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Category Archives: SPOT on Costs

  1. Why Don’t Claims Organizations Track Claims Through The Process The Way UPS Tracks A Package? December 28, 2011

    Posted in Bad Faith, Best Practices, Claims Technology, Commentary, SPOT on Costs, SPOT on Ops.

    Today as a customer you can track your packages from the moment they leave the store to the second they arrive at your door. During that time you can see where they are in the process. Truly amazing. Why can’t claims organizations do the same thing? How much better would a claim be if we could track it through the system in the same way UPS can track a package. Something to think about when reading the latest from theClaimsSPOT.

    2 comments
  2. 2 Approaches To Early Resolution And Cost Savings For Litigation Guidelines September 19, 2011

    Posted in Mediation & Settlement, Negotiation, SPOT on Costs.

    We welcome Nancy Hudgins as a contributing author to the Claims SPOT. Nancy is is a national mediator based in San Francisco and will be writing on resolving claims. In her first post, she points to two methods to early resolution and ways they can cut litigation cost.

    5 comments
  3. Getting Creative And Reducing Claim Costs Without Sacrificing Quality – Part II December 22, 2010

    Posted in Litigation Management, SPOT on Costs, SPOT on Ops.

    Last month, Suzanne Ganier discussed the building blocks needed to reduce claim and litigation costs, while still maintaining a strong focus on quality. Those building blocks included:

    * collecting current data about your claims and litigation
    * evaluating the claim and litigation work itself
    * settling on a carrier claim and litigation handling philosophy

    In her follow up, Suzanne discusses how these building blocks create a foundation on which to build new processes and procedures that will reduce your claim and litigation costs, and maybe even decrease you volume as well. I refer this building process as looking at What I Have, What I Want, and What I See.

    3 comments
  4. Time to Get Creative – Reducing Claim Costs without Sacrificing Quality (or your sanity) November 22, 2010

    Posted in Litigation Management, SPOT on Costs, SPOT on Ops.

    In an environment of increased pressure to reduce costs and close claims, bright ideas can help to reduce legal costs while still ensuring great service. In this article, litigation expert Suzanne Ganier speaks about the importance of understanding what you know and what you don’t, analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of those involved in the litigation process, and aligning those analyses with your organization’s philosophies. The result can be a litigation management process that reduces overall claim costs and preserves your sanity.

    No comments
  5. 6 Steps To Reduce Expenses For Medical Experts As Suggested By The Expert June 17, 2010

    Posted in Medical Malpractice, SPOT on Costs, SPOT on Issues.

    The traditional method for preparing an expert is to send them the entire record and let them review for possible issues. Dr. Philip Lanzkowsky, a medical expert providing opinions and testimony on cases for both plaintiff’s and the defense, raises some practical questions and provides a series of suggestions as to how those expert costs can be reduced.

    Read more in this interesting post of expense reduction of medical expert costs as suggested by the expert.

    2 comments
  6. Cutting Costs Without Overloading The Claims Handler – Part 2 Of The Series April 6, 2010

    Posted in SPOT on Costs.

    In part 2 of this series on cutting cost without overloading claim handlers I given an example of hiring a part-time employee to review legal bills. As noted, sometimes specific types of work, such as legal bill review, subrogation and anti-fraud, can best be handled by dedicated resources. Hiring a part-time employee that can focus on an area of claims is sometimes the best way to get results. Overworking claims handlers with additional tasks not part of their core job function – to evaluate and settle claims – can result in some aspect of their job suffering. Key cost cutting initiatives, such as Anti-Fraud and subrogation recovery, get put aside by the handler and never get the fullest attention needed to be successful. Take a look at the latest example of solutions that work.

    No comments
  7. 2 Cost-Cutting Solutions To Get Work Done Without Overloading Claims Handlers March 31, 2010

    Posted in SPOT on Costs.

    Too Many Tasks, And Hiring New Staff Is Not An Option? (Part One of Two) Not every company can afford to hire dedicated teams to focus on cost-saving initiatives such as subrogation or Anti-Fraud. Sometimes there is simply not enough work to justify a full-time position internally. Regardless, failing to focus on cost-saving programs can […]

    1 comment
  8. The 5 Essential Components of Defense Attorney Reports That Can Improve Claims Costs and Outcomes March 14, 2010

    Posted in Commentary, My SPOT, SPOT on Costs.

    Why are Attorney Evaluation Reports sometimes so light? I was recently conducting an audit of claim files and had the opportunity to review a significant number of Attorney Evaluation reports from a variety of law firms. Like many other things in life, some were better than others. What seemed to be most glaringly consistent was the inability of counsel to truly provide an assessment of exposure and what the case is worth. Every counsel evaluation report should contain 5 basic components that I outline and attorneys should be required to provide their actual valuable opinion. [More…]

    7 comments
  9. Saying “I’m Sorry” Can Reduce Exposure to New Claims March 5, 2010

    Posted in Commentary, Medical Malpractice, My SPOT, SPOT on Costs.

    It may seem counter intuitive, but with the right technique a heartfelt apology can help lower claims costs and exposures There is a wave of civility sweeping through the world of risk management as a way to lower exposure and reduce costs: Apologize. Maybe mom was right when she stood there and said “now say you’re sorry.” In fact, there are some very impressive statistics in the area of medical malpractice around the simple use of an apology. Regardless, there is a proper way to apologize while protecting rights and some policy considerations to consider.

    3 comments
  10. Thinking Outside The Box: Litigation management program initiatives can substantially lower costs February 25, 2010

    Posted in Litigation Management, SPOT on Costs.

    Managing litigation is an easy way to save extra expense costs on claims files. A strong litigation management program designed to help foster improved communication, and streamline defense of insureds, benefits all parties involved. As I wrote about the cost savings benefits of out-of-the-box claims handling, using new and forward thinking strategies for litigation management is an excellent way to save money. Using specialized vendors, claim handlers can further control legal costs as well as enhance their defense.

    No comments
  11. 5 expense reduction opportunities insurance CEOs should not overlook January 27, 2010

    Posted in SPOT on Costs.

    Increased profits come from efficient claims operations: Take a look at that annual reports of the top performing insurance companies and you will see a similar message from their CEO’s. Expense management and efficiency is a principal driver of profitability.In a tight market do less with more without sacrificing quality and significantly customer service is the edge needed to be a top performer. The claims department is the perfect place to lower costs and improve the customer experience at the same time. Here are 5 key areas that should be looked at for cost savings.

    No comments
  12. With old claims systems come old claims processes – You can’t change one without the other! January 21, 2010

    Posted in Claims Technology, SPOT on Costs.

    So you need a new claims system You know the darn thing doesn’t work or do what you want it to do so what’s next? You can’t just go out and buy a new system without understanding what your current process looks like. Over the years you have adopted your operation to your existing technology.  […]

    2 comments
  13. Why use a consultant? The second set of eyes! January 20, 2010

    Posted in SPOT on Costs.

    Ever try and organize your own closet? It should be so easy to get the thing in order yet for some reason it’s very difficult. That is until you bring in a closet organizer to arrange everything in easy to manage sections. Sometimes the only way to truly accomplish a task is to have a […]

    1 comment