Checking product model availability

Checking product model availability refers to the process of comparing the product model data in a policy transaction against the set of currently-defined product model patterns. This process discovers if any product model elements exist on the transaction that are not available according to the product model definition. It also ensures that required elements, such as required coverages that must exist on the policy, exist.

For example, suppose the product model stipulates that a coverage pattern must exist on a particular policy line only in a certain jurisdiction. This set of conditions might be set through the availability of the coverage pattern. During a policy submission in PolicyCenter, a user realizes that the jurisdiction is set incorrectly and changes it. When the location (the jurisdiction) changes, a coverage that previously was available becomes unavailable. Therefore, the coverage must not be allowed to exist on the policy.

To handle these situations, PolicyCenter periodically checks the current policy data against the product model patterns within the application data model. The checks happen at various points in the wizards. If PolicyCenter detects a discrepancy between the policy data and the product model patterns, it can handle the discrepancy in any of the following ways:

• Ignore the difference, display a message, and continue through the wizard.
• Attempt to correct the issue. For example, correct the issue by removing an unavailable coverage, as it moves to the next wizard step or as it quotes the policy.
• Display a message, either blocking or non-blocking, that alerts the user to the problem. The user then can resolve the issue. Blocking messages, such as warnings, prevent the user from continuing to the next wizard step until the problem is corrected.

The actions PolicyCenter takes for the various types availability issues is defined in the base configuration, but can be changed. For information on configuring the default behavior, see Configuring product model availability checks.