Creating customer loyalty with personal property insurancepolicyholders is no small task. However, it can be done if you arewilling to think big.

For many, it is simply easier to “play it safe” than it is toinnovate or rethink current methods when it comes to handlingcontents losses. While more and more insurers are shifting theirfocus and beginning to downplay the high stakes game of low rates,the realization of how the customer experience impacts revenuestakes center stage. No area is more fundamentally relevant and hasa greater upside potential than claims, and more specifically,personal property claims.

There is a groundswell occurring to “recapture” this segment ofthe claims process; innovate and transform it into an opportunitythat can differentiate a company's level of service to theircustomer.

Contents losses are a two-sided coin. On the one side, they are amongthe most time-consuming and complex of all property losses,arguably the most loathed by adjusters due to the intricaciesinvolved. On the other side of the coin, most insureds do notunderstand structure losses and repairs—engineering, construction,framing, drywall, and more may be involved. Personal propertylosses are just that—personal. Because this loss is uniquelypersonal, the claims process is a rare and extraordinaryopportunity to connect with customers, build trust, and improveretention by involving them in the claims process. The insurer,agent, or adjusting firm that understands the personal connectionof this loss type and responds accordingly can very well create acustomer for life. Additionally, a customer who has an exceptionalexperience is very likely to spread the word to friends, neighbors,and relatives.

Thinking Outside the Box

Improving the customer experience requires improving the claimsprocess, both internally and externally. Let's start by dissectingthe internal process.

The current system is chaotic, disorganized, and expensive.Years of overly complicated processing procedures have forced manycompanies to outsource—at extraordinary costs—and created anatmosphere for adjusters that cripples their ambitions andabilities. Hand-written lists converted by manual entry to aportable document format (PDF), or to a Microsoft Excel document,then to a PDF, then to an email, and then to a PDF again createsmore confusion. How many times have you asked yourself whichspreadsheet is current? Which PDF is most recent? Moving the contents claims process to the Web is a strategic step.However, if we do not change the way we execute the process, thenchanging the platform on which we function will likely leave uswith the same dysfunctional system. Moving clutter from one closetto another still leaves you with a messy closet.

From the insured's point of view, moving to a Web-based claimsprocess makes sense. Currently, the process does not give thecustomer much of a role; he or she provides a list of losses andthe next point of customer involvement is likely when the check isreceived. A cloud-based system gives the insured the opportunity tobe more engaged, provide greater detail for their claim, saves theadjuster time and, ultimately, the insurer money.

A New Strategic Approach

Before simply duplicating the same processes with newer technology, we need to thoroughly examine the “hows” and“whys” and see which steps might be shortened or even eliminatedfrom current procedures. It is time to rethink and streamlineefficiencies that directly impact bottom line results—currentmethods and behaviors must change.

Here are five pragmatic strategies you should consider forinnovating and recapturing your contents claims process:

1. Collaborate: Improve Inventory ListQuality

Many current methods focus importance on item pricing. Whilethis is a significant step in the overall process, it is secondaryto list creation and quality of item detail. Through onlinecollaboration between the insured, adjuster, and carrier using acommon unified platform, you can create a higher quality list atthe claims inception, effectively eliminating 80 percent of itempricing issues and discrepancies upfront. This single strategy will“set the stage” for the entire claim life cycle and prevent costlyoversights.

2. Eliminate Manual Tasks and Ad HocProcesses

We must think of this as claim interoperability: an all-in-oneprocess merging the customer claim experience, adjuster estimatics,and back-end processes into a single seamless environment. Allclaim steps, data, and processes (personalized insured Web-basedlist creation, item submission directly to the adjuster, full claimitem adjustment, payments, receipt tracking, etc.) are completedwithin a single uninterrupted platform—in real time. Completecontinuity in the service delivery process gives the customer aremarkable claim experience while dramatically improving claimefficiencies. 3.Empower: Take Self-Service to the Next Level

The strategic importance of how the front-line workforceintersects with the customer is a defining moment in the claimcycle and customer engagement. This is a critical step in buildingtrust and loyalty. Today, technology is one of the most effectivetransformational factors for enhancing the customer experience withinnovative self-service options. The social behaviors of the insured have evolved to a point wherehe or she not only wants to be involved in the claims process, butalso demands it. Taking an analytical approach to modernizing and simplifying this vitalpart of the contents claim process is a paradigm shift. We mustchange as needs change and think as the customer thinks. Insurerswill gain significant advantage by creating better levels oftransparency and involving the customer in the process. Providing asafe, structured environment that assists and encourages customersto participate (at their convenience) and follow the entireprogression of their claim will help achieve faster, more agreeablesettlements with higher satisfaction levels and less exposure toliability and litigation issues.

4. Streamline Claim Estimating WorkflowProcess

An important component of “outside-the-box” thinking is changingour perspective—design and execute from the customer and adjusterpoint of view instead of our own. All of the time, money, andresources spent on claims systems and few seemed to ever rethink estimating.Contents losses can remain open long after the structuresettlement—in many cases for months, if not years, thus making itimmensely time consuming and expensive. Yet, personal property hasbeen more of an afterthought and is rarely considered whenrethinking claims systems. Current software platforms have similarmechanical routines and bland interfaces, often not conducive toreal-world adjusting and certainly lacking a dynamic workflowexperience. We must adopt methods that embody efficiency byreinventing behaviors of the insured, adjuster and carrierthroughout this claim process. We need to create a contents claimworkflow navigation that animates an otherwise mundane andprolonged task.

5. Matching Receipts

Managing replacement costs is perhaps the most time consuming andexpensive part of the adjusting exercise and can debilitateresources. Managing a claim file, whether paper or electronic, andattempting to reconcile replacement receipts with items from theinsured's list do not have to be overwhelming. With a shift to anew level of Web self-service options the insured would attach,match, and upload their receipts directly to their assignedadjuster. This savings in employee payroll would be a significantaddition to the bottom line.

The contents claim process should be viewed as an essentialopportunity to connect with and service the customer while buildingtrust. Designing the process with the customer in mind is astrategic imperative for developing a business culture where thecustomer is valued. An important piece of thisnew culture is improving the adjuster's experience. We must regainand polish a “pro” adjuster mindset. The adjuster's role iscritical to the contents loss process. It benefits both the companyand the customer having developed the adjuster's self-worth andpride in his or her work. Adjusters are the frontline workforcedirectly interacting with the customer and should be valued assuch. Incorporating technology that complements the adjusters'tasks and improves efficiencies will attract and engage the rightpeople with an end result of an improved “bedside manner” and a newlevel of loyalty.

While out-of-the-box thinking can be creative andunconventional, enlarging your vision of the claims processrequires leadership, strategy, and innovation. We need to seebeyond ordinary methods that do not improve the customer'sexperience and claim efficiencies or lower cost structures. We areat the forefront of transformation in claims. The strategies aboveare just a few ways we can start to reorient our thinking towardsinnovation, focusing on improving bottom line results andprofitability without the pressures of driving top-line growth.

Jamie Gladman is the senior partner and co-founder ofMyContentsClaim, which provides innovative on-demand claimssolutions and services to insurance carriers and theirpolicyholders for contents inventory creation, adjuster estimatics,and workflow administration.