Canadian insurers have been leveraging AI to help advisors and clients.elenabs/iStockPhoto / Getty Images
Manulife Financial Corp. launched Advisor AI Assistant this week, a new tool that allows advisors to get on-demand underwriting guidance in plain language and speed up the insurance application and approval process.
The tool leverages large-language-model technology, enabling advisors who are filling out applications for life and other insurance coverage with clients to get answers more quickly, especially when meeting after normal business hours.
“If advisors run into a new situation and need underwriting advice, that’s exactly what that tool is there to help them with,” says Karen Cutler, chief underwriter at Manulife Canada in Waterloo, Ont.
That’s especially beneficial for new insurance advisors who have less experience with the application and underwriting process when encountering clients with health problems such as diabetes, she says.
Rather than poring over documents to find an answer about whether a client, for example, requires additional medical information, including a blood test, advisors can pose the question to the new AI assistant.
“This tool is really helping [advisors meet] that customer expectation so they know exactly what their experience will be up-front as they start the application process,” Ms. Cutler says, adding that consumers increasingly expect a fast application process.
The new assistant builds on Manulife’s AI capabilities in its insurance business.
The firm has long used MAUDE, launched in 2018, an AI-powered tool to underwrite applications more quickly. Manulife also unveiled a new electronic life insurance application and accompanying AI tool earlier this year to reduce administrative challenges while shortening the application process.
Other Canadian insurers are also leveraging AI to help advisors and clients. BMO Insurance launched its SmartDecision AI tool in July, which aims to reduce administrative follow-up for advisors while providing instant underwriting decisions on life insurance applications with up to $5-million in coverage.
Ms. Cutler says MAUDE helped Manulife expedite underwriting during the pandemic, providing fast approval for clients without pre-existing health conditions and avoiding unnecessary medical exams and fluid testing.
“The reality is the majority of our applicants are issued on a standard basis,” she says.
Yet, advisors often meet with clients who have health problems or have experienced them in the past, such as cancer now in remission.
That’s where the Advisor AI Assistant helps.
In the past, if advisors couldn’t answer an underwriting question, they called or e-mailed an underwriter. That could be time-consuming, especially if the advisor is working with a client on evenings or weekends, Ms. Cutler says.
Although Manulife has always provided extensive support material, including online resources, those can become outdated quickly.
As well, advisors may misunderstand information, which can be highly technical, Ms. Cutler says, and provide erroneous advice that leads to denial of coverage or extends the application process.
In contrast, the Advisor AI Assistant is updated with the latest underwriting data and can provide an accurate answer within seconds, she says.
“What we’re trying to do is ensure that the information that comes back is clear, concise and directive,” Ms. Cutler says.
“It’s not always going to be the exact answer you’re seeking, but it will directionally be an answer with the right approach you should be taking on any particular case.”
Jamie Campbell, head of AI and data at Manulife Canada, says the assistant is designed to support advisors and the information it provides is intended as guidance.
“Advisors are expected to exercise their professional judgment when supporting clients,” he says.