Within Insurance, “speed” is usually discussed in terms of workflow. Can we get the slip signed before the weekend? Can we bind before the 1st of the month? It is seen as an administrative convenience.
In my world though, speed is seen differently. I view it as a security feature.
When I speak to brokers, they often ask how we manage to quote in under five minutes when others take days. The lazy assumption is that we are like our competitors, or worse: compromising service. The reality is that we are simply the only ones moving at the same speed as the “bad guys.”
The “Random Scan” Reality
We have to stop imagining cyber attacks as targeted, movie-style heists planned over months by state actors. As I previously mentioned, the adversary is far more likely to be an isolated individual in a bedroom, using automated scripts to scan millions of IP addresses for a single open door.
These attacks are random, and they are rapid.
If a vulnerability is discovered in a popular piece of software on a Tuesday, then automated scans begin on Tuesday night. If your insurance process takes two weeks to assess a client’s risk, that client is effectively invisible to you – but highly visible to the attacker – during the most critical window of exposure.
The Power of Pre-Computation
So, how exactly do we quote in five minutes without cutting corners? The secret lies in pre-computed risk factors.
Most insurers wait for a proposal form to arrive before they start looking at the risk. They are “reactive.”
At Cowbell, our AI is “proactive.” We are continuously scanning the internet, analysing millions of data points to build a risk profile for businesses before they even apply for insurance. We don’t start working when you send the submission… we started weeks ago.
When you log in to quote, you aren’t asking our system to start an analysis; you are asking it to retrieve one.
This isn’t just about saving you time (although I know it’s always appreciated). It is about accuracy. By pre-computing these factors, we remove the human bias and the delay. We give you a snapshot of the risk as it stands right now, not as it stood when the client filled out a form last month.
Speed of Response = Resilience
Whilst fast quotes are beneficial, the real game-changer is rapid response.
Because we monitor risk continuously (rather than annually), we can spot when a client’s risk profile changes, for example, if a new port is accidentally left open.
In a traditional model, you wouldn’t know about this until claim time. In our model, we can alert the broker and the client immediately, a perfect example where “speed” becomes “security.” We aren’t just paying for the damage faster; we are helping you close the door before the random scan finds it.
The Broker’s Edge
For the broker, this speed offers a competitive advantage that goes beyond efficiency.
It allows you to move at the “speed of risk.” You can go to a client not just with a policy, but with a real-time assessment of their digital health. Brokers can now say, “Here is your risk profile, here is your quote, and here is exactly why we are priced this way – all based on data from today, not last quarter.”
In a market where the threat is automated, then protection needs to be too. Speed isn’t just about better service. It’s about better survival.
