WO2009155618A2 - Transaction facilitation system - Google Patents
Transaction facilitation system Download PDFInfo
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- WO2009155618A2 WO2009155618A2 PCT/ZA2009/000055 ZA2009000055W WO2009155618A2 WO 2009155618 A2 WO2009155618 A2 WO 2009155618A2 ZA 2009000055 W ZA2009000055 W ZA 2009000055W WO 2009155618 A2 WO2009155618 A2 WO 2009155618A2
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- WIPO (PCT)
- Prior art keywords
- user
- servers
- software
- mobile
- message
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- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06Q—INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G06Q10/00—Administration; Management
- G06Q10/10—Office automation; Time management
Definitions
- the invention relates to a transaction facilitation system.
- the invention relates to a transaction facilitation system which is implemented over a mobile communications network.
- the inventors are aware that a need exists for a transaction facilitation network which is implemented over a wireless communication network as most economically active people have mobile telephone handsets.
- Mass Underwriting In the field of massive scale underwriting where a financial product such as insurance is marketed to a large number of people but for small amounts it is not practical to have each person to be underwritten in the traditional way or even to conduct a telephonic with each such person. The applicants have termed this phenomenon "Mass Underwriting”.
- a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract including:
- said servers including:
- software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from a user, a vendor, or a third party over the telecommunications network, wherein when the user completes a financial transaction, a message is sent to the user in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting or having transmitted a message to the one or more servers over the telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
- the system may include one or more telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and a user's telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the telecommunication network.
- the telecommunications network may be a mobile telecommunications network.
- the user's telecommunication device may be a mobile telecommunication device.
- the insurance contract may be a so called micro-insurance contract.
- the insurance contract may be a mass underwritten insurance contract.
- the financial transaction which initiates the message in which the offer is made to the user may be any purchase, payment, or the like.
- the financial transaction may be a bank deposit or deposit received in a user's bank account, for example, a salary or payment paid into a user's bank account.
- the value of the insurance offered to the user may be in proportion to the value of the financial transaction, including but not limited to bank deposits, or bank receipt.
- a typical ratio between the value of the financial transaction and the value of the insurance offered may be from R 1 for every R 1 of the financial transaction to R 1000 for every R 1 of the financial transaction.
- a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract including:
- said servers including:
- software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from the mobile telecommunications device over the network from a user, wherein when the user purchases airtime for using the mobile telecommunications network, a message is sent to a user's mobile telecommunication device, in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting a message to the one or more servers over the mobile telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software; and one or more mobile telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said mobile telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and the user's mobile telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the mobile telecommunication network.
- the mobile telecommunications device may be a mobile telephone handset, also known as a cell phone, a PDA, a terminal, a point-of-sale, or the like.
- a database may be provided on one or more of the vendor and mobile network operator servers.
- the purchase of the airtime that triggers the message to the user from the system may be made from a wireless terminal, or other sales device which credits airtime to a user's MSISDN on the mobile network operator's servers.
- the mobile telecommunications device may communicate with the vendor's servers using one or more of SMS, Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) 1 GPRS, 3G, HSDPA, USDPA, Wi-Max, wi-fi, or other mobile data link over the mobile telecommunications network.
- the software may analyse data received from and about the user to determine whether a first contact is being made with a user or whether the user is a returning client.
- the software identifies the user as a first contact then the user is first underwritten by the system in accordance with risk management underwriting rules.
- a system as described above wherein the predetermined rules set in the software may include:
- IVR interactive voice recognition
- the user sending the information to the server via a pre or post loaded application on the mobile device, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy;
- the message sent to the user and/or the replying message from the user to the server may be by means of SMS, command channel, USSD, WAP 1 GPRS, e-mail, or the like.
- the operator and/or the IVR may collect information from the user specific to the type of insurance policy being offered, for example, name, address, identification number, social security number, general health, and the like.
- the operator may issue the policy in response to the answers provided by the user.
