In Decision Tables, there can be instances when one or more additional conditions need to be applied when a particular combination of conditions is satisfied. You capture these additional conditions as part of the Decision Table itself.
You can have a column called Other Condition in the Decision Table where you can specify a full blown condition (including nested AND and OR conditions).
Example
An insurance company decides pricing factor and base premium based on age and level of cover. It also checks for other conditions like nationality, health, and work conditions (Industry) of the person being insured. However, not all three are applied for all age groups. Under normal circumstances when you create a decision table talking all these factors into consideration, it looks like the following.
Level of Cover |
Age |
Origin Country |
Industry |
Health |
Pricing Factor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Normal |
Between 0 and 21 |
Foreigner |
- |
- |
1.2 |
Between 30 and 49 |
- |
Mining, Security |
- |
1.0 |
|
Between 50 and 69 |
- |
- |
Good |
1.5 |
|
Average |
1.7 |
||||
Bad |
1.9 |
Now with an option to create conditions in condition value cells of a Decision Table, you can not only address the above scenario without complicating the Decision Table, but also add additional conditions that can crop up at a later date.
Level of Cover |
Age |
Other Conditions |
Pricing Factor |
---|---|---|---|
Normal |
Between 0 and 21 |
Origin country equals foreigner |
1.2 |
Between 30 and 49 |
Industry equals Mining, Security |
1.0 |
|
Between 50 and 69 |
Health equals good |
1.5 |
|
Health equals average |
1.7 |
||
Health equals bad |
1.9 |
When the Decision Table gets evaluated all conditions get satisfied.