Sterling insurance has decided to further refine its insurer and loss adjuster model by granting individual loss adjusting licences.
A recent tender to award loss adjusting services focused on individuals as well as loss adjusting firms and introduced a significant change, which was the launch of individual Sterling licenses to selected skilled adjusters within each firm. Only these licensed adjusters will be allowed to handle Sterling claims, following a successful interview and induction training focused on Sterling’s culture, customer and broker profiles and philosophies.
Sterling Insurance Group has a long history in the personal lines and commercial arena and the company is celebrating its 60th anniversary in November 2011. The company has always prided itself on its claims handling.
In recent Broker Surveys Sterling’s claims service received strong reviews, with the majority of brokers saying the service was excellent compared with other companies in the market. However, there was a general feeling that the excellent service was not always mirrored by Sterling’s loss adjusters.
Garry Simmons, head of property and liability claims at Sterling, commented: “Loss adjusters are an integral part of our claims team and the review process was an opportunity to evaluate and improve the quality of our external claims team. It is vital from our perspective that anyone delivering our brand message has the required experience and skill to follow our service ethos.
“Making a claim is when our customers need us the most and it can be a stressful and demanding time. It is vital that we use individuals who have the right combination of both soft and technical skills, supported by employers who understand the need for a bespoke and not one size fits all service.”
Sterling went out to tender earlier in 2011 to the loss adjusting market and from an initial tender process involving 15 companies, 3 firms ultimately stood out from the crowd:
– Davies (HNW)
– vrs Vericlaim (Commercial)
– Quest Gates (HNW & Commercial)
A phased introduction is taking place during September and October to allow for initial interviews and training of the successful adjusters.
The new loss adjusting process will be enhanced by Sterling’s recently appointed in-house Claims Inspector (Executive Claims Manager) and a Customer Claims Survey that has the ability to monitor performance at individual licensed adjuster level, as well as the loss adjusting firm overall. Sterling is working hard to ensure that loss adjusting is seen exactly for what it is, a skilled art rather than a mere task driven process and these developments can only yield positive benefits to both customer and brokers alike.
Source : Sterling Insurance
