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Acturis set to go live on imarket

04 August 2005

Software company Acturis is ready for brokers to go live on imarket within weeks and will be the first technology company to make the move.

Insurance for shops will be first on the system, with Groupama, Norwich Union and Allianz Cornhill involved in the initial launch benefiting over 100 brokers who use Acturis. Insurance for offices and tradesmen will be available within two months.

Quotes will be matched by the insurer either asynchronously for more complex assessments, which means manually, or synchronously, via an automated quoting system. The system is fully integrated into Acturis' existing system, though brokers will need to register on imarket first.

Theo Duchen, joint chief executive at Acturis, said: "Somebody had to make the first move. I think 80% of brokers' business will be conducted over imarket within the next two years". Luke Shepherd of Acturis, said: "We have established the security, business and technical requirements for one insurance line, and this will make it easier for us to develop other product lines".

According to Acturis, Professional Broking was the first magazine to see the system live. A Groupama quote was received within seconds, with all differentiations of policy from the original quote requirements highlighted with a paperclip alongside - one of the requirements of imarket. Brokers then have the opportunity of customising quotes back to the individual insurer.

Duchen explained that the original design of the Acturis system four years ago, based on an application service provider model, had provided them with an advantageous framework to facilitate imarket connectivity and deploy new products because everything is centralised in a single database. He added that imarket would be able to measure the volume of quotes electronically, thus making them more manageable.

Meanwhile, Misys has been testing imarket on two product lines since January, while Neil Atkins, group marketing director at Sirius, commented: "We welcome the first partnership in the road of imarket integration, and would see this as very much a long-term development process to provide all the products and services via imarket".

Professional Broking


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