Other Departments

In addition to the foregoing, numerous other departments are necessary for the handling of the enormous volume of details that make up the work of a large life-insurance company. Most of these have been enumerated and briefly defined on pages 325 and 327, and need not be referred to again. Mention may, however, be made of the fact that a considerable number of companies have, in addition to the departments already enumerated, one or more of three other departments, namely, a statistical department, a policy changes department, and a department of assignments. The function of the first is to tabulate the experience of the company as regards the numerous classes of risks insured, the various types of policies written, the various classes of investments made, etc. The data collected by the department, if properly interpreted by it, should prove invaluable especially to the executive and actuarial departments in enabling the company to profit by past experience with a view to improving its future prospects.

It is also apparent that in a large company numerous changes of beneficiaries will be requested by policyholders, and such changes frequently involve legal and other dangers which the company is anxious to avoid. During the early policy years numerous contracts are also changed with reference to the kind of insurance, the amount of premiums, or the amount of insurance, and all such changes require a careful adjustment between the old and the new contract. To facilitate the speedy and careful handling of such changes some companies have found it advisable to create a special department for the purpose. Furthermore, life-insurance policies are frequently assigned. Such assignments must be duly filed and acknowledged, and must be examined from the standpoint of legality and accuracy. While the companies do not hold themselves responsible for the correctness of policy assignments, they nevertheless desire to protect the insured by extending advice and suggestions. To this end some of the companies find it advantageous to have a department of assignments, the function of which is to examine carefully all assignments filed with the company and call the attention of the parties thereto to any inaccuracies or illegalities which it may discover.