- the IVR may instruct the server to issue the policy in response to the answers provided by the user.
- the policy may be issued for a specific value and/or for a specified period of time.
- the software on the server may determine the total value of policies already issued to a user and in force having cumulative value in excess of a predetermined maximum and cap the total value of the policies to the predetermined value and, optionally, inform the user accordingly.
- the vendor's servers may send reminder messages to the user of the lapsing or expiry of any particular insurance policy.
- an SMS may be sent to the user 3 days before policy expiry, then again two days before the policy expiry and finally on the date of expiry informing the user of the expiry thereof and amend the system records on the servers accordingly.
- Software may be provided which is loaded onto a SIM card of the user's mobile telecommunication device, which SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software, co-operates with the software on the one or more servers in the initiation of the insurance policy, collection of underwriting information, processing the transaction which results in the insurance policy being issued, monitoring the status of the insurance policy, for example, the remaining term, the insured amount, the insured party, and the like, and controlling access to said information.
- the SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software may include processes for guiding the user in submitting a claim in terms of the insurance policy.
- the SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software may require authorization to permit access to information in respect of the insured party, the insured amount, the insured term, and any other information stored either on the SIM card or on any of the servers in the system.
- Authorization may be by means of a code, a PIN, or answering one or more questions on the mobile handset.
- the SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software may manage beneficiary changes and/or beneficiary removal. This is intended to prevent any unauthorized third party from finding out whether a particular user is insured, and if so, for what amount and who the beneficiaries are. Also, if a mobile telecommunications handset should be found at the scene of an insurable event then the person finding the handset cannot change the beneficiary thereby to claim against the insurance policy unless they have the authorization code or PIN.
- the invention will now be described, by way of non-limiting example only.
- a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of a life insurance contract includes a mobile telecommunications network on which mobile telephones, also known as cell phones, can be used to communicate both verbally and by text and data messaging.
- a vendor server is provided by a vendor at a location and has a point-of-presence on the mobile telecommunications network.
- the server includes a CPU, data storage means, and inputs and outputs.
- Software is provided on the server which operates on the server to cause the server to send an SMS to the handset of a user who has purchased airtime.
- the mobile telephone network operator has one or more servers in data communication with the vendor server, said mobile telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor server and the user's mobile telecommunications handset and, optionally, facilitating
- the SMS is a means of initiating a life insurance contract in response to data received by the server from the handset over the network when the user purchases the airtime and submits the airtime unlock code or PIN.
- an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting an SMS back to the server over the mobile telecommunication network from the handset from which the airtime has just been purchased, either accepting or rejecting the offer.
- the responding SMS reaches the server over the communication network and is processed by the server in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
- the predetermined rules set in the software may include:
- IVR infrastructure which interrogates the user for information relevant to the contract before the insurance policy is issued
- the user sending the information to the server via a pre or post loaded application on the mobile device, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy;
- the operator and/or the IVR collect information from the user, for example, name, address, identification number, social security number, general health, and the like.
- the operator then issues the policy in response to the answers provided by the user and the sends the user a confirmatory SMS.
- the server or the operator transmits a message to the underwriter or insurance broker informing them of the insurance which has been issued and requesting any commission which may be due to be credited to the server operator.
- the invention provides a method of initiating and/or concluding a life insurance contract.
- the method including selling mobile communications network airtime to a user, transmitting an offer to provide insurance at no additional cost to a mobile telecommunications handset of the user, said offer requiring a response from the user in order to signify an intention to accept the offer, contacting the user in response to a
- the method includes collecting the predetermined information types by means of an operator or an IVR.
- the provision of the insurance has no further costs to the user except for the cost of the airtime purchased.
- the invention has several advantages including the improved distribution of insurance to otherwise uninsured persons.
- a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract including:
- said servers including:
- software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from a user, a vendor, or a third party over the telecommunications network, wherein when the user completes a financial transaction, a message is sent to the user in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting or having transmitted a message to the one or more servers over the telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
- the system may include one or more telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and a user's telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the telecommunication network.
