Reference
Insurance & Insurance Technology Glossary
Clear, vendor-neutral definitions of the insurance and insurance-technology terms used across this site. Each entry links to a deeper explanation where one exists.
- Core Insurance System
- The system of record an insurer uses to run the full policy lifecycle — quoting, underwriting, policy issue, endorsements, billing, claims and renewals — on one auditable data model. Learn more →
- Insurance ERP
- An enterprise system that extends the core insurance system with finance, reinsurance, IFRS 17 and analytics, so the whole insurer runs on one platform. Learn more →
- Policy Administration
- Managing a policy across its life: issue, endorsements, renewals, cancellations and the records behind each change.
- Underwriting
- Assessing a risk and deciding whether to accept it and at what price. Digital underwriting encodes these decisions as rules. Learn more →
- Straight-Through Processing (STP)
- Automated completion of a transaction — quote, policy issue or claim — with no manual intervention when it meets predefined rules. Learn more →
- First Notice of Loss (FNOL)
- The first report of a claim to the insurer, which starts the claims process. Learn more →
- Loss Ratio
- Claims incurred divided by premiums earned — a core measure of an insurance portfolio's profitability.
- Reinsurance
- Insurance for insurers: a reinsurer accepts part of an insurer's risk in exchange for a share of the premium. Learn more →
- Treaty Reinsurance
- Reinsurance covering a whole portfolio of risks automatically under one agreement. Learn more →
- Facultative Reinsurance
- Reinsurance negotiated for a single risk, one at a time — usually large or unusual exposures. Learn more →
- IFRS 17
- The international accounting standard for insurance contracts, standardising how insurers measure liabilities and recognise profit over a contract's life. Learn more →
- Contractual Service Margin (CSM)
- Under IFRS 17, the unearned profit on a group of contracts, recognised gradually as coverage is provided. Learn more →
- Premium Allocation Approach (PAA)
- A simplified IFRS 17 measurement model used for most short-duration general insurance contracts. Learn more →
- KYC (Know Your Customer)
- Establishing and verifying a customer's identity before issuing a policy, as the basis for AML compliance. Learn more →
- AML Screening
- Checking customers against sanctions, PEP and watchlists to prevent the insurer being used for money laundering. Learn more →
- PEP (Politically Exposed Person)
- A person holding a prominent public position that carries higher corruption and money-laundering risk, warranting enhanced due diligence. Learn more →
- USSD
- A menu-based mobile channel that works on any handset without internet — widely used for insurance sales and premium collection in Zambia. Learn more →
- Mobile Money
- A mobile-phone-based wallet used to send, receive and store money — a primary premium-collection channel in Zambia. Learn more →
- RTSA
- Zambia's Road Transport and Safety Agency, the authority for motor records used to validate motor insurance certificates. Learn more →
- DSA (Direct Sales Agent)
- An agent who sells insurance directly to customers, typically earning commission on the business they produce. Learn more →
- Endorsement
- A formal change to an in-force policy, such as adjusting cover, adding a risk, or correcting details.
- Bancassurance
- The distribution of insurance through banking channels. Learn more →
- Microinsurance
- Low-premium insurance designed for mass-market and low-income customers, usually distributed and collected via mobile channels. Learn more →
- Quotation Engine
- Software that calculates a premium for a given risk and cover using a product's rating rules. Learn more →