Electronic signature

Overview

Requesting a quote or policy from a market often requires you to sign various documents.

To make this process faster and more convenient, Appulate uses electronic signatures (eSignatures), which is a legal way to get electronic documents confirmed or approved.

You can sign and send documents for signing via the following interfaces: 

• the Quote Smart Q&A and the Request to Bind dialog;
• the Quote request page;
• the Forms page;
• the Loss Runs page;
• the Documents page;
• on the Certificates page.

Quote request page

On the Quote request page, you can send to sign quotes and indications. This applies to both uploaded quotes and indications and those you have received from a market. 

1. Click the three-dot button on the quote or indication level and select Send to sign.

2. Select the Applicant (the insured) to whom you want to send the document for signature. Then, click Send & sign.

You can edit an existing Applicant by clicking (Edit) or add a new one.

3. The Applicant will get an email with a link to sign the document.

Once they sign it, you will be notified by email. Your email will contain the signed document.

Quote Smart Q&A and Request to bind dialog

Requesting to bind a policy often requires you, and/or the insured, to sign the necessary documents, for example, a default ACORD form or other documents stipulated by a market.

These requirements are displayed in either the Quote Smart Q&A (QSQA) or the Request to bind dialog, depending on a market's configuration. Both open when you click the Request to bind button on the Quote request page. However, the requirements will be identical.

Both on the QSQA page and in the Request to bind dialog, you can send to sign, and sign, a document by clicking the Send to sign button. This will open the Send Form for Signature dialog. 

Forms page

You can also sign and send to sign forms on the Forms page by:

• clicking Sign in a form's menu;
• clicking the expander arrow near a form to open its Actions grid and clicking Sign now. 

Both will open the Send Form for Signature dialog. 

Loss Runs page

When you send a LossRunner request in the Send LossRunner to {MarketName} dialog, the signer will get an email notification via the eSignature service.

Documents page

On the Documents page for quote requests and policies, you can sign PDF documents and images. 

1. Click the menu on a document's level and select Sign.

2. Choose the Agency representative and Applicant in the Send Form for signature dialog. Then, click Send & sign.

You can edit an existing Applicant by clicking (Edit) or add a new one.

3. Add your signature in the Sign Document window. Then, click Finalize.

4. The Applicant will get an email with a link to sign the document. Once they sign it, you will be notified by email. Your email will contain the signed document.

Certificates page

You can sign and send to sign certificates on the Certificates page.

Send Form for signature dialog

The Send Form for signature dialog opens when you click:

• a form's Send to sign button in the Request to bind dialog;
• a form's Sign (Sign now) button on the Forms page;
• a document's Sign button on the Documents page.

Depending on whose signatures are required, the dialog may have one or both of the following fields:

• Agency representative (Producer or CSR);
• Applicant (the insured). You can edit an existing Applicant by clicking (Edit) or add a new one.

Clicking a field's expander arrow opens a dropdown list where you can select the appropriate option. Clicking Send & sign sends the document for signing.

After the document is sent for signing

After you select whom you want to sign the document and click Send & sign, the eSignature service will automatically notify the first person to sign with an email. 

If you have opted to sign the document yourself by selecting Myself in the dialog's Agency representative field, clicking Send & sign will open the Sign Document window where you can:

• mark a place for the Applicant to sign.
  Just click the place you want to be signed, click the pencil icon, and confirm the signer. Please note that the signer and the Applicant you have selected in Appulate have to match.
• sign the document yourself.

If someone else has to sign the document, the eSignature notification email will contain a link to sign the document.

Appulate uses SignRequest as its eSignature service:

1. Click the pointer on the SignRequest page. You will be redirected to the required signature field. 

2. Click the field and type in your signature in the desired font and color. 

2. Click Finalize.

After the document has been signed, all parties involved will be notified of it, namely:

• the agency's assigned producer and CSR;
• the market's assigned underwriter and CSR. If those are missing, the notification email will be sent to this market's other users who have the Catch-all notifications setting on;
• the insured (Applicant);
• the Agency representative who signed the document.

The notification email won't be sent to one or several users from the list above if:

• this agency representative didn't sign the LossRunner request, proposal, or form;
• this user is inactive;
• this user was assigned to a quote request that was deleted.

Actions grid

Once a document is signed by at least one of the required parties, its Actions grid will display the signing information.

If only you have signed the document, the grid will have the following:

• Audit Trail, which allows you to download a PDF document indicating the progress of the document's signing;
• Remind to sign, which allows you to send a reminder to the signer; 
• Cancel Signing, which allows you to revoke the form's signing. After that, you'll be able to resign it.

If all parties have signed the document, the Actions grid will have:

• Signed Document, which allows you to download the signed document in PDF;
• Audit Trail;
• Delete, which allows you to delete the signed document. After that, you'll be able to resign it.