104. The memory device 308 and/or a
separate database 314 also store files, programs, web pages, etc.
for use by servers 104,106 and/or the client devices 102.
[0028] The server 104 may exchange data with other devices via
a connection to the network 108. The network interface circuit 310
may be implemented using any data transceiver, such as an Ethernet
transceiver. The network 108 may be any type of network, such as
a local area network (LAN) and/or the Internet.
[0029] A more detailed block diagram of another embodiment of the
broker server 104 is illustrated in FIG. 4. In this embodiment,
the broker server 104 includes a plurality of interconnected modules
402-414. Each of the modules may be implemented by a microprocessor
executing software instructions and/or conventional electronic circuitry.
In addition, a person of ordinary skill in the art will readily
appreciate that certain modules may be combined or divided according
to customary design constraints.
[0030] For the purpose of receiving web page requests, standard
industrial codes, zip codes, kill question responses, application
data, product selections, quote responses, purchase requests, and
other data, the broker server 104 preferably includes a network
receiver 402. The network receiver 402 is operatively coupled to
the network 108 in a well known manner. For example, the network
receiver 402 may be an Ethernet interface circuit electrically coupled
to the Internet via an Ethernet cable.
[0031] For the purpose of transmitting web pages, standard industrial
code prompts, zip code prompts, kill questions, insurance product
data, application data, quote responses, and other data, the broker
server 104 preferably includes a network transmitter 404. The network
transmitter 404 is operatively coupled to the network 108 in a well
known manner. For example, the network transmitter 404 may also
be an Ethernet interface circuit electrically coupled to the Internet
via an Ethernet cable.
[0032] For the purpose of retrieving and/or generating web pages,
the broker server 104 preferably includes a web page generator 406.
The web page generator 406 is operatively coupled to the network
receiver 402 and the network transmitter 404. The web page generator
406 generates web pages which preferably include standard industrial
code prompts, zip code prompts, kill questions, insurance product
data, application questions, quote responses, and/or other data.
[0033] For example, the web page generator 406 preferably retrieves
a web page including a standard industrial code prompt and/or a
zip code prompt in response to a web page request. After a standard
industrial code and a zip code are received from a client 102, the
web page generator 406 preferably generates an insurance application
web page including one or more kill questions and/or one or more
regular application questions. Kill questions are questions designed
to eliminate one or more potential insurance carriers early in the
carrier selection process. Kill questions are preferably selected
based on the received standard industrial code, received zip code,
and/or selected carriers as described in detail below. Preferably,
the insurance application is arranged to provide the kill questions
before the majority of the regular application questions.
[0034] For the purpose of storing and retrieving data from the
database 314, the broker server 104 preferably includes a database
interface module 408. The database interface module 408 is operatively
coupled to the database 314 and the web page generator 406. The
database interface module 408 stores and retrieves web page requests,
web pages, web page data, standard industrial code prompts, standard
industrial codes, zip code prompts, zip codes, kill questions, kill
question responses, application questions, application data, insurance
product data, product selections, quote responses, purchase requests,
and other data.
[0035] For the purpose of selecting insurance carriers and/or products,
the broker server 104 preferably includes an insurance carrier determiner
410. The insurance carrier determiner 410 is operatively coupled
to the database interface module 408 and the web page generator
406. The insurance carrier determiner 410 preferably selects a plurality
of insurance carriers from the database 314 based on a received
standard industrial code and a received zip code. In addition, the
insurance carrier determiner 410 preferably selects one or more
candidate insurance carriers from the selected plurality of insurance
carriers based on a received kill question response and/or a received
product selection.
[0036] For the purpose of selecting one or more kill questions,
the broker server 104 includes a kill question selector 412. The
kill question selector 412 is operatively coupled to the database
interface module 408 and the web page generator 406. The kill question
selector 412 preferably retrieves one or more kill questions from
the database 314 based on at least one of the insurance carriers
in the selected plurality of insurance carriers.
[0037] In operation, the insurance carrier determiner 410 preferably
selects an initial subset of insurance carriers based on a received
standard industrial code (SIC) and a received zip code. For example,
carriers A, B, C, and D may be selected from a larger group of carriers,
because A, B, C, and D are the only carriers previously indicating
a desire to handle the type of business indicated by the received
SIC (e.g., carpenters) in the region defined by the received zip
code (e.g., Chicago). The kill question selector 412 then uses the
members of this subset (e.g., A, B, C, and D) to select one or more
kill questions. For example, carrier A may only handle commercial
carpenters and not residential carpenters. Accordingly, a predefined
kill question may include check boxes for "commercial"
and "residential." When a response to the selected kill
question(s) is received, the insurance carrier determiner 410 may
further limit the subset of insurance carriers based on the response.
