One reason often cited for skyrocketing medical costs is the proliferation of malpractice claims. Physicians prescribe too many tests toavoid missing a diagnosis and inviting a lawsuit. Meanwhile,insurers charge high premiums to cover doctors in case they find themselves on thereceiving end of a lawsuit. On the flip side, a tremendous amountof research goes into who is suing whom and why.

The results of this research and application to property adjusting may be surprising to many in theP&C realm, however.

In the study published in the Journal of the AmericanMedical Association (JAMA), “Physician-Patient Communication:The Relationship with Malpractice Claims Among Primary CarePhysicians and Surgeons,” Researcher Wendy Levinson reviews thelegal records of hundreds of physicians, classifying them into two groups: those who hadbeen sued and those who had not.

The results are eye-opening. Levinson found that a doctor'sexperience with malpractice suits did not correlate strictly with medicalerrors or mistakes. The doctors who merely spent three minuteslonger talking with a patient or explaining a procedure (18.3versus 15 minutes) significantly reduced, if not eliminated, thenumber of malpractice claims by their patients. Simply using morestatements of orientation (educating patients about what toexpect), engaging in active listening, and laughing and using humoroffered a dramatically different outcome. In other instancespatients felt rushed or disrespected during an office visit.

The doctors, who were less likely to be sued even when they madea mistake, did not necessarily provide higher quality care orbetter services. The distinction was entirely indicative of howthey spoke to their patients. Levinson's study identifies primarycare physicians who gave more specific and teachablecommunications with greatly fewer malpractice claims, and a muchhigher level of patient satisfaction, even with a poor medicalresult.

Claims Isn't BrainSurgery

Indeed, handling claims isn't brain surgery, but there is muchto learn and adapt from the medical field when it comes to communications.

In the P&C claims industry, we often look atresumes and credentials such as post-nominal titles as the onlyqualifier of competence. We place more importance on testing anadjuster'sknowledge of how to measure a roof as opposed to interpersonalskills and their ability to connect with customers.

Technical expertise is vital, but we greatly underestimate thecommunication effectiveness of the claims handler during theprocess. This is the defining moment in customer retention andpotential liabilities.

Walking in Their Shoes

If we look at claims through the eyes of the customer, then wecan see an entirely different process. Which do you think acustomer would choose?

• A slightly longer claims cycle that would involve morecollaboration and personal attention from the adjuster.
• A 24-hour first contact and faster claims closure.

Most customers would choose the first option. To that end, it iscrucial that adjusters take a few minutes to explain optionsupfront and patiently walk the customer through the process.

Just as doctors are the experts when it comes to medicine, weare the experts when it comes to claims adjustment. We know how the process works. If we takethe time to explain the process using more facilitation (solicitingopinions, checking understanding, and encouraging a dialogue), thenwe will go a long way to ensuring that our customers are satisfiedwith the outcome and remain loyal to us.

It comes down to a matter of respect. To humanize the customer experience in claims, the adjuster must improve his orher bedside manner. The business culture must be changed toredefine customer satisfaction and alter the usual course ofactions in claims that leads to unhappy customers. It is essentialto encourage adjusters to spend more time with the customer so theybetter understand how the claims process works. It is alsoimportant to educate adjusters in active listening skills.