Key Takeaways
- Life settlement companies depend on fast, complete medical records to accelerate underwriting, reduce policy lapses, and protect ROI.
- The most significant slowdowns are provider delays, incomplete files, and missing authorizations, which can be controlled with the right retrieval partner.
- Record Retrieval Solutions (RRS) offers a purpose-built workflow for life settlement needs: predictable timelines, transparent fees, provider-specific escalation, and certified, review-ready packets.
- Faster records mean faster life expectancy (LE) reviews, stronger pricing decisions, quicker closings, and more funded policies.
Who needs fast, accurate medical record retrieval in life settlements?
Life settlement companies rely on medical records to determine the fair market value of a life insurance policy. Every file directly drives pricing accuracy, life expectancy (LE) modeling, and investor confidence.
But underwriting teams face the same issue every day: Slow or incomplete medical records cause bottlenecks that stall policy purchases.
Whether you’re a provider of life settlement solutions, a broker submitting review cases, or an institutional buyer managing a large pipeline, medical record delays hit the same pressure points:
- LE vendors are waiting on missing records
- Cases stuck in “incomplete file” status
- Providers requesting repeated authorizations
- Rising provider/copy charges
- A backlog of insureds waiting weeks, with nothing to update investors
RRS solves these problems at the root by managing record retrieval with a system built for speed, accuracy, and transparency from Day 1.
What challenges do life settlement companies face when retrieving medical records?
The underwriting clock is always running.
Life settlement underwriting depends on a complete medical history to calculate LE models. Any missing piece—cardiology, oncology, hospitalizations, lab work—means reruns, recalculations, and delays.
Pain point: Underwriting stalls create uncertainty and slow case movement.
RRS solution: RRS uses targeted scopes based on the insured’s profile, retrieving only what’s required for LE review while still maintaining completeness.
Hospitals and large health systems are the most significant bottlenecks
High-volume providers often take 20–45+ days to process requests—sometimes longer.
Pain point: Requests get stuck in voicemail loops or generic Health Information Management (HIM) emails.
RRS solution: Provider-specific workflows + escalation windows
- Pre-built relationships
- Direct lines and fax numbers
- Automated follow-ups
- Dedicated escalation routes for non-responsive providers
This dramatically reduces delays, especially in high-complexity cases with multiple facilities.
Authorization errors cause repeated rejections.
A missing initial, unclear signature, or mismatched DOB can cause a provider to reject the entire request.
Pain point: Lost weeks due to preventable clerical issues.
RRS solution: RRS pre-screens authorizations and ensures provider-specific compliance. Some providers require witness signatures, a specific release format, or expiration clauses—RRS knows them in advance.
Incomplete files slow down LE modeling.
Missing pages, out-of-order scans, non-searchable PDFs, or unindexed batches create more rework for underwriting.
Pain point: Analysts spend too much time organizing files instead of modeling.
RRS solution: RRS delivers structured, review-ready packets with:
- Optical character recognition (OCR) for searchable documents
- Bates-stamping
- Clean naming conventions
- No Records Found certificates
- Certification pages included when needed
Underwriting starts immediately—no cleanup required.
Rising provider fees hurt margins
Providers set their own fees—and for large case volumes, those costs add up.
Pain point: Unexpected fees disrupt underwriting budgets.
RRS solution: RRS charges a simple, flat $45 retrieval fee (provider/copy fees separate). With pre-approved fee thresholds, no orders stall due to missing approvals.
When should life settlement companies switch to a streamlined retrieval process?
When your pipeline grows faster than your internal team
If you’re handling more than 25–50 cases a month, internal teams often hit capacity. RRS creates scalability without adding headcount.
When your LE turns are lagging
Slow record retrieval extends LE turnarounds, which reduces your ability to price policies competitively.
When closings are backing up
Brokers lose patience. Investors want updates. Cases go stale. RRS helps avoid stagnant case inventory by reducing medical retrieval lag times.
