Mesa Underwriters Specialty Insurance Company (MUSIC) specializes in complex commercial risk policies within the excess and surplus lines marketplace. Their insurance agents relied on a policy application to rate, quote, bind, and issue policies, but the existing system created headaches—slowing productivity and increasing workload.
UX team was brought in to redesign the user experience. Through user research, usability testing, and front-end prototyping, we developed a streamlined interface that was not only highly usable but also significantly faster, enabling agents to complete tasks with greater efficiency.
Activities and deliverables
User research, Prototyping, Usability testing, Developer handoff, Development, UX support
Who we worked with
Chief Delivery Officer, Product Manager
Streamline application process
Redesign workflow to minimize friction, reduce steps, and complete policies faster.
Reduce manual data entry
Enable prefilling data from external systems and file imports.
Front-end prototype
Develop a semi-functional prototype in Angular for usability testing.
Purpose of our research
Through our research, we aimed to:
Studies
To address this, we introduced a side navigation displaying the policy summary as a checklist. Each step is clearly labeled and marked as complete or incomplete. We also incorporated the same checkmarks throughout the application to enhance clarity.
By separating the steps from the main application and using visual indicators, users can easily identify areas that require attention.
During our shadowing sessions, we observed users relying on an external calculator to manually determine taxes and fees. While this process gets the job done, it adds extra work for users and increases the risk of user error.
In our new design we added a ‘Taxes/Fees’ section in the premium summary. Each line item is auto-calculated based on the business’s physical location, ensuring the correct taxes and fees are being applied.
Once the visual design mockups were finalized, we developed a semi-functional Angular front-end prototype for usability testing with insurance agents. Overall, the designs performed well. However, testing revealed friction when adding options like location, building, and optional coverage to policies.
To improve visibility and consistency, we replaced text-only action links with outlined buttons. We also moved any buttons outside accordions so users wouldn’t miss it. The result? A highly usable, lightning-fast design that enabled agents to complete tasks with exceptional efficiency.
The redesigned policy application transformed the user experience for MUSIC’s insurance agents, addressing key pain points and improving efficiency. We created a streamlined interface that enhances productivity and reduces errors by implementing a clear task-tracking system, automating tax calculations, and refining usability through testing. The result is a faster, more intuitive application that empowers agents to confidently focus on their work.
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