- the telecommunications network is a mobile telecommunications network and the user's telecommunication device is a mobile telecommunication device such as a cell phone.
- the insurance contract is a so called micro-insurance contract.
- the financial transaction which initiates the message in which the offer is made to the user is a purchase of goods from a retailer.
- the value of the insurance offered to the user is in proportion to the value of the goods purchased, for example, R 4 000 insurance for a month for R 400 of goods purchased.
- the initiation and conclusion of the insurance issuing transaction may be generally as per the example illustrated in the figures and as described above.
Abstract
The invention generally provides a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract, said system including: - a telecommunications network; - one or more vendor servers having one or more points-of-presence on the telecommunications network, said servers including: o a CPU; o data storage means; o input and output means, wherein software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from a user, a vendor, or a third party over the telecommunications network, wherein when the user completes a financial transaction, a message is sent to the user in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting or having transmitted a message to the one or more servers over the telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
Description
TRANSACTION FACILITATION SYSTEM
Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a transaction facilitation system. In particular the invention relates to a transaction facilitation system which is implemented over a mobile communications network.
Background to the Invention
The inventors are aware that a need exists for a transaction facilitation network which is implemented over a wireless communication network as most economically active people have mobile telephone handsets.
In the field of massive scale underwriting where a financial product such as insurance is marketed to a large number of people but for small amounts it is not practical to have each person to be underwritten in the traditional way or even to conduct a telephonic with each such person. The applicants have termed this phenomenon "Mass Underwriting".
In particular a need for the facilitation of sales transactions, especially for financial services has been identified. Such system would ideally assist with resolving the problem explained above in the context of Mass Underwriting.
Summary of the Invention
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract, said system including:
- a telecommunications network;
- a telecommunications device operable on the network;
- one or more vendor servers having one or more points-of-presence on the telecommunications network, said servers including:
o a CPU;
o data storage means;
o input and output means,
wherein software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from a user, a vendor, or a third party over the telecommunications network, wherein when the user completes a financial transaction, a message is sent to the user in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting or having transmitted a message to the one or more servers over the telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
The system may include one or more telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and a user's telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the telecommunication network.
The telecommunications network may be a mobile telecommunications network.
The user's telecommunication device may be a mobile telecommunication device.
The insurance contract may be a so called micro-insurance contract. The insurance contract may be a mass underwritten insurance contract.
The financial transaction which initiates the message in which the offer is made to the user may be any purchase, payment, or the like.
The financial transaction may be a bank deposit or deposit received in a user's bank account, for example, a salary or payment paid into a user's bank account.
The value of the insurance offered to the user may be in proportion to the value of the financial transaction, including but not limited to bank deposits, or bank receipt.
A typical ratio between the value of the financial transaction and the value of the insurance offered may be from R 1 for every R 1 of the financial transaction to R 1000 for every R 1 of the financial transaction.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract, said system including:
- a mobile telecommunications network;
- a mobile telecommunications device operable on the network;
- one or more vendor servers having one or more points-of-presence on the mobile telecommunications network, said servers including:
o a CPU;
o data storage means;
o input and output means,
wherein software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from the mobile telecommunications device over the network from a user, wherein when the user purchases airtime for using the mobile telecommunications network, a message is sent to a user's mobile telecommunication device, in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting a message to the one or more servers over the mobile telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software; and
one or more mobile telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said mobile telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and the user's mobile telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the mobile telecommunication network.
The mobile telecommunications device may be a mobile telephone handset, also known as a cell phone, a PDA, a terminal, a point-of-sale, or the like.
A database may be provided on one or more of the vendor and mobile network operator servers.
Where more than one database is provided, an exchange of data between at least some of the databases may be permitted.
The purchase of the airtime that triggers the message to the user from the system may be made from a wireless terminal, or other sales device which credits airtime to a user's MSISDN on the mobile network operator's servers.
