"We took a strategic view to utilise both best in class technologies and partners to deliver an integrated and comprehensive set of capabilities for advisers."
- Steve Ferguson, Synaptic head of product and architecture
This integration will enable Synaptic users to access CIExpert's current and historic comparison services, Insurer Insight Zones, as well as claims and product information. Furthermore, advisers using the Pathways platform or Synaptic’s Webline can now transfer client and quote data through to CIExpert for analysis.
CIExpert believes this will “significantly reduce the amount of time spent on research and provide the capability to visualise and quantify the trade-off between quality of CIC cover and cost to ensure they are assessing “fair value” and best client outcomes, as set out in the Consumer Duty.”
Quote information will be displayed alongside CIExpert’s quality rankings so price and quality can be assessed simultaneously. These rankings are the result of detailed research combined with a complex algorithm using advanced technology to create a quality index personalised to a client’s specific needs. The client’s age, gender, smoker status and how many children (by individual age) are all considered, together with the sum assured so that the value over the plan term can be understood.
Commenting on the integration, Steve Ferguson, Synaptic head of product and architecture, has said:
“When we embarked upon the development of our Pathways platform we recognised that firms will be increasingly reliant on the benefits of technology to streamline their businesses and improve their service to clients. We took a strategic view to utilise both best in class technologies and partners to deliver an integrated and comprehensive set of capabilities for advisers. When it came to protection product analysis CIExpert stood out as a partner of choice with their depth of analysis combined with a clear and crisp user design.
“We are delighted to join forces with CIExpert and create an even better user experience through this integration. Getting a clear grasp on the differences between protection products is no easy task and by combining our strengths we have created a strong solution for advisers with a simple streamlined process to help them in achieving the best outcomes for their clients.”
Alan Lakey, CIExpert director, has said:
“Advisers tell us time and time again that our simple user flow and clear presentation of information are crucial in helping them to convey to their clients the salient issues when dealing with some of the complexities involved with critical illness cover.
“This seamless integration with Synaptic is another step forward in supporting advisers; saving them valuable time, streamlining efforts and importantly making it simple for them to compare price and quality in parallel. Experience has proven that once clients understand the trade-offs, a large percentage will opt to pay a bit more for wider and more comprehensive cover.”
