Are you having a problem getting many of your cases issued? Are too many of your cases taking forever to get approved? Are far too many of your cases being flat out declined?
Maybe your problem is not that underwriter -- maybe the problem is you.
Life insurance underwriting, substandard or otherwise, is not a mysterious black art. Underwriters do not consult Ouija boards, nor do they burn entrails or consult oracles, and they certainly do not flip coins.
On the contrary, life insurance underwriting is a highly scientific process designed to permit the company to issue policies to desirable risks in a highly competitive environment in which the company can hopefully make a profit, while at the same time weeding out undesirable risks that could contribute to putting the company out of business.
Critical to the process of selecting and pricing risks, the home office underwriter may have to delay your case because essential information is missing, contradictory, or illegible. But if you have done your homework properly, they can expedite your case's approval. Which would you prefer?
You, the field underwriter, are equally critical to the underwriting process. If your application is sloppy, incomplete, or confusing, your important jumbo case will probably take much longer to be approved than it should. It may even be declined. Here are some ways you can at least give your special risk clients a shot at approval.
Learn to write a good cover letter
Appreciate that the home office underwriter is never going to meet your client face-to-face. They will never have an opportunity to see what a good-looking applicant is represented on the application, nor how much they deserve to be approved.
You, on the other hand, know your client intimately. You have information about the applicant that, truthfully and properly presented, may help the home office underwriter approve your case in spite of negative information in his written record that otherwise would have resulted in a decline.
Does your client have an undeserved DUI? Did they perhaps experiment with illicit substances in their younger days? Are they into scuba diving, hang gliding, sky diving, or other high-risk activities that may raise your underwriter's eyebrows? If the answer to any of these questions is "yes," you should not only complete an appropriate questionnaire, but also write a terrific cover letter telling the underwriter what you know and why they should consider giving your client a break, or at least the benefit of the doubt.
Take a complete detailed medical history
Be sure to ask your clients each of the following questions, and provide your underwriter with full answers:
1. What is the impairment? Learn to use proper medical terms, identify bodily systems involved, and describe symptoms.
2. When was it first diagnosed? List both month and year.
3. How was it treated? What medications? Dosage? Is the medication still being taken?
4. Was surgery performed or radiation prescribed? If so, when? Where? Date of last treatment?
5. Who were the physician(s) seen? Complete names, addresses, telephone numbers? And even more importantly, does the physician require a pre-pay before releasing medical records? If so, how much?
6. When was the last episode of symptoms? List both month and year.
7. Is the client still undergoing treatment for the condition? If not, when did treatment end?
What if, in the course of questioning your client, you learn that they have diabetes or another condition that may lead to a less-than-favorable decision from the underwriter? Then learn as much as you can about your client's condition so you can deal with it. Research the condition online or elsewhere to get some idea of the likely underwriting prognosis. Be prepared, and the process will go much more smoothly.
Donald V. Victorson, CLU, chairman of Victorson Associates Inc. Smithtown, NY, has specialized in impaired risk underwriting since 1961. Mr. Victorson may be reached at 631-265-7456 or vainc@victorson.com.