The mobile telecommunications device may communicate with the vendor's servers using one or more of SMS, Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD)1 GPRS, 3G, HSDPA, USDPA, Wi-Max, wi-fi, or other mobile data link over the mobile telecommunications network.
The software may analyse data received from and about the user to determine whether a first contact is being made with a user or whether the user is a returning client.
If the software identifies the user as a first contact then the user is first underwritten by the system in accordance with risk management underwriting rules.
A system as described above wherein the predetermined rules set in the software may include:
- the transfer of information about the user to an operator who obtains information via voice from the user;
- the transfer of information about the user to an interactive voice recognition (IVR) platform which interrogates the user for information relevant to the contract before the insurance policy is issued;
- sending the user a message requesting certain information required to underwrite the insurance policy, to which the user replies with a message sent to the server which reply forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy;
- the user sending the information to the server via a pre or post loaded application on the mobile device, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy; and/or
- transferring information about the user to the server from one or more third party data source, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy.
The message sent to the user and/or the replying message from the user to the server may be by means of SMS, command channel, USSD, WAP1 GPRS, e-mail, or the like.
The operator and/or the IVR may collect information from the user specific to the type of insurance policy being offered, for example, name, address, identification number, social security number, general health, and the like.
The operator may issue the policy in response to the answers provided by the user.
The IVR may instruct the server to issue the policy in response to the answers provided by the user.
The policy may be issued for a specific value and/or for a specified period of time.
The software on the server may determine the total value of policies already issued to a user and in force having cumulative value in excess of a predetermined maximum and cap the total value of the policies to the predetermined value and, optionally, inform the user accordingly.
The vendor's servers may send reminder messages to the user of the lapsing or expiry of any particular insurance policy. Thus, an SMS may be sent to the user 3 days before policy expiry, then again two days before the policy expiry and finally on the date of expiry informing the user of the expiry thereof and amend the system records on the servers accordingly.
Software may be provided which is loaded onto a SIM card of the user's mobile telecommunication device, which SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software, co-operates with the software on the one or more servers in the initiation of the insurance policy, collection of underwriting information, processing the transaction which results in the insurance policy being issued, monitoring the status of the insurance policy, for example, the remaining term, the insured amount, the insured party, and the like, and controlling access to said information.
The SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software, may include processes for guiding the user in submitting a claim in terms of the insurance policy.
The SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software, may require authorization to permit access to information in respect of the insured party, the insured amount, the insured term, and any other information stored either on the SIM card or on any of the servers in the system. Authorization may be by means of a code, a PIN, or answering one or more questions on the mobile handset.
The SIM card resident software, device software or uploaded software, may manage beneficiary changes and/or beneficiary removal. This is intended to prevent any unauthorized third party from finding out whether a particular user is insured, and if so, for what amount and who the beneficiaries are. Also, if a mobile telecommunications handset should be found at the scene of an insurable event then the person finding the handset cannot change the beneficiary thereby to claim against the insurance policy unless they have the authorization code or PIN.
The invention will now be described, by way of non-limiting example only.
Example of an Implementation of the Invention
The invention may be implemented in many different ways and the explanation which follows is only to illustrate one such possibility but does not derogate from the generality of the invention.
In an implementation of the invention, as shown in the attached flow sheet, there is provided a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of a life insurance contract. The system includes a mobile telecommunications network on which mobile telephones, also known as cell phones, can be used to communicate both verbally and by text and data messaging.
A vendor server is provided by a vendor at a location and has a point-of-presence on the mobile telecommunications network. The server includes a CPU, data storage means, and inputs and outputs. Software is provided on the server which operates on the server to cause the server to send an SMS to the handset of a user who has purchased airtime.
The mobile telephone network operator has one or more servers in data communication with the vendor server, said mobile telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor server and the user's mobile telecommunications handset and, optionally, facilitating
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transactions between the vendor and the user over the mobile telecommunication network.