In the example above, carrier A may be eliminated from the first
subset (i.e., A, B, C, and D) if the response indicates the carpenter
performs residential work, thereby creating a reduced subset of
B, C, and D. This limited subset of carriers is then used to customize
the rest of the online insurance application.
[0038] For the purpose of converting quote responses and other
data from a first format to a second format, the broker server 104
preferably includes a translator 414. The translator 414 is operatively
coupled to the network receiver 402 and the web page generator 406.
The translator 414 preferably converts facsimile data, page description
files (PDF), rich text format (RTF) files, and other data to text
for inclusion in one or more web pages.
[0039] A flowchart of a process 500 for selling business insurance
online is illustrated in FIGS. 5-6. Preferably, the process 500
is embodied in a software program which is stored in the broker
server memory 308 and executed by the broker server CPU 304 in a
well known manner. However, some or all of the steps of the process
500 may be performed manually and/or by another device. Although
the process 500 is described with reference to the flowchart illustrated
in FIG. 5, a person of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate
that many other methods of performing the acts associated with process
500 may be used. For example, the order of many of the steps may
be changed without departing from the scope or spirit of the present
invention. In addition, many of the steps described are optional,
and additional steps may be performed between the illustrated steps.
[0040] Generally, the process 500 allows a user at a client device
102 to receive a plurality of business insurance quotes with minimal
data input requirements. The user may be an end user (e.g., a business
needing insurance) or an insurance agent. A plurality of insurance
carriers are narrowed down to a few relevant insurance carriers
based on the user's zip code, standard industrial code (SIC), desired
insurance products, a small number of "kill" questions,
and a customized insurance application which is dynamically generated
in response to previous answers.
[0041] The process 500 begins when the broker server 104 receives
a web page request from the client 102 (step 502). In the preferred
embodiment, several web pages may be served by the broker server
prior to a specific request to begin the quoting process. For example,
several informational pages may be viewed. A screen-shot of an exemplary
informational web page is illustrated in FIG. 7. In addition, the
user may login before beginning the quoting process. In such an
instance, certain web pages may be customized based on the "channel."
For example, an agent user may be shown more SIC choices than an
end user.
[0042] To begin the quoting process, the broker server 104 preferably
transmits one or more web pages to the client 102 which include
a prompt for a zip code and/or a prompt for a standard industrial
code (SIC) (step 504). In one embodiment, one or both of the prompts
comprise text entry boxes. A screen-shot of an exemplary web page
including a text entry zip code prompt 802 is illustrated in FIG.
8. In another embodiment, one or both of the prompts comprise drop
down selection menus and/or hierarchical hyperlinks. In addition,
when selecting a SIC, the user may be presented with text descriptions
of the SIC choices. A screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
hierarchical hyperlinks 902 for SIC selection as well as a SIC entry
box 904 is illustrated in FIG. 9. A screen-shot of an exemplary
web page including a drop down SIC selection menu 1002 is illustrated
in FIG. 10. After the user enters a SIC and a zip code at the client
device 102, the SIC and zip code are transmitted to the broker server
104 (step 506).
[0043] The broker server 104 then determines one or more insurance
products to present to the user based on the received SIC (step
508). For example, if the user is in the legal business, he may
be offered business owner's insurance, professional liability insurance,
and other types of insurance applicable to a legal services organization.
Indications of the selected insurance products are then transmitted
to the client 102 in the form of another web page (step 510). A
screen-shot of an exemplary web page including indications of selected
insurance products 1102 is illustrated in FIG. 11. In response,
the broker server 104 preferably receives one or more product selections
form the client device 102 (step 512). For example, the user may
indicate that he is only interested in liability insurance by selecting
a checkbox 1104 on the product selection web page. In addition,
the user may receive additional information about a type of insurance
by selecting a hyperlink 1106. At this point in the process, the
user is preferably required to enter an e-mail address 1108 and
select a password 1110.
[0044] The broker server 104 then determines a first subset of
insurance carriers, from a plurality of insurance carriers, based
on the received SIC, zip code, and/or product selection(s) (step
514). For example, one carrier from the plurality of carriers may
be eliminated by a predefined regional exclusion (e.g., based on
zip code or other regional identifier such as state). Another carrier
may be eliminated based on a predefined SIC exclusion. Yet another
carrier may be eliminated based on a predefined product exclusion.
