PCS: Catastrophe Claims Handling Compensation Rates Vary

Major catastrophes frequently mean longer hours and extended periods away from home for claims staff on catastrophe duty. However, wide variations in logistical planning and catastrophe duty compensation have been revealed in a far-reaching study from Property Claim Services, a Verisk Analytics business.

For the first time, the labor cost of catastrophe claims has been assessed in the PCS Catastrophe Compensation Report, published today and designed to help firms refine or develop a comprehensive catastrophe compensation plan.

PCS surveyed 76 property/casualty companies across the United States about their approach to managing personnel during peak periods of catastrophe claims. The resulting report covers staffing levels, pay, additional incentives and rewards, overtime and compensatory time off considerations.

The findings:

The PCS Catastrophe Compensation Report also found that property claims departments are not the only area under pressure during catastrophic events. Seventy percent said their companies draw support from departments other than property claims to assist with cat duty, with underwriting (54 percent) and non-claims customer support (51 percent) being the departments most frequently called upon.

While field catastrophe staff expect to work long hours to handle claims during a catastrophe, the survey found that 58 percent of companies also require inside adjusters and support staff to work extended hours.

Half of the respondents said adjusters who are not on catastrophe duty are given extra compensation for completing claim-heavy noncatastrophe workloads when resources are thinly stretched.

Further findings:

The Catastrophe Compensation Report is the first in a series of catastrophe claims benchmarking reports to be published by PCS. For further information and a copy of the full survey, please contact PCS.

Source: PCS