The SMS is a means of initiating a life insurance contract in response to data received by the server from the handset over the network when the user purchases the airtime and submits the airtime unlock code or PIN.
In the SMS message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting an SMS back to the server over the mobile telecommunication network from the handset from which the airtime has just been purchased, either accepting or rejecting the offer.
The responding SMS reaches the server over the communication network and is processed by the server in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
The predetermined rules set in the software may include:
- the transfer of information about the user to an operator who obtains information via voice from the user;
- the transfer of information about the user to an interactive voice recognition
(IVR) platform which interrogates the user for information relevant to the contract before the insurance policy is issued;
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sending the user a message requesting certain information required to underwrite the insurance policy, to which the user replies with a message sent to the server which reply forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy;
the user sending the information to the server via a pre or post loaded application on the mobile device, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy; and/or
transferring information about the user to the server from one or more third party data source, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy.
The operator and/or the IVR collect information from the user, for example, name, address, identification number, social security number, general health, and the like.
The operator then issues the policy in response to the answers provided by the user and the sends the user a confirmatory SMS.
The server or the operator transmits a message to the underwriter or insurance broker informing them of the insurance which has been issued and requesting any commission which may be due to be credited to the server operator.
Thus, the invention provides a method of initiating and/or concluding a life insurance contract. The method including selling mobile communications network airtime to a user, transmitting an offer to provide insurance at no additional cost to a mobile telecommunications handset of the user, said offer requiring a response from the user in order to signify an intention to accept the offer, contacting the user in response to a
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response received from the user, collecting predetermined types of information required to underwrite the insurance policy, issuing the insurance policy if policy issuing conditions have been met, notifying the insurance underwriter and/or insurance broker of the transaction and, optionally, requesting a commission which may be due.
The method includes collecting the predetermined information types by means of an operator or an IVR.
The provision of the insurance has no further costs to the user except for the cost of the airtime purchased.
The invention has several advantages including the improved distribution of insurance to otherwise uninsured persons.
In an embodiment of the invention not illustrated in the figures, there is provided a system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract, said system including:
- a telecommunications network;
- a telecommunications device operable on the network;
- one or more vendor servers having one or more points-of-presence on the telecommunications network, said servers including:
o a CPU;
o data storage means;
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o input and output means,
wherein software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from a user, a vendor, or a third party over the telecommunications network, wherein when the user completes a financial transaction, a message is sent to the user in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting or having transmitted a message to the one or more servers over the telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
The system may include one or more telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and a user's telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the telecommunication network.
The telecommunications network is a mobile telecommunications network and the user's telecommunication device is a mobile telecommunication device such as a cell phone.
The insurance contract is a so called micro-insurance contract.
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The financial transaction which initiates the message in which the offer is made to the user is a purchase of goods from a retailer.
The value of the insurance offered to the user is in proportion to the value of the goods purchased, for example, R 4 000 insurance for a month for R 400 of goods purchased.
The initiation and conclusion of the insurance issuing transaction may be generally as per the example illustrated in the figures and as described above.
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Claims
1. A system for facilitating the initiation and/or conclusion of an insurance contract, said system including:
- a telecommunications network;
- one or more vendor servers having one or more points-of-presence on the telecommunications network, said servers including:
o a CPU;
o data storage means;
o input and output means,
wherein software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from a user, a vendor, or a third party over the telecommunications network, wherein when the user completes a financial transaction, a message is sent to the user in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting or having transmitted a message to the one or more servers over the telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software.
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2. A system as claimed in claim 1 , which includes one or more telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and a user's telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the telecommunication network.
3. A system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the telecommunications network is a mobile telecommunications network.
4. A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the user's telecommunication device is a mobile telecommunication device.
5. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the financial transaction which initiates the message in which the offer is made to the user is selected from any purchase, payment, or third party transaction.
6. A system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the financial transaction is a bank deposit or deposit received in a user's bank account.
