MARKET PERFORMANCE 

As ever, we start with a high-level view of the trend we have seen through our claims performance reviews across Motor, Casualty and Property claims operations. From the performance reviews we have carried out in 2023 so far, overall, we have seen an increase in performance levels: 

As we predicted last year, leakage rates in 2023 have reduced (after increasing in 2022). One outlier this year has been claims handling performance around reserving, which dropped from 86.86% in 2022 to 85.91% in 2023. 

CLAIMS INFLATION  

Pressure on bottom line is driving claims operations to review every aspect of claims processing to identify opportunities for improved effectiveness and efficiency.  We have supported many clients this year with just that.  

Commonly, the client will perform much of this work in house, comparing their average cost per claim data to a benchmarking service from the likes of Finalta or WTW.  We can then work with clients to get under the skin of that data. 

We also help to identify why existing practices result in the current level of performance, then providing an outside perspective as to how those practices compare with the rest of the market.  

Claims Consultancy – Working with a High Performing Client 

CONSUMER DUTY 

Consumer Duty came into full effect on 31st July 23 and set high expectations for the standard of care firms give to consumers in retail financial markets. Claims Management has had to look at every aspect of the customer claims journey, and the performance of everyone who forms part of that journey to ensure we are fully compliance with these enhanced standards.  

SX3 Associate James Tye provided a clear and concise outline of the basic principles and effects on claims handling: 

https://sx3.co.uk/consumer-duty-are-your-claims-handling-processes-compliant/ 

Our audit and review processes have been enhanced to include measures on Consumer Duty compliance and performance.  We will have more to report on that in the coming months as the changes in claims processes bed in. 

COORDINATED AUDITS

Having been accepted by Lloyd’s as an approved audit service provider, we have already conducted our first coordinated audits. These are a great concept by Lloyds. When we audit a TPA for operational/governance performance and control, we are often covering similar ground to that for other clients. Lloyd’s gather their member’s audit requirements and create a coordinated audit where possible, where one audit firm reviews the same TPA for a number of clients in one process. Of course, there will be additional aspects that need reviewing and reporting separately  for each client – as is the case when looking at their files – but the process is less onerous for the TPA and cheaper for the clients as it avoids duplication of effort.  

There’s no reason a similar approach couldn’t be taken outside of Lloyds. Given SX3 audit most of the UK claims handling TPAs, we would certainly encourage non-Lloyd’s insurers to get in touch with us to explore how we could deliver similar efficiencies to them.  

ESG 

It has been quite a year on the ESG front. In our newsletter last year, we highlighted John Green’s fundraising efforts to help the people in Ukraine. This year, we were actually part of the team driving through Europe to deliver 5 ambulances to Ukraine loaded with aid for an orphanage and their front line.  

Such a worthwhile journey supporting an orphanage and aid workers alike. Here’s a lovely description of how the mission went and short video made by another member of the crew – Nick Hilton of Markerstudy – NICK’S UKRAINE REPORT 

We also continued our usual support of the excellent work done by Insurance United Against Dementia.    

PEOPLE 

Work-Life balance remains one of the most important parts of the way we operate as a team.  Morgan O’Connor is a great example of an SX3 Associate living that dream: 

https://sx3.co.uk/morgan-oconnor-finding-work-life-balance-as-an-independent-consultant/ 

If you, or you know someone who is looking for a change, we are always interested in talented claims professionals to join our team, just get in touch. 

SX3 NEWS 

That going the extra mile with our clients has taken us deep into some of their claims operations, and expanded the range of business classes our experts cover, leading to growth and wider capability:

• Service – This month, SX3 celebrated completing its 9th year of trading, and an unprecedent year of growth for the business. With over 60% growth in a single year, our team’s key priority has been ensuring the continuing quality of the service that our clients rightfully expect. We would like to thank all our clients for their support and understanding this year.  
• Increased Capability – Part of that growth has been achieved through an expansion of capability within our consultancy team – ranging from reviews on Financial Crime, Marine, Aviation, Litigation Funding, Latent Defect, Financial Lines, as well as our usual Property, Casualty and Motor business classes. 
• ISO accreditations – As part of our internal investment, SX3 has now achieved the ISO 9001 and ISO27001 accreditation for our processes and information security. 
• Increased Geographical reach – We continue to support clients who are regulated overseas, such as insurers in Gibraltar, Malta, Bermuda and the Isle of Man, as well as providing training and insights to the regulator teams themselves. 

