Time is of the essence

The speed at which protection products are brought to market from conception is set to become crucial, according to industry software supplier Target harlosh.

The company believes that insurers could stand to lose significant amounts of business if they spend an excessive amount of time on the development and launch of new products due to increased competition, pressure to deliver new products and shifting consumer demand.

Commenting in the same month as Fortis launched its long-awaited protection products in partnership with LifeSearch, Target harlosh said the gestation period of development and maintenance for new products should now be measured in days and not months or even years.

Kathy Duggan, business consultant at the company, said: "The issue as we see it is that insurance companies need to strive to become more innovative and create more flexibility in the products they bring to market because consumer demand has changed and they want more flexibility. Insurers need to be able to offer that flexibility.'

She added that in situations where the development of products was delayed, the waiting time was unrelated to the wants of underwriters, but had more to do with technology that is unable to support the innovations put forth by the develops into the market. Duggan added: "Providers need to make sure they have the technology to deliver their products as soon as they come up with the idea."