During Applied Net 2024, I attended the session “Download 101: What It Is and How It Works,” by Jacki Fraggis from Gallagher. This presentation offered insight into why your agency should turn on Download, what is available for Download and tips for keeping items from hitting your suspense queue. Below are answers to questions that I shared with my team to help them gain a better understanding of Download.

What are the parts to Download?

There are four parts to Download:

Part 1: Policy Download which includes the following items:

• Digital transformation of policy data from the carrier.
• Actual data automatically populates into Epic (limits, buildings, vehicles, etc.)
• Creating an activity configured by your agency in the status code configuration to advise Download.

Part 2: eDocs Download

Docs are a PDF version of the policy documents sent by the carrier. Each carrier will vary on what documents they send. An activity is created and defined by eDocs configuration to advise eDocs. It is important to note that no data is changed by eDocs, and eDocs are independent of Policy Download. Policy Download does not have to be enabled in order to have eDocs enabled.

Part 3: DBCD (Direct Bill Commission Download /ADI (Automated Download Invoicing)

For DB policies, 30-60 days after the effective date, the commission portion of transaction is received via Download and reconciled usually by accounting. As a note, all agency bill policies must be transacted separately.

Automated Download invoicing these transactions comes with the Policy Download and are based on the effective date of the transaction and your system settings.

Part 4: Claims Download

Claim information is downloaded into Epic. The data received varies by carrier. The policy and correct term must be in Epic, or the Claims Download hits suspense.

What does download change?

Policy Download changes the following items within your management system: application data, issuing company (sent by carrier) and policy number formation and premium (if configured). If the carrier does not download certain data, drivers or equipment lists when the download is sent, this information will not overwrite what is currently entered in the application.

Why should my agency Download?

Agencies should use Download to ensure an actual record of what the carrier has on file. Benefits of utilizing Download include minimizing the amount of manual updating being completed by your admin/service team members and enabling staff members to work on other key items versus typing data into application detail. At Hylant, we turn on automatic updates which allows for faster processing time instead of manual updates.

When does Download run?

Download can be generated at a time set by your agency and is configured in Epic. At Hylant, we have instant Download turned on allowing for the Download when it is available from the carrier. There are different configuration options for instant processing and scheduled processing. It is recommended to run Download outside of business hours for large agencies, but smaller agencies can run anytime and more often if desired.

What happens when an item hits suspense?

One of the reasons items hit suspense is because Download did not match an existing policy or claim in Epic, so it hits a “suspense queue” which is a holding queue like your Outlook inbox.

These are some best practices to avoid items hitting suspense:

1. 1. Client and policy shell added to Epic on binding at the latest, not waiting for download.
   2. All clients and policies are added including service summary rows for endorsements and cancellations.
   3. Policy number format from Download applies, not carrier documents.
      1. Invalid format causes Policy Download, eDocs download, Claims Download and DBCS to hit suspense and this will need to be managed manually by your suspense team which slows down processing.

Why do service summary rows matter?

Service summary rows (SSR) enable the Download to automatically attach and not hit suspense. There are three SSR statuses in Epic to pay attention to for Download purposes:

1. In Process:

• This means that you are still updating Epic, but you have not submitted your change request to the carrier.
• The application screens in Epic can still be updated.

2. Submitted:

• This means that you are done updating Epic and have submitted your request to the carrier.
• The application screens in Epic can no longer be updated; a new SSR is required for additional changes.

3. Issued:

• This means that the carrier has processed the request, and we have received it either directly from the carrier or by download.