This next year will be our tenth year in business, that’s some milestone to go for – bring it on!

Seasonal best wishes to you all. See you in 2024.

Adrian

MD SX3

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Adrian Gilbert, MD SX3 said ‘This shortlisting is recognition for the work of the SX3 staff, its associates and the clients who have supported SX3 over the years.  I am delighted that the judges found that we have ‘made a difference’ to the Claims industry.”

The final placing will be announced at the Modern Claims Awards Ceremony to held in Liverpool, Thu 27 April 2023.

https://www.modernclaimsawards.com/

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SX3 has now reached its 7th year anniversary, representing 20% of my working life (see final paragraph for the maths), and it’s been a busy few months for the company. Its also been a busy period for a Claims Sector still feeling the effects the pandemic’s short and long term societal impact, Civil Procedure changes, and Brexit legacies. Claim volumes are increasing, new working patterns settling in, new claims processes bedding down, supply chain materials and resources being outstripped by demand, exacerbated by increased energy costs and new Covid variants. Following are some of our observations from our sector that I think reflect these impacts, and that we expect to continue to develop into next year. 

SX3 Audits – Claims Handling Performance Trend 

We have seen a slight dip in claims handling performance from all audits performed in the past 6 months, with the headline claims performance average score now at 90.52% compared to 91.94% for the previous 6 months. We are not surprised by this trend given the factors mentioned above, but exacerbating matters seems to be an increase some claims organisations are experiencing in staff turnover. With many claims people having embraced a homeworking lifestyle to a lessor or greater degree, some are seeking roles elsewhere in the country or outside the claims sector altogether. Coupling this with the factors mentioned in our introduction, this certainly a challanging time for resourcing claims operations just as we move into the usually busier winter months.

Whiplash Reforms Update 

The first two Official Injury Claim (OIC) quarterly reports were issued on 21st Oct and 8th Dec. It is important to remember that this data does not encompass all PI claims registered during those quarters. It represents claims arising from accidents from 31st May 2021 to 31st August, and only those where the value of the claim is realistically expected to be below £5000, and excluding vulnerable road users. By way of example, a further 52,349 Claim Notification Forms (CNFs) were submitted to the MoJ Portal during June to August; therefore, we should take any long-term volume trend predictions at this stage with a pinch of salt.  

What we do know from the OIC data is that in the first 6 months: 

• 114,077 claims were started via the OIC Portal 
• 103,513 were represented claims. That’s 90.74%, which is in line with most industry predictions. 
• Only 209 claimants were represented by a CMC. 

Some commentators pointed to the lower-than-expected percentage of claims (25.1%) requesting an uplift due to an exceptional injury, exceptional circumstances or both. However, perhaps more telling is the types of injuries being claimed for. Whilst 92.8% of the total claims submitted in the OIC Portal included a whiplash tariff element, 66.24% of those whiplash claims also cited additional injuries that will require some of the General Damages to be assessed outside the whiplash tariff. 

A “Mixed Injury Working Group”, with representatives from both claimant and compensator organisations, has been set up to work collaboratively to fast track test cases through the Court of Appeal to establish Court guidance for valuing General Damages for cases with a mixture of tariff and non-tariff general damages. In the meantime, compensators and claimants are faced with the task of trying to establish and agree sensible, pragmatic valuations of these claims or face testing the dispute resolution processes. These claims will take time to mature and be ready to settle, and we will be watching this space closely over the coming months as this issue progresses. 

