In this article, we will cover how to submit an Auto or Home quote using the Rating Engine product. Also known as a comparative rater, this product allows you to submit a rating application to multiple carriers at the same time, saving you time. Before you try submitting a quote, please make sure your carrier logins are setup and you have a personal lines applicant ready to go. 


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Creating and Accessing a Rating Application


There are a few ways to create the Rating Applications. We'll cover all of them so you can choose which is best for you in the moment. Once you have created the rating applications for a specific customer, then they are always accessible from the Applications card on the Overview page of the customer's account.


Details - Save & Go To Buttons


One of the fastest and easiest ways to create or access a rating application is right as you are creating a personal lines account. There are convenient buttons at the bottom of the Details page, that allow you to go to either an auto or home application.


1. First, find the personal lines account you want to run a quote for if you are not already there.

2. Once on the personal lines account, select Details if you are not already there.

3. From the Details page, scroll to the bottom and choose the Go To Auto button to access the Auto Rating Application, or choose the Go To Home button to access the Home Rating Application.



Overview - Actions Button 


Using the Actions button on the Overview page allows you to create the application, but once you create the application in this way, you'll notice that the option is removed. This is because as soon as you create the rating applications they are always on the customer's account. So, this option is only available when you need to create the application for the very first time on the respective customer's account.


1. First, find the personal lines account you want to run a quote for if you are not already there.

2. Once on the personal lines account, select the Actions button on the Overview page.

3. Next, hover over the Add Application drop-down.

4. Finally, choose either Auto or Home to create the respective rating application.



Remember this workflow is only available if you need to create a rating application for the very first time on a customer's account. As you can see, we selected an option and no it is no longer available to us under the Add Application drop-down.



Overview - Applications Card


On the Overview page of a customer's account, you'll find a card that has both a Policies and Applications option on it. This is what we call the Policies/Application card. On this card, you can find all of the policies and applications for the customer's account. If you are making an application for the first time, you'll see an Add Application button on the Application section of the card that lets you create an application just like the Actions button we covered above.


1. First, find the personal lines account you want to run a quote for if you are not already there.

2. Once on the personal lines account, select the Applications option in the Policies/Applications card on the Overview page.

3. Select the Add Application button. 

4. Choose either Auto or Home to create the respective Application.


As soon as you create an application for the first time, the Add Application button disappears. To add another application, you can either use the Actions button on the Overview page or the Go To Buttons on the Details page. 


 

Opening a Rating Application


Once an application has been created for the customer's account, you can always open it by either using the Go To buttons on the Details page, or by Viewing/Editing the application using the steps below.


Details - Go To Buttons


1. First, find the personal lines account you want to run a quote for if you are not already there.

2. Once on the personal lines account, select Details if you are not already there.

3. From the Details page, scroll to the bottom and choose the Go To Auto button to open the Auto Rating Application, or choose the Go To Home button to open the Home Rating Application.




Overview - Applications Card


1. On the Overview page, choose the Applications section of the Policies/Application card.

2. Then, select the Actions icon.

3. Finally, select View/Edit to open the application.


Common Rating Sections


Now that you've created your rating application, it's time to fill in the application, so it can be submitted to carriers. In this part of the article, we'll look at the different tabs that can be found on both the Auto or Home rating application and ways to make data entry faster. These common rating sections require information like what carriers you want to quote with, the customer's previous policy info, and wanted coverage information. This information is needed regardless of the line of business (LOB) which is why you can find it in both the Auto and Home application.


Rating


The Rating section of the rating applications is where you can apply quote templates to make filling out a rating application faster! Check out our Rating Engine - Quote Templates article to learn more about Quote Templates! 


To make things even faster, you can turn on the Carrier Answers Prefill option. When the toggle is purple, then it's on. When it's grey, it's off. While it's on, EZLynx's system will help you by intelligently filling in some fields for you. By default, those prefilled fields are hidden because of the Hide Prefilled Answers toggle in the top right-hand corner of the application. 


While you start to use EZLynx for the first couple of times, you might be hesitant to let the system prefill answers for you. If this is the case, we recommend turning on the Carrier Answers Prefill feature, but turning off the Hide Prefilled Answers feature. This way you still get the help from the Carrier Answers Prefill feature, while also double-checking you agree with the answers being prefilled. Once you trust the system, you can turn on the Hide Prefilled Answers feature again so you have less on your screen to worry about.


Finally, the Rating section is also the place to select which carriers you want to submit the application to. Simply toggle all the carriers you are interested in one at a time or toggle the Select All Carriers option to toggle them all at the same time. 


The only difference between the Auto and Home Rating section is that the Home Rating section also requires you to select a Policy/Form Type, so make sure you do that if you are filling out a Home application.



Policy Info


The Policy Info section is where you can enter in the prior policy information for the customer. There are minor differences between the Auto and Home applications on this section. The main difference is the Home application asks some underwriting questions, and the Auto application might have some additional carrier questions depending on which carriers you picked.



Coverage


The Coverage section is where you can enter the Coverage information that the customer needs. The fields are obviously different because Auto and Home are different LOBs, but the purpose of the Coverage section is still the same regardless of the LOB.



