The importance of loss control & field representatives
While technology can offer error-free assessments, it lacks critical thinking and intuition.
When COVID-19 struck, Rockwood Casualty Insurance Company’s loss control team was the last off the road. And when COVID restrictions eased, they were first back on the road and in front of clients. The reason for this is simple: Insurers cannot adequately replace loss control teams with remote employees or insurtech. These professionals are critical to efficient insurance processes.
Loss control, a series of procedures that attempts to mitigate the number of claims made by policyholders, generally involves working with an insured to ensure that they practice proper risk management. This benefits the insured because they end up paying less on premiums, and the insurer, because they have to pay out fewer claims. While loss control is fairly common practice in some areas of insurance, it’s more important and less common in specialty insurance lines like ours.
Rockwood commonly insures transportation risk for last-mile delivery drivers, coal haulers, school bus contractors, etc. An example of loss control for commercial drivers would be ensuring companies are providing proper rest breaks for drivers on the road so they can stay awake and alert, reducing the risk of accidents — and claims.
Field representatives in transportation insurance will talk with drivers, managers, and other key figures in the business to get a picture of how they operate to better understand possible causes of risk.
For example, whether a last-mile delivery company tests its drivers for drug use will have implications on coverage and liabilities in the event of a vehicle crash.
A loss control agent’s job in mitigating this risk would be to ensure that the delivery company knows best practices from a company-wide perspective and intervene before an incident occurs. That field representative would also pass the information about company policies to the insurer to establish better visibility over the insured’s operations.
By truly understanding how businesses operate, identifying potential problems, and working with the insured to solve them, companies will spend less on insurance by addressing possible risk scenarios before they become claims.
Replacing field representatives with algorithms may seem cost-effective on paper, but using real people as field representatives is invaluable because they provide reasoning and observations that a computer program simply can’t match. While tech solutions can look for problems methodically, with no human error, there’s also no critical thinking.
That isn’t to say there isn’t a use for insurance technology, but keeping good insurance professionals in the field gives the insured a connection they can’t receive from a computer — and significant value.
At Rockwood, loss control agents are embedded between underwriting and claims, engaging with insureds where they do business. The relationships they forge there last a lifetime, and the observations they bring back to insurers are often the difference between average and exceptional service.
A key factor that differentiates remarkable field reps from the pack is their ability to focus on improving company culture. An outstanding field rep can come to a company, examine its habits, and fundamentally understand how it operates. This is done by actively engaging with the company at the business and employee levels.
Great field reps have excellent insight into company culture, which helps insureds reduce premiums, maximize efficiency, and most importantly create a safer and healthier work environment.
This in turn reduces the number of claims, which saves money and allows for all parties to prosper and grow.
Ron Davidson is senior vice president and chief underwriting officer at Rockwood Casualty Insurance Company. He specializes in writing monoline workers’ compensation insurance for industries that include commercial specialty, oil and gas and mining.
Opinions expressed here are the author’s own.
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