Driving Response
I had a chance to read your editor's letter in the October Claims issue ["What Drives Us," October 2010]. It really resonated with me on several levels.
First, our CRDN franchise here in Seattle has been lucky enough to establish that empathetic attitude with its customers and I feel that has served us well; it is a major point of difference between us and other "vendors" who service insurance claims. And further we've been able to hire and train employees who can carry out our mission with compassion and feeling.
But on the second level I think you've hit on an important point. Clearly we in the restoration field meet people in crisis. Beyond that, these folks are often mystified about the claim process and are looking for guidance from all of us who are assigned to lend them a hand. Being able to meet their emotional needs should be as important as cleaning clothes or pounding nails. How many times has a claimant declared "this has never happened to me before"? Therein lies an opportunity to be a full-service provider.
Paraphrasing what you wrote, you felt that the kind words of the police officers didn't apply to you; here you are, involved in this industry, and it became a light bulb moment when you could understand that there is pain, albeit small in your case, in nearly every claim. So perhaps it's the "clarion call" to the industry that we need to understand the multiple dimensions of claims and address "the whole person," not just the meat and potatoes of the claim. It follows that the job that starts right ends right, and the best start for any project should have us on the same wavelength as those for whom we work.
–Richard D. Brody, General Manager CRDN of Seattle & Western Washington
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