The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (Hartford, $188.7 billion in assets) has licensed the full suite of Accenture's (Chicago) .NET version of its Claim Components solution. The agreement covers The Hartford, as well as Specialty Risk Services, the carrier's wholly owned third-party administrator for claims processing.

The carrier plans a gradual transition to Claim Components, beginning with a pilot in the third quarter of 2005. According to Cynthia Michener, a spokesperson for The Hartford, "A dedicated team is working to ensure a seamless transition for all parties involved with the claim process." Michener adds that, "The Hartford will host Accenture's claim product internally, which was a primary criterion in The Hartford's evaluation of this new claim automation system."

Counting The Hartford as the 11th carrier to license Claim Components, Michael Lucarini, a partner in Accenture's Insurance Solution Group, says, "World-class companies such as The Hartford and Specialty Risk Services are setting the pace in the insurance and third-party administrator markets by driving competitive advantage in their respective claims operations."