Claims Technology – Data 

Managers of claims operations are constantly looking for innovations and technology to help improve their customer experience, reduce operating costs, improve decision making and empower their teams. One of the silver linings of the pandemic restrictions seems to be the appetite it created for the adoption of new technology. But, you can’t just layer new tech onto old tech, the underlying data has to be sound for technology solutions to be truly effective. That was the message we heard time and time again this year from industry commentators. Here are some excerpts:   

Sustainable solutions need to be built on solid foundations – quality data is the “Holy Grail” 

SX3 News – 7th Heaven 

SX3 has now completed its 7th full year supporting the insurance claims industry. Highlights of the year include: 

• Increasing our base of audit clients, including a significant reserves due diligence assignment from a leading reinsurer. Read about it here: Delivering a Rapid Response to Due Diligence Need
• SX3 acted as an expert witness for a commercial dispute between an insurance capacity provider and TPA, independently assessing and quantifying failures of the claims handling 
• Validating an insurer’s in house Quality Assurance by performing a peer review of their in-house audit processes. Read the story here: Peer Review of In-House Audit Processes
• Delivering analytical and strategic decision support to an insurer through a significant change in their claims operating model. The full story is here: Keeping the client in control throughout the change process.

Our team continues to grow, and with now increased geographical coverage with the inclusion of 2 Ireland based consultants.

On a personal note, a small career milestone was passed recently as I marked 35 years working in our industry. I wouldn’t quite say the time has flown by, but it has certainly been interesting. More – Adrian Gilbert – Lessons from 35 Years in Claims

On behalf of all of us at SX3, I thank you for your continued engagement and we wish you the very best for the seasonal festivities. We look forward to seeing you in person in the next year and indeed, the next 7 years. 

Adrian
Tel +44 (0)1702 567 501

PS

We have a few SX3: 7 years (copper) commemorative insulated/reusable drink cups available. I want them to go to good homes in our Claims community. If you would like one, just get in touch.

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Insights from senior figures across both the General Insurance and London Markets, demonstrated where the cutting edge is, and the challenges involved in making progress.  

Intelligent Insurer bought together senior claims practitioners such as: 

• John Bailey, International Solutions Consulting Manager, Blue Prism
• Gijsbert Cox – Industry Leader, Insurance, Appain 
• Peter Edgar, Head of Motor Claims Operations, RSA
• David Fineberg – Head of Claims, Generali UK  
• Martin Kroos – Head of Claims, Achmea 
• Andrew Pedler, Head of Claims Client Relationships and Innovation, Liberty Special Markets
• Corinne Southarewsky – Head of Claims AXA XL APAC and EMEA 
• Kirsten Westly – Head of Financial and Professional Lines Claims, HDI Gerling 

The full webinars are a valuable watch, but for those who are pushed for time, we have created some short extracts from those webinars with some of those key insights: 

• Extract – ‘the holy grail’  
• Extract – Data and Claims Technology 

Links to the full versions of the webinars are here 

• Integrate claims to transform decision-making, information sharing and CX 
• Leverage technology and expedite claims to enhance CX and employee experience 

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A career, it has been said, is a set of random events organised with the benefit of hindsight. A career in claims is not an obvious choice and often one that people say that they fell into rather than deliberately chose. So, what kept my interest for 35 years and makes me want to continue?  To answer that, I share with you a few of the key lessons that came from my career and that ultimately drove me to create a consultancy dedicated to the claims profession.  As fellow claims professionals, you will recognise much of what I say.  

Customer Service is About Owning the Problem 

On my first day working at the Prudential, I was taught the principle of Utmost Good Faith, thank you to Brian King for a concept which has helped me navigate many an indemnity issue ever since.  

The ‘Pru’ was a great grounding for anyone working in insurance. They taught me how important customer service is.  When dealing with customers or issues you don’t blame someone else or pass them on.  You are the organisation as far as the customer is concerned, so own the issue and resolve it for them.  

With several severe weather events (the date 16th Oct 1987 is forever etched in my mind!) to deal with, I also learned how insurers coped with surge events.   

It is Vital to Set and Meet High Standards 

At Endsleigh, in an operation led by Stuart Ballantyne, I learned the challenges of handling claims as a TPA on behalf of insurers. To justify their faith in delegating authority to us, we aimed to make sure we delivered a better claims handling performance than the insurer could do themselves. The standards set were high. 