When price competition increases
More industry players mean tighter margins. Fast underwriting is now a competitive advantage—not a luxury. RRS helps life settlement companies move quickly so they stay ahead of competitors.
When investor expectations shift
Institutional buyers want accurate, transparent, audit-ready medical files. RRS provides consistent packaging, provenance tracking, and certifications that help maintain compliance and investor trust.
Why RRS is the best partner for life settlement medical record retrieval
RRS is engineered specifically for industries that depend on predictable, fast medical records, and life settlements fit naturally into this model.
Below is a breakdown of RRS’s strengths aligned directly to life settlement needs.
Faster record turnaround for underwriting
Why it matters
Life settlement companies win when underwriting moves quickly. Every day saved means faster pricing, faster funding, and fewer policies dropping out of the funnel.
How RRS helps
- A typical 15-day average turnaround (provider-dependent)
- Frequent status updates through the client portal
- Automated follow-ups to avoid idle weeks
- Provider-specific messaging that gets responses
RRS targets the most common momentum killers and compresses timelines.
Predictable costs for better financial modeling
Why it matters
Life settlement margins are tight, and inconsistent retrieval fees make forecasting difficult.
How RRS helps
- One simple $45 retrieval fee per order (plus provider and copy fees)
- No hidden charges
- Fee-threshold approvals are built directly into the workflow
Companies can standardize underwriting costs and model ROI with greater confidence.
Clean, organized, and certified medical files for LE modeling
Why it matters
Messy or incomplete medical files delay LE calculations and cause analysts to re-run models.
How RRS helps
- OCR-enabled files for quick searches
- Bates-stamped packets
- Consistent naming conventions
- Provenance and certification pages included
- Optional indexing for high-complexity cases
You receive files in the exact format analysts expect.
Transparent tracking through the client portal
Why it matters
Life settlement teams need up-to-the-minute visibility—investors and reinsurers expect it.
How RRS helps
RecordSync gives you:
- Real-time order statuses
- Provider escalation notes
- Downloadable deficiency logs
- Role-based access for privacy
- Secure HIPAA-compliant (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) environment
This lets underwriting teams act quickly without waiting for manual updates.
Improved ROI through faster closings and fewer stalled cases
Why it matters
Record delays drive down conversions, and stalled cases increase acquisition costs.
How RRS helps
By cutting medical retrieval time, RRS:
- Reduces underwriting cycle times
- Improves broker and investor satisfaction
- Prevents pipeline stagnation
- Increases the percentage of policies that actually close
The compounding ROI is significant for companies handling dozens—or hundreds—of cases per month.
Conclusion
Life settlement companies thrive on speed, accuracy, and predictable costs. Medical record delays are one of the most avoidable bottlenecks in the underwriting process—but only if the proper retrieval workflow is in place.
RRS offers a purpose-built solution that accelerates underwriting decisions, reduces internal workload, and improves investor confidence. With a flat $45 retrieval fee, consistent packaging, real-time tracking, and fast average turnaround times, RRS becomes a strategic partner—not just a vendor.
If your pipeline is growing, cases are aging, or underwriting delays are impacting closings, now is the time to streamline medical record retrieval with RRS.
FAQs
Why do life settlement companies need medical records?
Medical records form the basis of LE modeling and underwriting decisions. Without a complete medical history, pricing accuracy and investor confidence both decline.
How fast can RRS retrieve medical records for life settlement cases?
The typical average turnaround is around 15 days, depending on the provider’s responsiveness. High-volume hospitals may take longer, but RRS’s escalation process speeds up results.
What makes RRS different from other retrieval vendors?
RRS combines predictable flat fees, provider-specific workflows, clean, OCR-ready file delivery, and a real-time tracking portal—specifically aligned with industries that require accurate, fast records.
Can RRS handle high-volume life settlement pipelines?
Yes. RRS is designed to scale, supporting companies with dozens to hundreds of monthly retrievals while maintaining consistent delivery standards.
