Agent/Claim Dynamic Duos

All auto accidents are different and so are policyholders' reactions and concerns. Even in the case of a less-serious auto accident with no bodily injuries, policyholders are still concerned about the damages to their vehicles and any inconvenience auto repairs will present to their daily lives. This is why it is especially important to offer to help your policyholder receive immediate medical assistance, contact auto repair shops, and begin coordinating a rental car option and a ride home for them.

Auto accidents seldom involve only one individual, so it is important to offer assistance for the other party involved in the accident while at the same time being careful not to indicate responsibility for damages. Not only is it being a good neighbor to offer assistance, but it also is a great way to assist your policyholder, who may feel embarrassed or scared after an auto accident. Also, offering to help the other involved in the auto accident is a great way to open the lines of communication between all parties immediately after the auto accident.

If you are able to get to the accident scene quickly, it is important to remain calm at all times with your policyholder. Your reassuring presence will go a long way, especially if this is their first auto accident, if your policyholder is at fault, or if the accident was very serious. This can be a good time for you to gather all the pertinent information for the claim report, and it is a way to continue building a relationship with your policyholder based on trust and understanding.

During this time you will want to balance your time between properly assessing damage and making sure that your policyholder is at ease. Both roles are vitally important for a long-term policyholder relationship. This is also an important time to secure photos of the accident scene and vehicles while on the scene with your policyholder.

Acting As Liaison

After you have helped your policyholder with his immediate needs and assessed the initial damage to your policyholder's and any third party's vehicle, it is time to report the claim. Even though it is not your role to actually adjust or review the claim, it may be vitally important for you to act as a liaison between your policyholder and the claim professional. Your involvement can help to keep the claim process moving in a timely manner through your education of the policyholder on what information he needs to supply to you and the adjuster. You can also help to manage your policyholder's expectations during the claim process.

Here are four simple guidelines to help you gather all the information you need to help move the claim process along and to provide your policyholder and the claim professional with all of the pertinent information:

• Gather as much accident report information as you can. Check to make sure that the claim professional has all the information needed to process the claim, especially phone numbers.
• If there is a question of who is at fault, reassure your policyholder by walking him through the claim process and assuring him that a claim professional will be working diligently on his behalf.
• Assist in securing damage estimates or come out and look at the vehicle in a timely manner.
• Organize information for your policyholder regarding rental car coverage and help coordinate rental car options and costs. As a policyholder's agent, you will have prior knowledge from his policy on how much coverage is included for a rental car. Guide them through the coverage available and answer any questions. Do not insist that the other party's insurance company respond. Remember, if your policyholder is not at fault and his car is not safe to drive, the other insurance company will reimburse your policyholder's carrier for appropriate rental expenses. They will need to investigate the claim before approving a rental car and that could take several days.

After the adjuster has come out to look at the car and the vehicle is on its way to the dealer or repair shop, you should follow up with your policyholder and the repair shop to make sure repairs are being completed in a timely manner and that the repair shop has the necessary parts to fix the car.

Not only will this help to ensure a prompt completion of the repairs, but also it will help you manage policyholder expectations. One of the largest sources of frustrations for policyholders after an auto accident is waiting for auto repairs to be completed. Continual follow-up on the status of repairs and making sure that the insurance company is handling the payment of repairs in a timely manner is an excellent way to make sure your policyholder's needs are being met.

Acting As Consultant

For policyholders who have never had an auto accident before, it is especially important to serve as a knowledgeable consultant during the claim process. Educate your policyholder on when the proper times are to call you directly and when he should call the claim professional directly. Make sure your policyholder knows where to take his car, how to file paperwork, and with which rental car facility to work. This is especially important for policyholders who experience an auto accident while on vacation or traveling for work, meaning that they may not know a local repair shop to call.

Agents should be available to answer policyholder's questions and help the claim professional gather what information is needed. Make sure your policyholder has established contact with the claim professional and make sure the adjuster has explained the claim process. Remind your policyholder that yelling at or being rude to the adjuster will not get his claim handled more quickly.

In light of today's economy, claim adjuster workloads at insurance companies are stretched more than ever. Claims will be processed more quickly and efficiently if you can help the policyholder offer more information and help answer questions along the way. This is why it is especially important to share with your policyholder what he can expect during the claim process. Setting expectations from the start will help your policyholder understand the process and also help him understand the timeframe and what will be required of him for the claim to be processed. It is also important to communicate to your policyholder that initial estimates of damage may not be the final settlement figures, as the insurance company will negotiate for the best price possible.

To make sure your policyholder's claim is being processed correctly, follow this checklist:

• Make sure proper contact is established between your policyholder and the claim professional, and verify the company received all claim information.
• Confirm that auto is inspected in a timely fashion.
• Follow up with your policyholder and the claim professional. Do so again and again and again if necessary until the claim is resolved.
• Make sure checks are issued properly and confirm that the insurance company has the appropriate lienholder information for your policyholder.
• Check that your insured has agreed to the settlement. If not, then serve as an advocate for them to identify the areas of disagreement and resolve the differences.

In some situations, the claim experience is a good time to consider other needs of your policyholders. If they are commercial policyholders, then they may have additional risk management needs for their companies to prevent future liabilities on company vehicles. This is one of the best ways to grow and maintain a long-term relationship and establish yourself as a trusted advisor.

Acting As Advocate

Throughout the entire experience, it is your role to be an advocate. Policyholders recognize the role of an insurance agent, but they may need help beyond the initial phone call. Because of the circumstances of an auto claim, policyholders may need you to offer not only insurance expertise, but the personal connection necessary to make them feel better and put their minds at ease.

Poor experience during the claim process can often lead to the loss of business or a challenged policyholder relationship. Even though you hear about auto accidents all the time as an insurance agent, this is a unique event for your policyholder. Listening to the policyholder is especially important, particularly if he is experiencing his first auto accident. Every accident is different, and each policyholder will have different needs. There is no template or formula, which is where your experience can create positive relationships.

Even if you have done your job correctly, if the claim professional does not, your relationship with your policyholder can be jeopardized. It is your role as an advocate for your policyholder to step in and turn a negative situation around to get the claim moving in the right direction. Even if a claim is being processed smoothly, it is still important to check in with your policyholder to see how things are going. This will help uncover any potentially negative situations during the claim process and possibly prevent them from becoming a serious issue. Above all, always treat your policyholder, the other party involved in the accident, and the insurance company claim professional with respect and courtesy.

The way an insurance agent handles a claim can often be the difference between building a long-term policyholder relationship and losing business. During the stressful experience of an auto accident, today's policyholders require more than insurance know-how. They want a personal connection to know that their needs are being met and that their concerns are being addressed.