10 Jan 2008

Post Magazine - Claims News

Lynn Rouse

Teceris Corporate and Complex Adjusting has unveiled a new gold standard 'kitemark', formalising its existing approach to handling major losses, in a bid to drive up client confidence and adjuster performance across the UK and global market.

QCML - which stands for quality control of major loss - has been launched this month to address general market concerns about the way adjusters sometimes lack control in the resolution of large claims, which manifests itself in increasing reserves and settlement times.

Andrew Homewood, Teceris partner, told Post that insurers and other clients have been increasingly vocal in the last 12 months about their dissatisfaction with the way some adjusters approach major losses: 'Our ideal situation would be for QCML to be adopted as the gold standard that the entire market aspires to; if this led to a raising of the bar across the board we would be delighted. Market observations have pointed to what some see as a reactive approach, whereby there is an absence of commercial awareness resulting in opportunities being missed to achieve top quality settlements for all concerned. Yet this is fundamental to our proposition.'

Teceris partner Alastair Whiteside has led the project to formalise and re-brand the adjuster's processes, with QCML containing a series of checks and balances to ensure the right skills are applied to any situation.

He said key features of the Teceris approach include it being practitioner-led, with adjusters retaining control and responsibility for a claim's direction at all times; a strong emphasis on day-one response and project management, with a periodic peer review of files; partner involvement on every loss that exceeds £500,000; active use of case management conferences, whereby clients sit around the table to analyse every element of a loss rather than just receiving an adjuster report; stringent sign-off processes with reserve analysis; regular file reviews to ensure commercial settlement opportunities are fully explored; and accreditation of the firm's major loss adjusters, involving a series of authorisation levels that must be progressed through.

'If we are honest, everyone responds pretty well on day one,' said Mr Whiteside. 'The patient gets their heart surgery but where it falls apart is in the failure to deliver the necessary aftercare. So QCML is really a formalisation of our response to market demand for professionalism around handling major losses, where we do not lose control. It's our kitemark; it's what we will stand by and be measured by.'

Adrian Cartwright-Bain, Teceris managing partner, added: 'Quality control is the area in which we really differentiate ourselves from other adjusting firms - it's the battleground for 2008.'