A reader asked why our insurance pages show the source behind every number instead of just stating it. Fair question - most content sites do not.
Here is the reasoning, and the small process that makes it executable.
The rule
Every statistic on the site traces to a primary source: NAIC filings, Insurance Information Institute data, state DOI publications, or a named research paper. If a number has no traceable source, it does not go on the page.
This is not noble, it is defensive. Insurance numbers get recycled across the web with no attribution, and once a wrong figure spreads it is nearly impossible to stop.
The process
- Collect from primary, not secondary. If a blog cites "average claim denial rate is X", we go find the filing it came from.
- Record the exact cut. Denial rates mean different things per line of business and per year. The year and cohort go in the entry.
- Show the date. A 2019 rate table is not a 2026 rate table, and readers deserve to know which one they are looking at.
- Re-verify on a schedule. Rates move. Every entry gets reviewed against the current source before it stays up.
Why it helps beyond trust
- Corrections get easier. When a source updates, we know exactly which pages depend on it.
- Writers cite you back. Journalists and bloggers link to a library they can verify faster than they can rebuild.
- It kills lazy claims. If a sentence needs a fact to survive and the fact is not sourceable, the sentence was probably filler.
Related reading: why insurance claims get denied, the appeal process in detail.
Takeaway for anyone publishing data
Publishing your sources is cheaper than defending an unsourced number later. Treat the source column as part of the content, not documentation.
Top comments (0)