AS the owner of a medium to large independent adjusting service, it is no mystery to me why USA based carriers are still unable to make significant return on capital,in the hardest market we have seen in (3) years, while their surplus lines brethen are making unprecedented profits- the Surplus Lines carriers still believe in proper field investigation and evaluation of ALL claims, while the P & C carriers in the US believe that all it takes to control indemnity payments are computer screens, underpaid inside claim reps and contractors/vendors who do the carrier’s work for “free”. It still takes an extra $100 in premium to make up for just $1.00 in over-paid losses. I remember when we were all able to make a reasonable return on our investments- long before all of the “cost saving” steps were taken on the claim side of the equation.
Hat’s off to Jim Michalek for his comments. I would only add that the public now hates adjusters just as much as they do lawyers, thanks to voice mail, computer generated settlement values, and decisions on claims being based information rather than evidence. Haven’t you heard, you get what you inspect not expect.
With the many adjusters,supervisors and claims managers who have never read jury instructions or sat thru a trial, in another generation or two there will be to few experienced claim people left to rebuild the industry.
But, by that time the bean counters that run our domestic industry may have the cost of handling a claim file down to just the cost of the stamp to mail the check. Everyone can just fill in a blank on line and get the amount that they want. Heck it all goes back into the rates anyway. Doesn’t it?
– Tom & Jim in the above comments are on the mark.
– There is not a problem in under reserving, there is a problem with the carriers spin, where the real issue is overpayment of loss and not under reserving.
– This all the consequence of the carrier jingoism of “right-sizing,” when in fact it is downsizing tot he point of more customer no service and the resultant bad faith claim handling from generations of untrained and inexperinced staff.
– There is no longer the moral center of the carriers duty to meet its responsibility as a fiduciary and this has degraded the entire industy performance as whole; the good will as an abstract component of a business’s worth left, when all of the experience was devalued and forced out. Now the following form industry is at the mercy of the ever more plaintiffs bar and finding the necsssity of paying attorney’s (at a much highr rate) to do what experienced staff use to do at a fraction of the cost.
– Philisophically,you reap what you sew, so sadly such is the condition of a once past effective and experienced insurance industry. So, on the short term figures can lie, and liars can figure; thus the anticipated future financial faliures.
– Tom & Jim in the above comments are on the mark.
– There is not a problem in under reserving, there is a problem with the carriers spin, where the real issue is overpayment of loss and not under reserving.
– This all the consequence of the carrier jingoism of “right-sizing,” when in fact it is downsizing tot he point of more customer no service and the resultant bad faith claim handling from generations of untrained and inexperinced staff.
– There is no longer the moral center of the carriers duty to meet its responsibility as a fiduciary and this has degraded the entire industy performance as whole; the good will as an abstract component of a business’s worth left, when all of the experience was devalued and forced out. Now the following form industry is at the mercy of the ever more plaintiffs bar and finding the necsssity of paying attorney’s (at a much highr rate) to do what experienced staff use to do at a fraction of the cost.
– Philisophically,you reap what you sew, so sadly such is the condition of a once past effective and experienced insurance industry. So, on the short term figures can lie, and liars can figure; thus the anticipated future financial faliures.
I faced the downsizing effects of Farmers Insurance, when Zurich North America, in effect, began taking over the day to day operation of Farmers. What once used to be a relatively secure industry has now turned out to be a “working at your own peril” mode. Layers of Management has now been downsized and phased out, which is a good thing especially when it is sold on the idea that greater input from lower echelon workers will be given. But when inovation is stiffled by a “command & control” structure (even though it is sold on “leadership” [‘serve & support’], it seems that insurance companies’ days are numbered. The day will probably come when we all will have one or two insurer’s to pick from. For myself, I now work for an independent adjusting firm. The work is plentiful, especially when adjusters at major insurance companies are constantly inundated with more claims than they can handle and use us as “safety valves.” Though major insurance companies espouse good working environments and comraderie, if one was to look a little more closely, you would find more individuals spending time at night sufging the web for career changes.