7. A system as claimed in claim 1, said system including:
- a mobile telecommunications network;
- a mobile telecommunications device operable on the network;
17 - one or more vendor servers having one or more points-of-presence on the mobile telecommunications network, said servers including:
o a CPU;
o data storage means;
o input and output means,
wherein software is provided on at least one of the servers which software is operable on one or more of the servers to initiate an insurance contract in response to data received by the server from the mobile telecommunications device over the network from a user, wherein when the user purchases airtime for using the mobile telecommunications network, a message is sent to a user's mobile telecommunication device, in which message an offer is made to the user to provide insurance to the user without further charge conditionally on the user responding to the offer by transmitting a message to the one or more servers over the mobile telecommunication network either accepting or rejecting the offer, which responding message is processed by the servers in accordance with predetermined rules set in the software; and
- one or more mobile telephone network operator servers in data communication with the one or more vendor servers, said mobile telephone network operator servers communicating transactions by means of the telephone communications network between the vendor servers and the user's mobile telecommunications device and, optionally, facilitating transactions between the vendor and the user over the mobile telecommunication network.
8. A system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the mobile telecommunications device is a mobile telephone handset, also known as a cell phone, a PDA, a terminal, or a point- of-sale.
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9. A system as claimed in claim 7, wherein a database is provided on one or more of the vendor and mobile network operator servers.
10. A system as claimed in claim 9, wherein when more than one database is provided, an exchange of data between at least some of the databases is permitted.
11. A system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the purchase of the airtime that triggers the message to the user from the system is made from a wireless terminal, or other sales device which credits airtime to a user's MSISDN on the mobile network operator's servers.
12. A system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the mobile telecommunications device communicates with the vendor's servers using one or more of SMS, Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD), GPRS, 3G, HSDPA, USDPA, Wi-Max, wi-fi, or other mobile data link over the mobile telecommunications network.
13. A system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the software analyses data received from and about the user to determine whether a first contact is being made with a user or whether the user is a returning client.
14. A system as claimed in claim 13, wherein if the software identifies the user as a first contact then the user is first underwritten by the system in accordance with risk management underwriting rules.
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15. A system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the predetermined rules set in the software may include:
- the transfer of information about the user to an operator who obtains information via voice from the user;
- the transfer of information about the user to an interactive voice recognition (IVR) platform which interrogates the user for information relevant to the contract before the insurance policy is issued;
- sending the user a message requesting certain information required to underwrite the insurance policy, to which the user replies with a message sent to the server which reply forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy;
- the user sending the information to the server via a pre or post loaded application on the mobile device, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy; and/or
- transferring information about the user to the server from one or more third party data source, which information forms the basis of the underwriting of the insurance policy.
16. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the operator and/or the IVR collect information from the user specific to the type of insurance policy being offered, selected from, but not limited to, name, address, identification number, social security number, and general health.
17. A system as claimed in claim 16, wherein the operator issues the policy in response to the answers provided by the user.
20
18. A system as claimed in claim 16, wherein the IVR instructs the server to issue the policy in response to the answers provided by the user.
19. A system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the policy is issued for a specific value and/or for a specified period of time.
20. A system as claimed in claim 19, wherein the software on the server determines the total value of policies already issued to a user and in force having cumulative value in excess of a predetermined maximum and cap the total value of the policies to the predetermined value and, optionally, inform the user accordingly.
21. A system as claimed in claim 18, wherein the vendor's servers send reminder messages to the user of the lapsing or expiry of any particular insurance policy.
22. A system as claimed in claim 21 , wherein an SMS is sent to the user 3 days before policy expiry, then again two days before the policy expiry and finally on the date of expiry informing the user of the expiry thereof and amend the system records on the servers accordingly.
23. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein software is loaded onto a SIM card of the user's mobile telecommunication device, which SIM card resident software cooperates with the software on the one or more servers in the initiation of the insurance policy, collection of underwriting information, processing the transaction which results in
21 the insurance policy being issued, monitoring the status of the insurance policy, and controlling access to said information.