Mastering the intricacies of uninsured drivers, Domestic Regulation and RTA (Road Traffic Accident) Insurer with the help of Joe Pendle (he was an encyclopaedia when it came to those pink pages of the MIB handbook!) was a huge challenge with a book of young/student drivers, but vital in ensuring we met those high technical standards. 

Understand Where the Company’s Success Comes From – Nurture That Value Through Change 

Moving to Ensign Motor Policies at Lloyd’s, I came to understand the workings of a Lloyd’s Syndicate, 3-year accounting, and how to operate in a small but highly empowered team. Under the leadership of John Neal (now CEO of Lloyd’s), Ensign grew tenfold in ten years.  

For the claims team, that meant coping with rapid growth. We had to develop outsource solutions, sophisticated supply chains, open new offices, implement multiple team restructures, academy programmes, and systems developments. A critical tenet throughout that growth process was to maintain the empowered, entrepreneurial culture and technical capability that made Ensign so successful in the first place.  

All this, at a time where motor claims were undergoing unprecedented upheaval with the Woolf Reforms, emergence of credit hire and the “costs wars”    

Appreciating Diverse Businesses to Uncover and Deliver Value 

QBE acquired Ensign, and their acquisitive nature taught me more strategic considerations such as operational leadership, cross class customer relations, business sector specific service propositions, drawing value from European and global reach, and matrix management systems. It was the many and varied integration projects where I learned to identify best in class, leverage scale and how best to deliver on the expectation of 1+1=3. 

It was very challenging work but what great exposure – Property (who knew pubs became more combustible during a recession!), Casualty (riots in prisons!), Extended Warranty (high volume/low value trend analysis) and Legal Expense claims (just be wary of libel actions against national newspapers) each came my management at some point.  

Keep Learning by Passing on What You Know 

At BGL I learned to view claims from a Broker’s perspective. Not just the customer service demand, but also the operational challenges and commercial opportunities a broker has on the claims side. We also created a new MGA working with overseas capacity. This meant setting up a claims team from scratch, and establishing in them many of the principles I had learned from my previous roles.  

Passing on knowledge is very satisfying, but it calls on you to review your career experience, random or otherwise, and structure it to be communicable. This process, in itself, teaches you new things about what you have experienced.  

This is one of the things that drove me to set up a consultancy practice. Not just my own knowledge, but recognising there is a thirst from many fellow senior claims managers who reach a stage in their career where they want pass on their experience and help fellow professionals in the market. 

SX3 – Looking Forward

The SX3 team now boasts 40+ senior claims experts from across the market all who want to share their knowledge. We have helped many insurers, brokers, suppliers and TPAs with expert advice, independent performance reviews or just an extra pair of hands.   

I wouldn’t quite say 35 years has flown by, but can say Claims has never been dull. Its full of innovation, mind taxing technical challenges, and offers a great capacity for problem solving. I don’t need to add that the industry is also full of interesting and decent people – many I count as friends. 

So, whilst Claims may not be an obvious career choice, how many can say they look forward to tomorrow with a similar enthusiasm to that which they felt on the day they first started their career? 

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The reasons for considering working as an independent contractor or consultant are wide and varied. In my case, I had recently taken a decision to “retire” from full time work following a career of 37 years with the AXA Group. Despite the thrill of a more relaxed lifestyle and more time visiting places and doing things I had on a bucket list, I still felt I had something to offer the industry that had supported me for so long. 

I established my own company and undertook some projects which only served to whet my appetite. To make it worthwhile, I was presented with two big challenges: 

1. How could I find the time and the focus to market my services
2. I was marketing an “only me” proposition, as such, projects would need to be considered in that light 

Fortunately, I spoke to Adrian Gilbert at SX3. He painted a neat picture of life as an SX3 Associate. I was free to accept or decline any work that was offered so had the flexibility to do things I planned to. Moreover, the burden of marketing and other administration was minimised or eliminated, and the work would be potentially diverse and interesting while utilising the skills that I had amassed over my career. 

I completed my first project within weeks. The data had been presented and the narrative report produced.  

