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How to choose AI software for an insurance agency
Compare vendors on one recurring agency task using the requirements sheet below. Label each answer as a vendor statement, demonstration or observed result on your setup. Use the evaluation protocol to test the shortlist.
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The requirements sheet
For each answer, record who gave it, the date, whether it is a statement, a demonstration or an observed result on your setup, and any open question with its owner.
| Requirement | Question to ask | Evidence to request |
|---|---|---|
| Task and actions | Which unit of work is in scope, and who is the responsible user? Does the tool prepare a file, draft a message, send a message or change a record? Which actions are excluded? | A written task boundary and an authority statement for each proposed action. Preparing a file offline should not require permission to send. |
| Sources and destination | Which account, period and document edition determine the output, and where does the result go? | A source-linked field or message plan, the destination, and missing or conflicting values left visible. |
| Systems and interface | For each step, is access through an API, a browser session, a file, or not available? Which record types can the tool read, and which can it write? | The record-level matrix below, completed for your systems, with the version and the date each answer was verified. |
| Access and permissions | Does a role-specific account see only the clients it is permitted to see? Can IT limit file-storage folders and mailbox scope during a trial? | The access list the trial needs, and the permission tests in the security section, run on your setup. |
| Review and approval | Who reviews which artifact and which action? Does a changed source or recipient go back to review? Are high-volume record changes limited? | The configured review point; for actions your agency's policy requires approval for, a held item waiting for a named approver; any per-run write limit. |
| Evidence of completion | What shows that an action actually happened, for each target? | For a sent message: sender, recipient, sent status and final edited version. For a record write: target record, applied or failed result and acting identity. For a request to several carriers or targets: a result per target, with incomplete ones listed. |
| Output quality | How do you confirm a long document was fully read, the final client-facing document renders correctly, and outputs hold up after you change the procedure? | Citations from each extracted value to its source page; pages, forms or locations not read reported as unchecked; the edited final document checked page by page; the same sample run before and after a procedure change, compared side by side. |
| Exceptions and ownership | Who handles denied access, incomplete sources, duplicate work and uncertain results? | A named owner and stop condition for each, and how a duplicate is detected before any retry. No blind repeat after an uncertain change. |
| Operating scope and cost | What do setup, training, maintenance, usage and support include? How are heavy and light users priced, per seat or pooled? | A dated written offer with units, usage basis, exclusions and an owner for configuration changes. Compare the same task and scope, not headline price. |
Record-level integration matrix
Complete one row per record or action in your own systems. "Documented" is not the same as "available to your account": a capability described in a vendor document may not be exposed to your license, role or interface. Note the account, role and date behind each answer.
| Record or action | Read | Write | Interface (API, browser, file, none) | Prerequisite or license | Evidence and date verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Policy record | |||||
| Attachment or document | |||||
| Activity or note | |||||
| Certificate | |||||
| Invoice or billing item |
Security: documents versus tests
Request these as dated written documents:
- How credentials are stored.
- How data is handled and retained.
- How prompt injection is handled.
- Which subprocessors are used.
Documents describe controls; they do not show the controls working in your configuration. Test these separately on your own setup, and treat a pass as covering only what you tested:
- A role-specific account sees only the clients it is permitted to see.
- A restricted folder or mailbox stays inaccessible during the trial.
- An action your agency's policy requires approval for is held until a named person approves it.
Another customer's reassurance is not verification. Keep security and contract questions in the purchase review, with the exact data flow and offer scope supplied; a task demonstration does not settle those terms.
Move from requirements to a bounded decision
An agency principal and operations lead should agree on one recurring task, its intended output and its current owner before building a shortlist. "Prepare a source-linked renewal inquiry for review" is a clearer requirement than "automate servicing." State which work remains with the account team and what the software may do.
Freeze the first task.
Name the workflow, the users who will run it, its prerequisites (access, source documents, licenses), the expected output and the owner. Use approved redacted materials; do not send raw customer files merely to obtain a sales demonstration. Owner: agency operations lead.
Separate statements from task evidence.
Date each answer and label it as a public product statement, a configured demonstration or an observed result on your setup. Mark unverified items as questions, not missing features. Ask to see one changed-source or uncertain-result case alongside the expected path. Owner: agency buyer and system owner.
Choose the next evaluation step.
Move to a scoped test only when its inputs and permissions are in place. Narrow the task if preparation is useful but execution is not evidenced. Pause if an essential requirement is unresolved; an informative demonstration does not grant rollout authority. Owner: decision sponsor and task reviewer.
Worked decision: drafting fit is not sending fit
Take a sample renewal inquiry for the 2027 renewal period.
| Stage | Requirement or source change | State | Buyer's next action |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. First request | Prepare a renewal inquiry as an offline document for review, with no mailbox draft or send, for the 2027 renewal period. | The only source supplied covers 2026; the period does not match. | Ask for the correct-period source; fluent drafting is not task acceptance. |
| 2. Revised request | A 2027 document arrives, but its final attachment is missing. | The right-period source is now available; the package is still incomplete. | The source owner supplies the attachment; the reviewer notes what can be prepared meanwhile. |
| 3. Review | The earlier review covered the first request; the new draft cites the 2027 document. | The earlier review does not cover the changed draft. | Review the exact current draft; keep both source references. |
| 4. Scope decision | Creating a mailbox draft or sending would be new actions. | No permission, configured review or completion evidence has been supplied for either. | Keep the decision at preparation scope; get separate access and completion evidence before expanding it. |
Turn answers into a shortlist
In our conversations with agencies weighing AI tools, feature lists, integrations and price came up alongside a plainer concern: whether one finished document, such as a proposal or a client email, would actually be usable. That is the comparison we would make first: one finished artifact from your own task, judged against the sheet.
Keep candidates whose evidenced scope matches the first task, including products that prepare an artifact while a person completes the next action. A broader execution claim deserves a broader demonstration, not an automatic preference. If every candidate leaves the same source gap open, fix the input requirement before treating it as a software difference.
Give training, exception handling and configuration maintenance named owners before evaluating operational fit.
Dated context
Do not decide from labels alone. Microsoft documents that Copilot Studio agents configured with generative orchestration can select tools and perform actions.
Sources
The Agents Council for Technology (ACT) 2026 technology-trends landing page recommends workflow priorities, written AI governance and role-based training. The report label is 2026; its publication date was not established.
Sources
Microsoft's generative-orchestration article displays an August 27, 2026 update. Both sources were checked October 14, 2026.
— bring one task, your completed requirements sheet and a safe sample.
Frequently asked questions
How do I choose AI software for an insurance agency?
Compare vendors on one recurring agency task, using a requirements sheet. Label each answer as a vendor statement, a demonstration or an observed result on your own setup, and judge a finished artifact from your own work before comparing feature lists or price.
What is Decla?
Decla is AI software for independent insurance agencies and brokerages. It connects to your AMS, email and carrier portals and does back-office work inside them: reading requests, looking up clients and policies, pulling carrier documents, filling forms and drafting replies. Your team reviews the work before it goes out.