Commercial Lines Data Standards

Commercial lines are evolving: The insurance industry is moving forward with widespread implementation of commercial lines data standards.

CSIO’s Commercial Lines (CL) Working Group, comprised of insurers, service providers and IBAC representation, meets regularly to set the standard for real-time commercial quoting. This includes the creation of the CL minimum data set.

The working group’s focus is automating the following three segments of small CL business:

Contractors
Retail
Business and Professional Service

Benefits of CL Data Standards

Insurer and Service Provider Benefits	Broker Benefits
Automate underwriting and rating process	Faster and more accurate quoting
Cleaner data quality	Minimized double-entry
Reduce development and implementation time	Improve CL eDocs workflow
Seamless data exchange	Better customer experience

What Does the Industry Have to Say?

Although brokers use data standards and transfer in personal lines transactions, that capability just doesn’t exist in commercial lines right now. Even if a broker takes the time to load detailed underwriting and coverage information into a commercial management system, without standards it really isn’t useable in communicating with carriers.

– Andrew Janzen, President of Janzen Insurance in Surrey and Chair of IBABC’s Technology Committee

This working group is a fantastic example of what our industry can achieve when we work together and collaborate. Data standards will allow us to digitize a number of commercial insurance transactions in the future. The progress we made in a few months has the potential to benefit the entire broker channel for years to come.

– Brian Warkentin, Assistant Vice-President at Aviva Canada

We see the benefits of data standards in personal lines every day – reduced double-entry, less paperwork, faster quotes, and improved customer service. In arriving at a minimum data set with the participation of so many diverse carriers, we are one step closer to transforming commercial lines workflow in a similar way for the broker channel in Canada.

– Kim Opheim, Broker Technology and Innovation Consultant at IBAC

Learn More about Commercial Lines Data Standards

Documentation

These documents provide the technical and mapping information to support implementation of CL Data Standards for real-time functionality. The audience for these documents are developers and analysts responsible for programming and deployment.

To get started with Commercial Lines Certification, click on the Getting Started Guides below.