Mostly bad and ugly, if you ask any Floridian! Check out the latest on the aftermath and clean-up/reconstruction in the Sunshine State and neighboring states, found in our Hurricane Chronicles, page 10. This is a "temporary" monthly column, and it will appear as long as necessary to keep you up to date on that front.
In other news, please note that Claims has acquired Fraud International Magazine, which now has been integrated into Claims. As part of the acquisition agreement, Phil Peart, the former editor-in-chief of Fraud International, has agreed to provide a monthly column in Claims called Claims Investigation. You'll find Phil's first column in this issue, page 27.
And finally, you'll recall that in October, we posed the question: If you weren't in the claim handling profession, you'd like to be because, and promised to present the results. The envelopes please!
We received many, many responses, and were somewhat surprised at some of your–for lack of a better word–irreverence. We never realized how many of you ladies aspire to be Hooter Girls "because the money's good and the hours are better." (A much younger colleague had to explain to me what a Hooter Girl is/does.) Not to be "outshined," a few guys thought they fit the Chippendale mold, and one even sent a photo to prove his point. The JPEG caused my computer to crash.
Then there were others with more down-to-earth, reasonable, and even altruistic responses. A sampling:
oFrom DE — I'd like to be a garden/craft store owner (and independently wealthy), because I could work with the things I love (if I didn't have to earn a good living).
oFrom BR — I'd like to be a writer/editor, because I would have no problem in dousing the constant kvetches. [Have we got news for you!] BR went on to editorialize: We should all be thankful we have a job. The claims arena has changed, but so have other employment fields.
oFrom TP — I'd like to be a fly-fishing bum, because the outdoors is prettier than the indoors, the only negotiating that's done is who gets the most productive pools, and finally, you're never forced to do more fishing.
oFrom another TP — I'd like to be a secret service agent, because I'd get my picture taken with the president all the time.
oFrom AH — I'd like to be a professional hunter, because you get put up in the finest lodges, hunt with the best guides, occasionally harvest the animal of your dreams, and get paid to do so.
oFrom LD — I'd like to be a homeopath, because they treat the root cause of an illness and not just a symptom.
oFrom KZ, who had two dream jobs — I'd like to be a cattle rancher, because I'm skilled at dealing with B.S. Or I'd like to be Scooby-Doo, because no matter how we split up the claims, I always find the monster.
oFrom PB — I'd like to be a NASCAR driver, because I really like fast cars.
oFrom PF — I'd like to be a ballerina because I would be tall, thin, fit, wear beautiful costumes, hear classical music, and be on stage under bright, colorful lights instead of sitting in a cubicle with fluorescent tube lights and worrying if I made the right decision regarding liability claims. Bad feet would be my greatest worry!
oFrom AS — I'd be a teacher because they get all the best vacation days — three months of summer, two weeks at Christmas, and spring break. Plus, their work day isn't even eight hours long. [Oh dear, AS, you need to sit down with a teacher or two and get the straight scoop on what constitutes their work day!]
And on those happy notes, have a safe and happy holiday season!
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