How insurers can ensure clients' vehicles are properly disinfected
Here are three ways insurers can make certain third-party companies decontaminate policyholders' cars when providing services.
Insurance companies operate in the world of mitigating risk. But the outbreak of COVID-19 has forced insurers to reassess even the most basic of processes that now carry with them additional dangers. This is especially true when it comes to customers interacting with third-parties doing repairs to their vehicle, which may, in turn, expose your customer upon receipt of their newly repaired car.
Whether it’s roadside, mechanical or body shop repairs, in most cases, there will be some level of physical contact between the service provider and a vehicle that may need to be addressed before your customer is confident that you’ve addressed any concern over contamination.
Insurers regularly provide specific requirements for safe vehicle repair and use audits, photographic evidence and documentation to ensure these requirements are followed during the process. In our “new normal,” many insurers also are paying repair shops to disinfect and clean a vehicle for contamination before it is returned to the customer.
But how is an insurer supposed to know that they are getting what they are paying for and that their customer’s vehicle is safely decontaminated? There are ways to hold shops accountable; here is some advice from the experience we’ve had in partnering with both insurers and experts in the field of vehicle disinfection.
Set guidelines on how to properly disinfect a vehicle
Insurers should set specific, minimum guidelines today on how repaired vehicles should be cleaned so that they protect themselves from unnecessary claims in the future.
The proper disinfection of a car for the safety of anyone closely interacting with it starts by wiping down and spraying the entire interior of a vehicle with disinfectants by someone wearing properly fitted PPE, specifically a mask and gloves. Emphasize that special attention needs to be paid to high touch point surfaces like seatbelts, headrests, dashboards and steering wheels. Any surface that is constantly and commonly touched should be considered a high-value surface. These surfaces especially should be thoroughly wiped down, and not just sprayed.
As a note, certain disinfectants need to remain wet on a surface for at least 10 minutes before they are wiped down by a clean cloth. Making sure that the disinfectant sits on the surface for the right amount of time ensures 99.999% effectiveness when it comes to proper cleaning methods. This may vary based on the product, a full list of which can be found on the EPA’s website.
High touch points on the vehicle’s exterior also require attention. This includes door handles, the outside of the trunk, the hood, mirrors, and windows. The same process of letting the disinfectant sit before thoroughly wiping it off with a fresh cloth should be followed.
Require the use of non-damaging disinfecting products
While many products have proven to kill germs that could carry a virus, it is important that cleaning products like Lysol disinfecting wipes or hand sanitizers are not used in these situations.
Harsher cleaning products, especially those that are used around the house, could have an adverse effect and destroy materials and surfaces inside of a vehicle. Insurers should require the use of products that will not harm the interior of a car. The disinfection products should be of hospital grade and EPA-approved. Using the right disinfectants is essential and will protect you from potential damage claims made by the customer once the car is back in their possession.
Get signed documentation
Full transparency during these times is critical. The world is operating blindly, given a virus that we can’t see. Your customer needs to trust that their vehicle has been appropriately disinfected and is safe to operate.
To protect yourself and your customers, you should require signed documentation from the collision or repair shop, indicating that they have followed your guidelines. To reiterate, unlike visual fixes to a car, we cannot see germs, so your customers are relying on you to take the proper precautions. You will want documentation indicating that all high-value touchpoints have been tended to, that disinfectants were let to sit before being wiped and that the appropriate cleaning tools were used. The best way for you to do that is to require sign-off from the service provider that they have followed your instructions and guidelines.
In today’s age, our commitment to ensuring the safety of customers as an industry hasn’t changed, but the ways we go about defending them against this new threat takes a little additional expertise that wasn’t required only a few months ago. Whether you’ve chosen to partner with a company to arm yourself with this knowledge or are committed to investing in growing your expertise, it’s important to set up the proper expectations from your partners now so you can confidently continue to promise the same standard of trust to your policyholders. This is our “new normal,” and arming ourselves with the knowledge required to ensure the same level of quality and safety we have for years on repairs will only further cement the trust our community places in us every day.
Rochelle Thielen (rochelle@honkforhelp.com) is EVP of partnerships at HONK Technologies.
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