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AS the owner of a medium to large independent adjusting service, it is no mystery to me why USA based carriers are still unable to make significant return on capital,in the hardest market we have seen in (3) years, while their surplus lines brethen are making unprecedented profits- the Surplus Lines carriers still believe in proper field investigation and evaluation of ALL claims, while the P & C carriers in the US believe that all it takes to control indemnity payments are computer screens, underpaid inside claim reps and contractors/vendors who do the carrier’s work for “free”. It still takes an extra $100 in premium to make up for just $1.00 in over-paid losses. I remember when we were all able to make a reasonable return on our investments- long before all of the “cost saving” steps were taken on the claim side of the equation.
Hat’s off to Jim Michalek for his comments. I would only add that the public now hates adjusters just as much as they do lawyers, thanks to voice mail, computer generated settlement values, and decisions on claims being based information rather than evidence. Haven’t you heard, you get what you inspect not expect.
With the many adjusters,supervisors and claims managers who have never read jury instructions or sat thru a trial, in another generation or two there will be to few experienced claim people left to rebuild the industry.
But, by that time the bean counters that run our domestic industry may have the cost of handling a claim file down to just the cost of the stamp to mail the check. Everyone can just fill in a blank on line and get the amount that they want. Heck it all goes back into the rates anyway. Doesn’t it?
– Tom & Jim in the above comments are on the mark.
– There is not a problem in under reserving, there is a problem with the carriers spin, where the real issue is overpayment of loss and not under reserving.
– This all the consequence of the carrier jingoism of “right-sizing,” when in fact it is downsizing tot he point of more customer no service and the resultant bad faith claim handling from generations of untrained and inexperinced staff.
– There is no longer the moral center of the carriers duty to meet its responsibility as a fiduciary and this has degraded the entire industy performance as whole; the good will as an abstract component of a business’s worth left, when all of the experience was devalued and forced out. Now the following form industry is at the mercy of the ever more plaintiffs bar and finding the necsssity of paying attorney’s (at a much highr rate) to do what experienced staff use to do at a fraction of the cost.
– Philisophically,you reap what you sew, so sadly such is the condition of a once past effective and experienced insurance industry. So, on the short term figures can lie, and liars can figure; thus the anticipated future financial faliures.
End…
– Tom & Jim in the above comments are on the mark.
– There is not a problem in under reserving, there is a problem with the carriers spin, where the real issue is overpayment of loss and not under reserving.
– This all the consequence of the carrier jingoism of “right-sizing,” when in fact it is downsizing tot he point of more customer no service and the resultant bad faith claim handling from generations of untrained and inexperinced staff.
– There is no longer the moral center of the carriers duty to meet its responsibility as a fiduciary and this has degraded the entire industy performance as whole; the good will as an abstract component of a business’s worth left, when all of the experience was devalued and forced out. Now the following form industry is at the mercy of the ever more plaintiffs bar and finding the necsssity of paying attorney’s (at a much highr rate) to do what experienced staff use to do at a fraction of the cost.
– Philisophically,you reap what you sew, so sadly such is the condition of a once past effective and experienced insurance industry. So, on the short term figures can lie, and liars can figure; thus the anticipated future financial faliures.
End…
I faced the downsizing effects of Farmers Insurance, when Zurich North America, in effect, began taking over the day to day operation of Farmers. What once used to be a relatively secure industry has now turned out to be a “working at your own peril” mode. Layers of Management has now been downsized and phased out, which is a good thing especially when it is sold on the idea that greater input from lower echelon workers will be given. But when inovation is stiffled by a “command & control” structure (even though it is sold on “leadership” [‘serve & support’], it seems that insurance companies’ days are numbered. The day will probably come when we all will have one or two insurer’s to pick from. For myself, I now work for an independent adjusting firm. The work is plentiful, especially when adjusters at major insurance companies are constantly inundated with more claims than they can handle and use us as “safety valves.” Though major insurance companies espouse good working environments and comraderie, if one was to look a little more closely, you would find more individuals spending time at night sufging the web for career changes.