Adrian’s description of life as an SX3 Associate quickly proved to be accurate. Not only have I worked with other Associates of SX3, but I have also met and engaged with the claims managers and subject matter experts of numerous clients whether they be insurers, TPAs or self-insuring organisations. It is often said that the world of claims is quite small and whilst that may the case, it takes no time to build lasting and beneficial relationships.  

Throughout the last 4 years, I have been mainly involved in claims reviews on handling performance, “leakage”, and compliance, but I have also participated in reserve accuracy and portfolio run off reviews with various clients throughout the UK. In each case, it has been crucial to lean on the personal experience gathered over many years but also the experience of Associate colleagues, while also able to see how different organisations adapt to market and legal changes. 

Some months are busier than others, but the balance of work still allows me to do some of things I intended to do when I left full time employment. Of course, over the last 18 months or so the project work has become a welcome distraction from the restrictions of COVID lockdown. 

During the Pandemic – Life as an Associate

COVID did cause the whole industry to reconsider the issue of remote working. Systems flexibility has allowed SX3 to continue to provide a valuable service to its clients without the need for physical presence on site. Whilst there are the occasional technical hurdles to overcome, I have found remote working is often a pleasant alternative to spending time away from home and in my case driving up and down the A14!  

The downside is not meeting on a face to face basis those you are working with, that personal contact is both a pleasure and can smooth the progress of tight timescale projects. Nonetheless, we have all got used to MS Teams and that is what it is supposed to be for. 

In summary, moving from permanent working to an SX3 Associate work life has delivered the benefits I was seeking. I would say if anyone is considering a similar life or career change you would do well to speak to Adrian. I am also available for consultation over a glass of the usual fee. 

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SX3 Audits – Claims Processing Improvement

Whilst in yet another lockdown during Q1 2021, it would appear that the impact of lockdown measures on claims operations is easing. For the audits we performed on handling accuracy – which is a set of objective pass/fail tests that result in a set of accuracy scores – performance overall for 2021 to date is 2.5% higher than 2020.  

Looking at our results database by business class, we see Motor performing better than the P&C classes – no surprise really considering the reduction in Motor claim volumes in the last 12 months. The 2020 results will have been impacted by organisations being affected by, and then reacting to, the pandemic. Nonetheless, it is encouraging to see organisations getting back on top of their claims handling over the past 6 months. 

Leakage rates have also improved over the same time periods – at an average reduction of 20.5% in 2021 compared with 2020.  

All SX3 audit clients are now able to have their result compared with our audit performance benchmarks.  

Civil Liability Act – Collaboration is Key

Shortly after the Practice Directions were issued, SX3 conducted a survey of the market to gauge reaction on the detail. https://www.insurancetimes.co.uk/news/majority-of-claimants-still-set-to-be-represented-by-law-firms-or-cmcs-in-new-whiplash-portal/1437537.article 

Chief amongst the concerns raised was the process for disputes arising from valuing hybrid injury claims, i.e., those with both a whiplash element (valued by way of the tariff) and non-whiplash element (still valued by way of General Damages guidelines).  

Longer term, this may get solved by the initiative being undertaken to seek guidance from the courts by way of some fast tracked test cases to the Court of Appeal. https://www.officialinjuryclaim.org.uk/news/mixed-injuries-update/. However, that still leaves a degree of uncertainty in the meantime. Collaboration between the stakeholders is key here to reduce friction from the process and achieve acceptable outcomes for all parties involved.  

Reserving – Predictive Analytics Comes in to Play

Our work on reserving practices will typically look at:  

• reserve adequacy 
• timeliness of updates 
• proactivity of information gathering
• compliance to stated guidelines 

We have undertaken a timely review of some of the tools out on the market to assist with reserve assessment and calculation.  

Reserve calculation tools are not new, but the use of predictive analytics to compare a reserve calculation against other, similar, now settled claims, can really add a new dimension to the process. We appreciate an experienced large loss handler can competently work up a reserve on a new claim.  However, when it comes to agreeing that reserve figure and rationale with the various stakeholders quite usual on large losses, the added weight of the market data that can be provided by these predictive analytics tools, provides an extra level of confidence in the reserve figure to be agreed.  

