Required Compliant Notices

As we continue to solve the top insurance problem, this week bring us to: Required compliant notices and/or disclosures not being provided.

 

An adjuster has all kinds of disclosures to worry about: total loss settlements, salvage, and policy limit disclosure, just to name a few. So as of today, how do they keep track? Well, it seems that most aren’t which is why it’s a top problem! 

Processing Total Loss Claims Correctly

This week we are getting into one of the biggest challenges: Processing total loss claims correctly.

 

We actually had a customer approach us with this problem and asked us to come up with a solution. At first, we didn’t think is was possible but Claim Toolkit for Auto Total Loss Tax & Fees was born! 

 

It has taken us years to perfect this product but now we can say with confidence that Claim Toolkit for Auto Total Loss Tax & Fees is your solution to handling total loss claims properly. Out of all of our products, this one has been the most popular this year. Why? because everyone has this problem but there aren’t many solutions out there!

 

We calculate tax and fees so you know exactly what is owed for a total loss, no matter the garaging address. We even have team members dedicated to keeping the taxes and fees up to date and making sure all the calculations run smoothly. 

 

Do you think you’re a total loss expert? Send us your answers to these questions to find out (no cheating!):

Communication Time Limits

At Claim Toolkit, we keep all our information up to date by staying in the know. One of the ways we do this is by looking at market conduct exams, talking with customers and reading articles. We’ve been seeing and hearing P&C insurance problems that have easy solutions to them so we want to help!

 

We are going to kick off with: Paying, investigating, acknowledging and/or denying claims outside of the specified time frames.

 

We’re sure that no is surprised that this is a top issue for insurers! As an adjuster, how many time frames do you need to keep track off? That’s why Claim Toolkit for Compliance create a Communication Time Limits chart.

 

This is one of our most popular charts as it outlines time frames for everything you need to know when handling a claim – in every state, plus DC. 

 

How many days does the insured have to make proof of loss after a blank form is supplied by the insurer? For North Dakota, its 60 days

How many days does an insurer have to make a decision on claims/benefits within receipt of a valid and complete claim? In Colorado, 60 days

 

Claim Toolkit for Compliance can’t ensure that you meet these time frames, but we can give you all the information you need to try! 

Information You Need to Know

It is amazing the amount of information a claim’s adjuster needs to know. I see all the information we have in Claim Toolkit for Compliance and it blows my mind that one person needs to know all this information to handle a claim! Let alone, handle different types of claims in different states that have different laws. 


When I started working in the property and casualty insurance realm, I looked for a class that would give me an overview of what a claim’s adjuster needs to know. Surprisingly, it’s a very hard class to find! So, if you are a new adjuster or if you’ve switched territories, what kind of training do you get? Do you have a cheat sheet that the company provides or is passed down from another adjuster? Is your desk covered in sticky notes?


Would it be handy to have a chart with specific information by state? For example, a chart with the med pay laws in Alaska? Or, a chart that details the laws around fraud in California? Claim Toolkit for Compliance has just this! I have learned SO MUCH by typing in key words in a search bar and having a chart populate based on that key word. Then, I select the chart I want to see the laws and regulations around the topic in a way that I actually understand. 


Yesterday I met with a manager to give a demo of this product. Multiple times she said, “I wish I had this product over the last 20 years. It would have made my life so much easier!” I think we all do.


Some examples of our top utilized charts are: General Duty of Care, Statute of Limitations, Communication Time Limits, UM/UIM and No Pay/No Play laws. This is just the beginning – we have over 60 different charts of information! If you are a new adjuster or new to a territory, we have a chart that is a made for you – State Compliance Overview. This gives you the top regulations you need to know when assigned a new state. Best part about this, you can download the chart and print it off. Just hang it on your wall by your desk to easily reference it at any time. *We do recommend reprinting it weekly as we are always updating the information with the newest regulations.


You tell us, as a claim’s adjuster, what is it that you need to know? How do you find that information? For Claim Toolkit, if we are missing information that you’re looking for – we add it! Just think…how much time could you be saving by entering a word into a search box to find the information need? How much faster can a new adjuster get up to speed? I’m going to leave those questions there for you to ponder…

Bringing the Most Up-To-Date Laws

On our website it states that our applications are updated over 20 times every business day with new laws and regulations. A common question we get it – is that true? It is! It’s probably double that at the moment with all the changes in each state due to COVID. The follow up question to that is – How?

 

Our typical response is that we have a lot of spreadsheets! But now we think it’s time for us to give you a behind the scenes look on our updating secrets. Are you ready?

 

1. We do have a lot of really good spreadsheets that we work off of. They can overwhelming at times because of the amount of information on them but they are an amazing tool. I’m sure you’re thinking…what information is on them? Great question! For each state, we keep track of active emergency orders and directives with the expiration dates and the corresponding links to websites where they information is kept. EVERY SINGLE DAY we go into that website and see if any new regulations have come out that impact the P&C insurance industry. Our spreadsheets keep track of expiration dates so we know when a regulation is expiring and know to look to see if there’s an extension. Yes, we do this every single day! 

