Criminal History in Underwriting: Closing the Gaps with Improved Screening
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May 2021
ReCent
US Underwriting News
A new criminal history screening tool
offers improved results for underwriting
Criminal History in Underwriting: Closing
the Gaps with Improved Screening
Studies show tha t morta lity experience is less fa vora ble regula tory complia nce. Ha nnover Re’s underwriting team
a mong individua ls with crimina l histories tha n those without continues to eva lua te new sources of da ta a nd risk selection
crimina l records. Due to the stigma rela ted to ha ving a tools to solve insurers’ cha llenges. Through existing
crimina l record a nd the desire to obta in a policy a t the best pa rtnerships, Ha nnover Re is a ble to experiment a nd test
ra te possible, there is a propensity for a pplica nts to concea l va rious new tools resulting in substa ntive lea rnings that
this informa tion when a pplying for life insura nce. As life benefit clients. For crimina l history screeni ng, Ha nnover Re
insurers continue to evolve their a ccelera ted a nd a utoma ted ha s identified severa l key a spects tha t ca rriers should
underwriting processes, it will be critica l for them to consider when implementing a crimina l records screening
incorpora te effective third pa rty da ta services tha t ena ble tool. These key considera tions include:
comprehensive screening for crimina l histories. 1. Ra pid results a nd technology ena bled a ccess to
screening informa tion
The industry ha s struggled to find a n effective tool to screen 2. Verified records sea rches tha t return confident
for crimina l histories. This is due to the complexity of ma tched results
na viga ting court filing systems a cross va rious jurisdictions, 3. Structured da ta retrieva l for a utoma tion a nd
issues with ma tching a pplica nts to records a nd ensuring a ccelera tion
Over the la st twenty-four months, Ha nnover Re ha s worked
closely with Choice Screening, a Denver ba sed globa l
Case 1
a ccredited ba ckground check compa ny, to ga in a deep
understa nding of their products a nd their a pplica tion in the
46 year old male | $250,000 face amount
life insura nce spa ce. A felony ca se review resulted in nota ble
findings.
Admitted criminal history on application: none
Other products reporting criminal history: clear
Felony Case Review Highlights Choice Screen results: July 2007 – first-degree felony
statutory rape (two counts) and child molestation
Sampled 2000 cases looking for felony records (victim less than 12 years old). Sentenced to ten years
in prison. Currently on the Sex Offender Registry and
Reportable felony record hit rate between 4-5% lifetime probation due to severity of crime.
Approximately 75% of the felony criminal hits
reported by the Choice Screening product were not
picked up by commonly used products in the
Verified Searches
industry. Ma ny of the screening products a va ilable on the ma rket opt
not to report a finding if they a re uncerta in of a ma tch,
The quality of data in the reporting provided by crea ting ma teria l ga ps. Choice Screening employs certified
Choice Screening was more complete and accurate, resea rchers who ca n verify records to ensure tha t life
providing greater protective value. While there may insurers receive a n a ccura te a nd complete history of ea ch
have been a parallel hit with another product, the a pplica nt. The verifica tion process confirms a lega lly
quality of the data was more robust, in particular the reporta ble record tha t is up to da te, complete a nd complia nt.
severity of the crime (misdemeanor versus felony), as The Enha nced Verified Na tiona l Crimina l Sea rch combines
well as the dates used. SSN va lida tion, a ddress history, a lia s na me sea rches, plus
a ccess to over 1,000 sources a nd over 800 million criminal
Based on Hannover Re’s findings, Choice Screening records. All records a re verified by the resea rcher directly at
performs better at identifying current registered sex the source prior to reporting. In a ddition, Choice Screening
offenders than other products on the market. In the provides sta te a nd county level sea rches for those sta tes that
sample there were eight individuals currently do not report to the Na tiona l Da tabase.
registered that were not flagged in comparable
offerings.
Case 2
42 year old male | $1,000,000 face amount
Rapid Checks Resident of Colorado
Choice Screening ha s developed a dva nced technology a nd
Admitted criminal history on application: none
softwa re to help life insura nce ca rriers a nd underwriters
Other products reporting criminal history: clear
strengthen their screening pra ctices by ena bling them to
connect to the Choice Screening pla tform via API.
Choice Screening results: Passed Enhanced Verifie d
Additiona lly, robust reporting ca pa bilities provide
National Criminal Search (Colorado does not report
a ccelera ted a ccess to get a clea r depiction of the a pplica nt.
records to the national database). Colorado State
Search – October 2020 (two days prior to application)
second-degree felony kidnapping (two counts).
Hannover Re | 2
Accelerated Underwriting & Automation a ccelera ted a nd informed decisions. Conta ct Ha nnover Re to
lea rn more a bout the eva lua tion of Choice Screening a nd its
The structured da ta received from Choice Screening ca n be benefits in life underwriting.
incorpora ted a s a nother third pa rty da ta source within
a utoma ted decisioning such a s hr | ReFlex, Ha nnover Re’s Contact for more information
a utoma ted underwriting solution. When included in
a ccelera ted/a utoma ted underwriting progra ms, in
combina tion with other third pa rty da ta sources, Choice
Susan Mayer, FALU, FLMI
Screening will support holistic underwriting decisions.
Vice President, Underwriting
Specia lty Products
Case 3 Ha nnover Re
Tel. (720) 279-5092
30 year old female | $1,000,000 face amount susa n.ma yer@hlra merica .com
Admitted criminal history on application: none
Other products reporting criminal history: clear
Choice Screening results: March 2019 – first-degre e
felony domestic battery, first-degree felony Mikele Oldani
aggravated assault and first-degree misdemeanor, Enterprise Sa les Executive
interference with emergency communication.
Choice Screening
Tel. (720) 974-4747
molda ni@choicescreening.com
choicescreening.com
Summary Follow @ChoiceScreening on
The insura nce industry fa ced countless cha llenges over the Twitter a nd LinkedIn
la st twelve months. With these cha llenges ca me ma ny
opportunities, ca ta pulting the ma rket, a s a whole, into a new
era of underwriting much fa ster tha n would ha ve been ha d
the globa l pa ndemic not been present. Ma ny ca rriers ha d to
quickly implement cha nges to their workflow a nd buckets of
requirements ha d they not a lrea dy done so. It will be
importa nt to continue to monitor these cha nges very closely,
ma king sure to close a ny ga ps tha t ma y exist.
Ha nnover Re ha s been a t the forefront resea rching new data
sources a nd risk selection tools. Working with a pa rtner that
is flexible a nd ca n provide ta ilored solutions is pa ra mount in
toda y’s environment. Choice Screening offers a n a rra y of
products a nd da ta sources tha t ca n be used to refi ne a nd
enha nce both process a nd a utoma ted underwriting
progra ms, providing protective va lue a nd a considera ble
a mount of flexibility a long the wa y.
As illustra ted in the ca se studies a bove, Choice Screening
methodologies uncover critica l informa tion key to ma king
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