Still other carriers may be eliminated based on a combination of
exclusions. For example, a particular carrier may indicate an exclusion
for a certain SIC in a certain zip code, and another carrier may
not handle a particular product in a certain geographic region,
etc.
[0045] Once the first subset of carriers is determined, the broker
server 104 preferably determines one or more kill questions based
on the members of the first subset (step 516). For example, the
received SIC may indicate the user is a carpenter, but a particular
carrier in the first subset may only handle commercial carpenters
and not residential carpenters. Accordingly, a predefined "carpenter
type" kill question may be selected from a plurality of predefined
kill questions. Another web page is then transmitted to the client
102 which preferably includes the selected kill question(s) (step
518). A screen-shot of an exemplary web page including kill questions
1202 is illustrated in FIGS. 12a-12b.
[0046] Based on the received responses to the kill question(s)
(step 520), the broker server 104 preferably eliminates one or more
carriers from the first subset to create a second subset of insurance
carriers (step 522). For example, if the kill question response
indicates that the user is a residential carpenter, and one of the
carriers in the first subset only handles commercial carpenters,
then that carrier is eliminated from the first subset (i.e., that
carrier is not included in the second subset of carriers).
[0047] The list of carriers remaining in the second subset is then
preferably used to dynamically generate a first portion of a custom
insurance application (step 524). Preferably, the first portion
includes questions common to more than one carrier in the second
subset and/or questions specific to certain carriers in the second
subset. This first portion of the custom insurance application is
then transmitted to the client as another web page (step 526). A
screen-shot of an exemplary web page including dynamically generated
questions 1302 is illustrated in FIG. 13.
[0048] The received answers to the first portion of the application
(step 528) are preferably used to dynamically generate a second
portion of the custom insurance application (step 530). For example,
if the user indicates that his building includes a restaurant in
the first portion, a question to determine the percent of sales
at the restaurant attributed to liquor may be asked in the second
portion. Subsequently, the answers to the second portion of the
application are received by the broker server 104 (step 532). Although
only two application portions are described here for simplicity
in explanation, a person of ordinary skill in the art will readily
appreciate that any number of additional portions, customized based
on previous answers, may be generated without departing from the
scope and spirit of the present invention.
[0049] Once the answers are collected form the client 102, some
or all of the answers are transmitted to one or more carrier servers
106 identified by the second subset of carriers (step 534). In response,
the broker server 104 is provided with one or more quote responses
from the carrier servers 106 (step 536). In some instances, the
quote responses may require conversion (step 538). For example,
a facsimile response may be converted to text automatically and/or
entered manually. Similarly, a page description file (PDF), rich
text format (RTF) file, and/or other file may be converted to text
and/or some other data format for inclusion in a insurance quote
web page.
[0050] Preferably, the quote responses are then used to generate
an insurance quote web page (step 540), and an e-mail notification
is transmitted to the client 102 (step 542). Preferably, the e-mail
notification includes a hyperlink to the insurance quote web page.
In this manner, the user may request the insurance quote web page
(step 544) by simply clicking on the hyperlink in the e-mail notification.
In response, the broker server 104 transmits the insurance quote
web page (step 546). A screen-shot of an exemplary web page including
insurance quotes 1402 is illustrated in FIG. 14.
[0051] If the user decides to purchase one or more insurance products
detailed in the insurance quote web page, the client 102 preferably
transmits a purchase request to the broker server 104 (step 548),
and the broker server 104, in conjunction with one or more carrier
servers 106, preferably completes the purchase (step 550). In some
embodiments, certain payment options may be presented to the user
based on the selected carrier(s), the selected insurance products,
the channel (e.g., end user or agent), and/or other variables. For
example, an agent user may be presented with more payment option
than and end user, or certain carriers may offer different payment
options from other carriers. A screen-shot of an exemplary web page
confirming an insurance purchase is illustrated in FIG. 15.
[0052] In summary, persons of ordinary skill in the art will readily
appreciate that methods and apparatus for selecting an insurance
carrier for an online insurance policy purchase has been provided.
Users of systems implementing the teachings described herein can
enjoy reduced data input and higher relevancy of selected insurance
carriers.
[0053] The foregoing description has been presented for the purposes
of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive
or to limit the invention to the exemplary embodiments disclosed.
Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above
teachings. It is intended that the scope of the invention be limited
not by this detailed description, but rather by the claims appended
hereto. |