Arbitration Forums Buys Subrogation Technology

Arbitration Forums Buys Subrogation Technology

NU Online News Service, Oct. 1, 3:18 p.m. EDT?The non-profit Arbitration Forums, Inc. said it has purchased new Web-based subrogation technology to power an electronic clearinghouse that will speed the subrogation process, saving users time and money.[@@]

The company said it should be in operational use next spring. Financial details of the agreement with Wilmette, Ill.-based Siteras Technologies were not released. AF spokesman Geoff Engert said the price to users has not been developed, but it would be low since, "we're a not for profit; whatever it costs us."

AF, which provides inter-insurance dispute resolution services, said the Siteras technology would accelerate the development of the company's Electronic Subrogation Demand/Response Processing System (E-Subro Hub).

The company said E-Subro Hub will allow thousands of insurers, self-insureds, third-party administrators and claims service organizations to streamline the subrogation process and interactively manage both demands and responses.

Subrogation is the legal process an insurer uses after paying a loss to an insured to recover from another party who is legally liable for the damage.

AF said the Web-based subrogation technology will enable users to send and receive subrogation demands electronically, attach supporting documents (estimates, bills, photos, police reports, etc.), automatically route demands to file handlers, negotiate online, and view and download online reports.

The system will provide a flexible electronic link regardless of the platform operated by the user.

Mr. Engert said insurers could set settlement ranges and other parameters for use of the system. As an example, he said an insurer could say that "any claim under $2,000, we'll deny."

With no human intervention, "it will speed the process and cycle time of correspondence will be shortened," he said.

"This acquisition is a quantum leap in realizing AF's goal of transforming a slow, cumbersome, paper-driven process into a seamless, highly efficient electronic system that produces rapid settlements and slashes costs," according to D. Kay Smith, AF's president and chief executive officer.

All transactions will be electronically based, allowing for the instantaneous exchange of documents. AF will also offer an additional service to companies with limited electronic means that will convert their paper into electronic documents.

Ms. Smith said that the purchase has accelerated the full implementation of the E-Subro Hub by as much as three years. The program will be phased in beginning next spring after the completion of pilot testing with several carriers.

"It immediately will help demanding carriers take full advantage of the recovery opportunities they now lose in a mountain of paperwork and manual tasks, while assisting respondents to quickly identify loss recovery opportunities," said Ms. Smith.

She pointed out that subrogation claims processed through the E-Subro Hub may or may not go to arbitration for resolution. AF projects the E-Subro Hub program will handle at least 100,000 subrogation transactions by the end of 2005.