 

2. We have a compliance team. Companies that have lawyers typically have lawyers to protect their business, but our team is a little different. Our team of attorneys review laws and decide which ones are applicable in our industry and then put them into simple terms for anyone to understand. Again, updating our applications for any changes in laws or enhancing our products by adding new content! Here’s a secret…what is an attorney’s least favorite season? Bill season! Could you imagine having to read 100 bills that were just signed to find what impacts the P&C insurance industry? Woo, what a job our team has! 

 

3. Our entire team is dedicated to keeping up with changes that impact claims adjusters. It’s our full-time jobs! Every day we check governor’s news, state news, etc. to see if there is anything that our customers need to know. If so, we update our applications! It really is a full time job keeping all the information up to date. Claim’s adjusters have to know so much and work with customers everyday, so we pride ourselves on keeping information up to date so an adjuster can just hop on the application and find their answer – quick and easy! Hunting down laws and regulations shouldn’t be what they spend hours doing. That’s why Claim Toolkit was invented! 

 

So yes, we really do update our applications over 20 times a day! I think most of us at Claim Toolkit have learned more than we ever thought possible about P&C insurance laws and regulations because of this! Why hunt down the information if we already have it in a database, ready to go? Out motto is, “Your team needs the right information so they can make the right decision, right now,” – and now you know how we hold true to that! 

The Most Important Question to Ask

When taking a statement, many of us don’t pay attention to the answer to the most important question. Or, we might not ask it at all.


In training, investigators FLETA, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Academy, says the most important question is the “Framing Question”:


“In your own words, can you tell me what happened?”


That’s it! Sounds easy, right? It is anything but.


The skill comes when you listen intently to the answer and respond – after they have finished – with follow up questions.


You must not interrupt the person. Allow them to completely ‘play back’ the memory. Encourage them to keep talking until there is nothing more they have to say. It turns out our brains best recall things if we can speak without stopping.


Take good notes. Look for holes where follow up question are needed. In Auto Liability, listen for speed, look out and avoidance. After they have finished, ask why questions: Why did you not slow down? Why did you not see the other vehicle? Why did you not attempt to change lanes or take other avoidance maneuvers? Why could you not avoid this crash?


In injury claims, listen carefully to descriptions of the injuries and the causes of them. Follow up with questions like: Why did you not immediately seek treatment? What visible signs of injury were there immediately after the crash? When did you know you were hurt?


FLETA studies and their deep experience shows that the most accurate, complete and truthful answers are given the first time the question is responded to, and the quality of the memory and testimony degrades both by the day and the number of times the story is retold.


So, be quick to take the statement and get it right the first time. 


The key point of the ‘Framing Question’ is that by allowing your interviewee to fully play back the description of the incident without interruption, they will be more truthful and more likely to include their own culpability in the statement.


FLETA trains every investigator to ask this question FIRST – before even the identifying information: that’s how important they think the question is.


What’s the most important question?


“In your own words, can you tell me what happened?”

Distracted Driving – Who’s at Fault?

In honor of April being National Distracted Driving Awareness Month (we promise it’s real), let us tell you about Claim Toolkit for Auto. But first a story – which may or may not be true. You decide!

 

A college student was driving through a campus parking structure, going around and around to get to the bottom exit. She took a turn a little wide in the narrow structure and collided with another car coming up the parking rows. Thankfully, no one was hurt, it was just a little fender bender on the front left bumper of each car. No one was around to witness and no cops were called. Who was at fault?

 

Who decides who’s at fault? What questions do you ask to determine who’s at fault?

 

In this scenario, the girl coming down was at fault (she was going too fast and taking those turns too wide) but the claim was deemed 50/50. Could this have been ruled differently if more questions were asked? Was someone looking at their phone? Maybe reading comments on a graded paper they just got back? Or talking to a passenger about the happy hour they are going to?

 

Maybe this is a true story, maybe it’s not, but we’re sure as a claim’s adjuster -or anyone in the P&C insurance field – you’ve heard thousands of stories similar to this one.

 

It’s not a surprise – there are all kinds of distractions these days. April has even been declared National Distracted Driving Awareness Month! Are you capturing all these distractions with the questions you ask when a new claim comes in?

 

Did you know that 34% of all crashes have more than one driver at fault? What’s your percent? If it’s 10%, that could mean you’re giving out money that you shouldn’t!

 

Claim Toolkit for Auto provides accident type tips and evaluation techniques to improve claim rep skill. We give fast, accurate assessments of realistic ranges for settlements. Don’t pay out more money than you have to! I bet if you were to do a cost analysis, the cost of this product wouldn’t even be a blimp on the radar to how much money your company could be saving. Don’t worry – we can help with that. We even help with training claim reps!

 

Maybe your company would have won this claim in the scenario above and not have had to pay anything out. What do you think? Well, if you had Claim Toolkit for Auto then yes, maybe you wouldn’t have had to pay anything because you had the software to ensure you were asking all the right questions and your adjusters have been trained on evaluation techniques. Just think….have you been giving away unnecessary money? That’s a thought that could keep you up at night! But don’t let that thought distract you while you’re driving – or we’ve taught you nothing today:)

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