Claims Technology – Easing the Cost of Integration 

SX3 is constantly monitoring the marketplace for new applications that improve the efficiency of claim handling. However, it is not uncommon for a client’s business cases to fail due to the time and cost required to integrate the new technology into existing systems. Naturally, we were very interested when Claim Technology offered to demonstrate a tool aimed at solving that problem. 

1-Click Insurtech is a platform allowing insurers to consume dozens of solutions from best-in-class insurtechs, all through a single API. There are even offering some funding for users to develop their first use case! 

Claims Technology – Free Webinar June 24 at 3PM 

Regarding claims automation and integration, you would be most welcome to join me (I’m the moderator), for a free webinar hosted by Intelligent Insurer on this very topic.    

There is an excellent panel of senior claims figures from both General Insurance and London Market.  It would be great if you could join live but you also have the option receive an email link to the event to view at a time of your choice.   

No commitment registration here:  https://www.brighttalk.com/webcast/16535/483185  

SX3 News – Spreading our Wings 

SX3 is now an Associate Member of ACSO (the Association of Consumer Support Organisations). This complemented our role as a Trade and Industry Partner of FOIL in preparing for the whiplash reforms to ensure we could consider the impact of the changes from all angles. So far, we have been impressed with the organisation and effectiveness of the ACSO team and look forward to working more with them.  

SX3 has achieved registered supplier status with FSQS, the cross-sector collaboration solution that reduces the time, cost, resources and duplication needed to provide due diligence information for suppliers and purchasers of supplier services.  

SX3 Approved by Lloyd’s 

In another development, we are now on the list of approved auditors for Lloyd’s Delegated Authority Manager. If you write business through Lloyd’s and have claims auditing requirements, now would be a good time to try our services. 

SX3 Round Table – Talking Taxi Credit Hire 

As a specialist Claims consultancy, we are keen to create a forum where industry specialists can engage on matters of uncertainty.  In what I hope will be the first of many SX3 round table discussions, we recently hosted a round table on the thorny topic of taxi credit hire, with a representative of the credit hire industry debating key issues with one of our own experts. https://sx3.co.uk/claims-insight-taxi-insurance-claims/.  

If there is a claims issue, even if you think the audience is quite limited, you would like to see aired then do drop me a note. 

Is Consulting the Next Step For You? 

The extent and diversity of our consultancy continues to grow. We are looking to grow our network of experts so if you are an independent consultant or if you have industry experience and may be considering a change of direction do get in contact. 

https://sx3.co.uk/could-you-be-an-sx3-consultant/  

If you would like any more information about any of the topics we’ve covered here or have any other claims related queries, just get in touch.  

The post Making Claims – Adrian Gilbert overviews major claims industry developments appeared first on SX3 (Re)Insurance Claims Consultants.

Read the transcript here: https://sx3.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/SX3-Claims-Insight-17-Taxi-Insurance-Claims.pdf

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How right he was. This time last year, SX3 and its clients were packed together in a bar celebrating our 5-year anniversary. That seems a lifetime ago now. No one then could have predicted how 2020 was going to be, and even now, anyone attempting to predict the future does so with extreme caution or folly. One thing we have been able to rely upon is that the claims market continues to prove as interesting and innovative as ever. So, no predictions, but here are a few things I’ve seen going on. 

Remote Working

No sooner had ‘partial return to office’ work patterns settled in, than they had to be reviewed to accommodate Lockdown 2. However, departmental agility is now the norm, so many claims organisations have taken this in their stride with teams reaching a happy equilibrium in their agile working regimes. Significant upsides are being realised – freeing up office space, improved flexibility for team members, and even improving delivery capacity now they aren’t restrained by office space.  

Employees and employers alike have welcomed the opportunity to work more flexibly – with many organisations reporting an initial upsurge in productivity – but now some fatigue is setting in. The shift to remote working means that some of the traditional methods for creating motivation and engagement for employees are less effective when they work remotely. Working relationships also risk decaying over time without face to face and social time.  

