--- title: "What Is a Direct Bill Commission Download? — Lapidar" url: https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/ description: "A commission download sends a carrier’s direct bill statement into your AMS as data. How it differs from policy download, and what it doesn’t catch." last_modified: "Tue, 13 Oct 2026 20:33:03 GMT" source: getlapidar.com (HTML converted to Markdown at the edge) --- Glossary · Insurance agency commissions # Direct bill commission download A direct bill commission download is a carrier’s direct bill commission statement delivered electronically into an agency management system, line by line, instead of as a PDF or spreadsheet someone keys in. Agents often shorten it to “commission download.” By Lapidar, the team building it · October 13, 2026 · Also called commission download; DBCS; direct bill commission statement download ## What it means On [direct bill](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill/) business the carrier collects the premium and pays the agency a monthly [commission statement](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/commission-statement/). The download is the same statement sent as data. ACORD’s [P&C data standards page](https://www.acord.org/standards-architecture/acord-data-standards/Property_Casualty_Data_Standards) describes AL3 as “a one-way, batch communication method for policy and commission data,” and Ivans lists the “Direct Bill Commission Statement (DBCS)” on its [Ivans Download page](https://www.ivans.com/for-agents/products/ivans-download/). How it works: the carrier has to offer it and the system has to be set up to take it. Applied Epic’s [help on direct bill reconciliation](https://help.appliedsystems.com/Help/Epic/2023.2en-US/General_Ledger/Reconciliations/Recs_Add_Direct_Bill_Rec.htm) puts the two routes side by side: transactions can be added “via import if the carrier sends commission in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet” or “via download, if the carrier supports Direct Bill Commission Download.” Other systems word it differently; the carrier-by-carrier setup is the same idea. ## How it shows on a commission statement The download replaces typing, not checking. Each downloaded line still has to be matched to a policy in your book and compared with the rate you expect. Lines the system can’t match usually wait in a holding queue, and policies with no line at all are invisible unless someone looks for them. **What Lapidar reads.** Lapidar does not read AL3 files or connect to Ivans or to your management system’s download. It reads the statement files carriers let you save: CSV, XLSX and PDF. ## Example **Example data: invented downloaded direct bill lines matched against the agency’s book.** | Policy | Premium | Expected rate | Expected | Downloaded | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | EX-60211 | $1,400.00 | 12% | $168.00 | $168.00 | | EX-60224 | $2,100.00 | 15% | $315.00 | $262.50 | | EX-60239 | $900.00 | 12% | $108.00 | — | Both highlighted lines arrived without an error message. EX-60224 was paid at 12.5%, and EX-60239 is missing from the download altogether. The rates are invented; your commission schedule sets the real ones. ## Commonly confused - **Commission download vs [policy download](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/policy-download/).** Policy download updates coverage and premium; commission download posts what the carrier paid. A carrier can offer either without the other. - **Commission download vs [reconciliation](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/commission-reconciliation/).** The download delivers the statement; reconciliation checks it. - **Direct bill vs [agency bill](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/agency-bill/).** The download covers direct bill statements; on agency bill the agency collects premium and keeps its commission itself. ## Common mistakes to check - Treating a posted download as a checked statement. - Clearing unmatched lines from the holding queue without finding the policy. - Not noticing a carrier’s download stopped arriving. ## Questions ### What is a commission download? A carrier’s direct bill commission statement sent electronically into an agency management system, line by line, instead of as a document someone keys in. ### Do all carriers offer direct bill commission download? No. The carrier has to support it, and your system has to be set up for it. Others send a spreadsheet, a PDF or a portal page. ### Is a commission download the same as a policy download? No. They are separate feeds. A carrier can send your policies by download but your commission statement as a PDF, or the reverse. ### Does a commission download catch underpayments? Not by itself. It delivers what the carrier paid. Whether that is right takes a comparison with your book and your commission schedule. ## Sources - ACORD, [Property & Casualty Data Standards](https://www.acord.org/standards-architecture/acord-data-standards/Property_Casualty_Data_Standards). Retrieved October 13, 2026. - Ivans, [Ivans Download](https://www.ivans.com/for-agents/products/ivans-download/) product page. Retrieved October 13, 2026. - Applied Systems, Applied Epic help: [Direct Bill Reconciliation](https://help.appliedsystems.com/Help/Epic/2023.2en-US/General_Ledger/Reconciliations/Recs_Add_Direct_Bill_Rec.htm) (2023.2). Retrieved October 13, 2026. Lapidar is [commission reconciliation software for independent insurance agencies](https://getlapidar.com/), in its founding pilot. Related: [policy download](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/policy-download/). In this entry 1. [What it means](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/#meaning) 2. [On a commission statement](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/#on-statement) 3. [Example](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/#example) 4. [Commonly confused](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/#confused) 5. [Common mistakes](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/#mistakes) 6. [Questions](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/#faq) 7. [Sources](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/direct-bill-commission-download/#sources) All 63 terms, from account current to written premium. [Glossary A–Z](https://getlapidar.com/glossary/) Check each direct bill line against your book and expected rate. [See a sample report](https://getlapidar.com/sample-report/) ## Reconciling statements is the hard part. Check each direct bill line against your book and expected rate. [See a sample report](https://getlapidar.com/sample-report/), or read [how the founding pilot works](https://getlapidar.com/pilot/). [Open an account — founding pilot](https://app.getlapidar.com/signup) [See a sample report](https://getlapidar.com/sample-report/)