Toronto — 9th April 2002. CoVirt Inc. (Canada), a
relatively new provider of enterprise solutions for insurance organizations, and HUB
Financial Inc., one of Canada’s largest brokerage general agencies, have just announced
that CoVirt is to supply HUB with its multi-channel broker and policy management service, VirtGate.
HUB Financial Inc. has built a leadership position in
Canada as a brokerage general agency for independent life insurance brokers, and
represents CoVirt’s sixth sale in North America. A brokerage general agency provides life
insurance on a wholesale basis strictly through contracted retail brokers, not direct to
the general public. Through its web servers based in Toronto, CoVirt will provide HUB
Financial’s more than dozen administrative and sales locations across Canada, along with
its 2,500 brokers working from any location, online access to integrated management,
processing and reporting of applications, policies, commissions, contracts, and broker
compliance information. This will enable the HUB to migrate its broker management process
to a highly efficient, “broker-is-customer” focused work-flow service.
The key distinction compared to administrative platforms
offered by software vendors, is that CoVirt does not simply bolt-on a web-enabler to an
existing conventional desktop system. There no software to install at all. Instead, even
for HUB staff, VirtGate’s breakthrough technology is an entirely browser based unified
solution that has the look and feel of desktop software. Already live to HUB staff as of
January 1, 2002, the VirtGate solution will increasingly automate all relationship,
contact and workflow management within the national HUB Financial broker environment. The
solution will enable HUB Financial to reduce its overall spending on management by up to
30%, yet improve the quality of service brokers receive from HUB staff.
Terri DiFlorio, president of HUB Financial said: “We
felt that CoVirt was the brokerage general agent administration service company that
possessed the deepest understanding of the life insurance market, and was therefore the
most equipped to meet our needs. Their VirtGate solution will improve the level of broker
service we provide in our locations across Canada. At the same time, management at our
head office, or from their home, can access the service and run instantaneous production
reports real time online. I just love all this information! Our brokers will as well.”
Tim Fitzpatrick, president at CoVirt, said: “This sale
is a landmark for the company. Last year we decided to enter the North American market
with VirtGate, and the fact that we’ve made a sale to a corporation of HUB Financial’s
stature in such a short period of time, and they are already live, speaks volumes. HUB
Financial is one of the top life insurance brokerage general agents in Canada and I am
confident that by meeting all expectations in their project, we can look forward to more
successes for CoVirt in the very near future.”
About CoVirt:
Life insurance distribution is about efficient broker
acquisition and retention. CoVirt Inc. (Canada) and CoVirt Inc. (US) takes pride in
providing Internet services to the insurance industry in both the United States and
Canada, specializing in the research, development and deployment of dynamically-tailored,
web-based insurance and other transactional services. CoVirt believes that any client
service system can and should be replaced by browser-based Internet services, providing
superior service and reducing internal resource requirements. Work is directed by two
executives with 45 years combined of broad insurance industry experience. The underlying
VirtGate data models have been designed to be flexible to meet the needs all parties to
the insurance transaction from the client, to the broker, to the brokerage general agent,
through to the underwriting carrier. CoVirt’s services are easily portable to other industries.
For more information, see www.CoVirt.com
or please contact:
Tim Fitzpatrick
President
CoVirt Inc.
Suite 1119
1750 The Queensway
Toronto, Ontario, M9C 5H5
Phone 416-587-3901
Fax 416-352-5664