Much has already been written about the mental health risks felt through isolation. These key issues must be addressed if we are to capitalise on the remote working evolution underway in our industry. Management practices have been supported with remote working tools. Everyone is familiar with Zoom and Teams now, but we are also seeing the emergence of applications to engage remote workers on their wellbeing. At SX3, we have been trialling T-Cup, led by someone familiar to many in the Claims world – Edwyn van Rooyen, former CEO of Validus. Is that what long term exposure to credit hire claims does to you? 

The Market

Business interruption claims have taken centre stage with polarised industry wordings and Supreme Court test cases. With the ABI estimating the cost of claims at £1.7bn, the outcome of the test cases could have a significant and long-term effect on clients’ perceptions of their insurers and brokers.  

Whilst motor insurers felt the benefit of fewer vehicles on the road, insurers have noted an increase in older / dormant personal injury claims being resurrected. It’s also no coincidence that with significant job cuts and workers on furlough, insurers have seen an increase in fraudulent and exaggerated claims. Is social inflation, a phenomenon seen largely so far only in the US, something that will start to feature here in the UK? 

We have seen more take up of remote medical examinations and rehabilitation for whiplash injuries, and in credit hire, battles are emerging around hire periods extending to allow for cleaning and quarantining of returned cars.  

One silver lining has been the increased adoption of digital claims services this year. Insurers and claimant organisations are both seeing benefits, which is perfect timing for Minster Law’s launch of INK, their new digital claims portal. All they need now is clarity on when the Civil Liability Act will come into force! 

There have been casualties in the claims supply chain with Nationwide Accident Repair Centres calling in the administrators. Redde Northgate has taken on the bulk of the sites and it was good to see Steve Thompson of Connected Solutions reaching out to his ex-colleagues to offer any help he could.

People News

Sadly, but not surprisingly, we have seen an increase in the number of experienced claims managers having to look for a new job. The market’s loss however is our gain, with 14 new senior professionals joining our Associate network.

This is in addition to welcoming Lorraine Bussey as Head of Audit and the promotion of Laura Phillips to Head of Operations.

We have also added 2 underwriting management consultants to the team, to meet client demand for a broader range of process reviews. 

SX3 – our sixth year in business

SX3 as a business experienced double-digit growth despite the impact of various lockdown measures. We were already working remotely to some extent pre-March, and now it is simply the default method. Audits, process reviews, change programmes have all transitioned smoothly to remote working. 

After all, clients still need support getting on with their business, and we have been engaged across a range of claims matters such as breakdown cover claims, C-19 BI claims management, the opportunities and pitfalls of indemnity spend guarantees within TPA contracts, supplier tenders, headhunting, leakage control and reserving practices.

In the last few months, we have launched 3 new services, a Delegated Claims Handling Authority review, a Business Continuity plan review, and SX3 Associate, Phil Rawlings, well known to those of you in the motor claims arena is leading our new credit hire protocol review service. 

Next year we will continue to grow our core businesses, Audit, Consultancy and Resourcing for both General Insurance and London Market needs.

One thing that I can predict with some certainly (a ‘known known’, to quote Donald again), is that we continue to work to the needs of our clients – which in one case even meant performing an audit sitting in their otherwise empty office!  

Adrian
Nov 2020

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Lorraine joins us after a long career with MS Amlin where she was Senior Claims Manager. Lorraine will take responsibility for SX3 Audit Services already a major business line within Audit & Review. Lorraine is charged with developing the market offering and delivering growth going forward.

Laura, after two years with SX3, will in her new role, continue to deliver operational management expertise to the SX3 business lines, Audit & Review, Consulting and Resources. In addition, Laura is charged with developing the SX3 Resources business line.

These appointments represent a major investment in the next stage of development for SX3.

Adrian Gilbert, MD SX3, said “SX3 worked with Lorraine at MS Amlin where her experience and expertise made her one of our most demanding clients. To have someone of Lorraine’s calibre join our management team is a big step forward for the company. Her arrival, combined with Laura’s promotion, is a significant milestone in the development of our consultancy.”

Lorraine said “I am delighted to join SX3 at such an exciting time in the development of the business. I look forward to the challenge of taking SX3’s Audit consulting franchise to the next level.”

For more information on this story please contact:

Adrian Gilbert
+44 (0)7801 684 335
adrian.gilbert@sx3.co.uk

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