24. A system as claimed in claim 23, wherein the SIM card resident software, device software, and/ or uploaded software, includes processes for guiding the user in submitting a claim in terms of the insurance policy.
25. A system as claimed in claim 23, wherein the SIM card resident software, device software, and/or uploaded software, requires authorization to permit access to information in respect of the insured party, the insured amount, the insured term, and any other information stored either on the SIM card or on any of the servers in the system, which authorization is by means of a code, a PIN, or answering one or more questions on the mobile handset.
26. A system as claimed in claim 25, wherein the SIM card resident software, device software, and/or uploaded software, manages beneficiary changes and/or beneficiary removal.
22
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZA200805323 | 2008-06-19 | ||
| ZA2008/5323 | 2008-06-19 |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| WO2009155618A2 true WO2009155618A2 (en) | 2009-12-23 |
| WO2009155618A3 WO2009155618A3 (en) | 2010-02-11 |
Family
ID=40972938
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/ZA2009/000055 WO2009155618A2 (en) | 2008-06-19 | 2009-06-12 | Transaction facilitation system |
Country Status (3)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| AP (1) | AP2682A (en) |
| WO (1) | WO2009155618A2 (en) |
| ZA (1) | ZA200904137B (en) |
Citations (6)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US20020002475A1 (en) * | 2000-04-13 | 2002-01-03 | Joel Freedman | Automated insurance system and method |
| US20030182165A1 (en) * | 2002-03-19 | 2003-09-25 | Atsushi Kato | Travel insurance reception apparatus and method |
| US20060100912A1 (en) * | 2002-12-16 | 2006-05-11 | Questerra Llc. | Real-time insurance policy underwriting and risk management |
| US20070198432A1 (en) * | 2001-01-19 | 2007-08-23 | Pitroda Satyan G | Transactional services |
| US20070299700A1 (en) * | 2004-10-29 | 2007-12-27 | Milemeter, Inc. | System and Method for Assessing Earned Premium for Distance-Based Vehicle Insurance |
| US20080003977A1 (en) * | 2005-03-23 | 2008-01-03 | Chakiris Phil M | Delivery of Value Identifiers Using Short Message Service (SMS) |
Family Cites Families (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WO2009049330A1 (en) * | 2007-10-08 | 2009-04-16 | Trustco Group International (Pty) Ltd | Transaction facilitation system |
-
2009
- 2009-06-12 ZA ZA200904137A patent/ZA200904137B/en unknown
- 2009-06-12 WO PCT/ZA2009/000055 patent/WO2009155618A2/en active Application Filing
- 2009-06-18 AP AP2009004906A patent/AP2682A/en active
Patent Citations (6)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US20020002475A1 (en) * | 2000-04-13 | 2002-01-03 | Joel Freedman | Automated insurance system and method |
| US20070198432A1 (en) * | 2001-01-19 | 2007-08-23 | Pitroda Satyan G | Transactional services |
| US20030182165A1 (en) * | 2002-03-19 | 2003-09-25 | Atsushi Kato | Travel insurance reception apparatus and method |
| US20060100912A1 (en) * | 2002-12-16 | 2006-05-11 | Questerra Llc. | Real-time insurance policy underwriting and risk management |
| US20070299700A1 (en) * | 2004-10-29 | 2007-12-27 | Milemeter, Inc. | System and Method for Assessing Earned Premium for Distance-Based Vehicle Insurance |
| US20080003977A1 (en) * | 2005-03-23 | 2008-01-03 | Chakiris Phil M | Delivery of Value Identifiers Using Short Message Service (SMS) |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| WO2009155618A3 (en) | 2010-02-11 |
| AP2009004906A0 (en) | 2009-06-30 |
| AP2682A (en) | 2013-06-12 |
| ZA200904137B (en) | 2010-04-28 |
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