Guidewire Software®, a leading provider of solutions to property and casualty and workers' compensation insurers, today announced that its client, Hastings Mutual has been named as a "Model Carrier Component" by Celent, LLC, a leading research and advisory firm focused on insurance technology strategy. In its new report, Celent Model Carrier 2007: Case Studies in Effective Use of Technology in Insurance, Celent recognized Hastings Mutual for its new Comprehensive Claims Environment enabled by Guidewire ClaimCenter®.
According to Matthew Josefowicz, manager of Celent's insurance practice and lead author of the report, "We have recognized Hastings Mutual as a Model Carrier Component due to their effective use of technology in Claims. The company's new claims environment combines a modern, rules-driven claims workstation with a document management and workflow system, which has increased consistency of claims handling and system flexibility while controlling costs."
"New claims are now processed and assigned in less than one business day", Josefowicz continued, "often in less than an hour after arrival by email or fax."
Jeff Simpson, chairman and chief executive officer, Guidewire Software, said, "We congratulate Hastings Mutual on being named as a Model Carrier Component for their claims operation. It is deeply satisfying for us at Guidewire to see Hastings Mutual receive industry recognition for its efforts in establishing an efficient and cost-effective claims environment using our ClaimCenter solution as a key enabler. Hastings Mutual is a visionary carrier who early on saw the benefits of moving to a modern claims system. We appreciate their faith in Guidewire as they blazed a path for other insurers to follow."
In Celent's report, "Model Carrier Components" are presented as components of a composite insurer's insurance IT systems and practices, and are examples of initiatives and practices that help insurers improve performance, meet market demands, and operate efficiently. The Model Carrier Components were selected by Celent's team of insurance analysts. Nominations were solicited from over 100 insurers in the US and internationally. The report, which was presented at Celent's inaugural Model Carrier Summit in New York on January 16, 2007, contained case studies of 39 technology initiatives and practices across most functional areas in insurance.
Guidewire ClaimCenter is a leading end-to-end claims system for property & casualty insurance. ClaimCenter's flexible business rules enable claims organizations to optimize and monitor the claim process. Claims executives can define, enforce, and continually refine their preferred claim handling practices. In addition, a modern technology architecture, providing 100% Web client, and Web services interface enable lower total cost of ownership in any environment.