With a new year upon is, there has never been a better time to implement processes to find more money.   With adjusters busier than ever, more and more subrogation opportunities are getting overlooked.

While some carriers, TPA’s and self-insured’s have gotten better at subrogation identification, there is still a gaping hole to fill.   It is estimated that 15% of all claims are closed with a missed subrogation opportunity.   In some lines, such as workers’ compensation, that figure approaches 30% and that doesn’t even include the credits that are lost in an effort to push files to a premature closure.

The reason for some improvements, in some lines, is that many carriers and vendors, including SecondLook, have developed advanced analytics and algorithms to ID subrogation.    In many cases, that is all that is needed, in particular on less complex claims.   But analytics will only get you so far, as demonstrated in the following chart, which is what led us to the creation of SecondLook Technology where we stepped beyond a tech only application and modeled over 600 years of claims expertise to provide a cutting-edge solution.

In two recent closed file audits for large insurers SecondLook Technology found millions of dollars missed by front line adjusters and vendors.   In one, we reviewed over 100,000 claims closed with no recovery.   In 404 of them SecondLook recovered what others missed for a net back to the carrier of $2 million dollars.   The majority of those recoveries were the result of our patent pending ReverseSubrogation™ process.

Reverse subrogation can come into play in a variety of situations, in particular on auto no-fault, cargo and construction claims.    To solve for these very difficult scenarios, SecondLook designed a unique to industry solution to identify what is virtually impossible to model.  Building this level of sophistication into a subrogation process is ever evolving and one where utilizing SecondLook’s FREE closed file audit could yield substantial missed subrogation opportunities.

Subrogation remains one of the few areas in the claims process where money can be brought back into the organization.   Focusing on new and innovative technology has proven to be helpful but can only get organizations part of the way there.   Laying in SecondLook’s unique solution, currently used by dozens of insurers, TPA’s and self-insureds has resulted in clients gaining a significant competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Chris Tidball is an Executive Claims Consultant with SecondLook, a leading provider of subrogation services.   He has spent more than 30 years in adjusting, management and leadership positions with multiple Top 10 carriers’ insurance related enterprises. and has authored multiple books, including Re-Adjusted: Taking Your Claims Organization From Ordinary To Extraordinary!  and is the host of the Insurance Claims Innovation podcast.   He can be reached at ctidball@2ndlook.net.