Carrier Questions


The Carrier Questions section is where you can find additional questions that are specific to the carriers you selected on the Rating section of the application. The biggest thing to know about this page is if you have any errors on any of the other sections on the application, you will not be able to access the questions on this section. To tell if there are errors on a section, look for the orange warning icons. Once you fix the errors, you'll be able to see the questions.


Auto Specific Rating Sections


Now that you know about the common rating sections, let's talk about the sections that are specific to an Auto quote. These Auto specific sections need information like the drivers, vehicles and any incidents that could affect the quote.


Drivers


This section is where you can enter in the driver's information that need to be insured. To add additional drivers, select the Add Driver button in the bottom left corner of the application. By default, this page's view is for the drivers to be displayed stacked or in rows. You can change the view to have the drivers display side-by-side or in columns by changing your preferences in the User Settings. Check out our EZLynx Basics - User Settings article to learn more!



If you happen to have one of our Driver Pre-fill integrations enabled for your agency, you can select the Pre-Fill Drivers button to start that workflow to save yourself time by having key driver information pre-filled for you. Check out our Driver/Vehicle Pre-fill Integration Comparison article to learn more about the different options for Driver/Vehicle Pre-fill integrations!



Vehicles


This section is where you can enter the vehicles that need to be on the quote. To add multiple vehicles, select the Add Additional Vehicle button in the bottom left-hand corner. By default, this page's view is for the drivers to be displayed stacked or in rows. You can change the view to have the drivers display side-by-side or in columns by changing your preferences in the User Settings. Check out our EZLynx Basics - User Settings article to learn more!



To help with this section, we've included some common things to remember while filling out this section. 

  • Due to VIN format standards, vehicles manufactured prior to 1981 are not supported for EZLynx Rating.
  • You can enter up to 6 vehicles (cars, SUVs, and trucks only) for submission. However, most carriers will not return a successful quote for more than 4 vehicles. For these, we recommend submitting 4 vehicles, then updating the applications on the carrier sites for the remaining vehicles.
  • There are two ways you can enter in a vehicle. You can enter the VIN number of the vehicle or manually select the Year, Make, & Model.


Driver/vehicle assignments are required for every auto quote in EZLynx. Carriers want to know what percentage of the time each driver drives each vehicle. The assignments must total 100% under each vehicle, and there always must be a primary driver. If you have two drivers, please enter at least 51/49 instead of 50/50, so that one driver is primary.



If you happen to have one of our Driver Pre-fill integrations enabled for your agency, you can select the Pre-Fill Vehicles button to start that workflow to save yourself time by having key driver information pre-filled for you. Check out our Driver/Vehicle Pre-fill Integration Comparison article to learn more about the different options for Driver/Vehicle Pre-fill integrations!



Incidents

This is where you can enter any accidents, violations, and comp loss situations. To make sure the quote is as accurate as possible, we recommend inputting as much information as possible. Simply select the Add Accident, Add Violation, or Add Comp Loss buttons to start their respective workflows.

Home Specific Rating Sections


Now that you know about the common rating sections, let's talk about the sections that are specific to a Home quote. These Home specific sections need information like Dwelling Info and Endorsements.


Dwelling Info


This section is where you can enter the details about the dwelling being quoted. Information such as Home Info, Protective Devices, Geographical info, and Updates to the house can all be found in this section. 



If you happen to have our Home Pre-fill integration enabled for your agency, you can select the Pre-Fill Home button on the Policy Info section to start a workflow to save yourself time by having key dwelling information pre-filled for you. Check out our MSB - Home Lookup Integration article to learn more!



Endorsements

This section is where you can enter the details about the endorsement information. Information such as Endorsements, Earthquakes, Business Pursuits and Scheduled Personal Property to the house can all be found in this section.


Finish Tab & Submitting the Quote


Once you've gone through all of the sections of the application, you'll end up on the final section - the Finish section. This section is a final check for errors in the application. EZLynx's system is continuously checks for missing or invalid information throughout the quoting process. If the system finds something wrong with the application (i.e. empty field) there will be an orange warning icon on the section icon at the top of the application. This lets you know where the error is. The Finish section has the full list of all the errors that need to be fixed. To fix the errors, select the Fix button to be taken to the section of the application that needs attention. 



Once all errors are fixed, the system will still offer suggestions that could improve the accuracy of your quote (i.e. SSN). However, these are just suggestions and should not stop you from moving forward with submitting the application to the carriers. If the application is ready and error free, select the Submit to Carriers button to submit the application to all the carriers you selected on the Rating section of the application. 


If you are planning to quote both Auto and Home for a customer, you can complete both applications in the same sitting, by selecting the respective Go To button that can be found on the bottom right-hand corner of this section. This button will take you to the application for the other LOB. Once you've filled out the other application, you can then select the Submit to Carriers button and both applications should be submitted to the carriers at the same time. 


We hope this training article was helpful in completing your first quote. Please let us know if this article was helpful by answering the question below. Check out our related training articles on the right-side to learn more about how to master EZLynx!