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Vero adds SME packages to online platform

Vero has given brokers access to SME packages on the VeroEdge online platform.

The major revamp offers simplified business-acceptance rules, a clearer risk appetite, updates to wordings and faster referral turnarounds.

The package also features improvements to occupation and address search and document management functions, the ability to generate on-demand certificates of currency, and greater access to Vero’s technical underwriting capability.

Head of Commercial Intermediaries Anthony Pagano told insuranceNEWS.com.au the changes are more than just a system upgrade.

“The system is just one piece of the puzzle,” he said. “We are upgrading the whole end-to-end solution.”

He says while investment in automation often results in reduced staffing, Vero is taking the opposite approach.

“Actually, we have put on staff to reinforce the human element,” he said. “Some SMEs are large, complex businesses and need the human touch.”

VeroEdge was established in April last year, initially for the underwritten workers’ compensation product.

Mr Pagano says lessons have been learned, and brokers widely consulted, before adding the SME packages.

“We worked closely with brokers to understand some of the pain points they were experiencing,” he said. “We have re-engineered our entire approach to offering our SME packages to address these pain points.

“[It] improves all key aspects of the online broker quote, renewal and underwriting experience. By asking more relevant and timely questions about the right risks, more quotes will go straight through to bind without the need for referral.

“Vero has also invested in our underwriting process to improve turnaround times and free up our underwriters so they can have more valuable conversations with brokers when assessing risks.

He says this move is “only the beginning of our new approach”.

“Over the coming months, we will continue to invest in additional enhancements to business insurance.”

SME packages on VeroEdge are available to all Vero insurance brokers with a Sunrise connection.