Claims estimates for damaged vehicles that are completed shortly after an accident and at the vehicle are not necessarily more accurate than estimates completed at the office, according to Mitchell International's latest "Industry Trend Reports."

A report by Mitchell's vice president of industry relations, Greg Horn, cited a study conducted by the San Diego-based claims adjuster consulting firm, which analyzed over 864,000 repairable staff-written estimates committed within 48 hours of when the estimates were started. The study then looked at the relationship between when an estimate was committed and supplemented (the term used for revisions to the original estimate).

The study, Mr. Horn reported, concluded, "While there are sound reasons to complete the estimate as soon as possible in order to reduce cycle time and increase customer satisfaction, there does not appear to be a strong correlation between a shorter creation to completion time and fewer supplementations."

While estimates created and committed in under an hour had, on average, the fewest supplements, those created and committed within two hours had some of the highest supplement rates, Mr. Horn stated. The supplementation rate drops again for estimates committed within 8-10 hours of creation. "The lack of discernible pattern...signals the low correlation values between start to commit hours and supplementation," Mr. Horn's article said.

In a statement, Mr. Horn said, "Exactly how to get the most accurate estimates has actually been a point of discussion for most carriers who have long assumed that writing estimates at the vehicle results in a more accurate estimate. It is logical to assume that estimates written at the car would be more accurate because any concerns or questions the estimator has can be addressed immediately while at the vehicle.

"However, our data points to a surprising conclusion that estimates written at the office using photos and notes are actually more accurate."

Mr. Horn added, "The most likely explanation for this conclusion is that estimators are accurately capturing the estimate in a preliminary estimate and waiting on additional information like policy verification before they commit the estimate."

Special Reports /

Mitchell: Quick Estimates Not Always More Accurate

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