Webinar: In-Person vs. Phone Interviewing Claimants

Strategies and techniques are very different between phone and in-person interviews. Participants will learn how to prepare for and develop processes for interviewing claimants, with special emphasis on the complex injury fraud cases. Fine tune listening skills and hone the art of file review and preparation. Know how one should deal with the unexpected and what you need in front of you during the interview. Learn how to compensate for the absence of body language and nonverbal communication during phone interviews.

Webinar: Materials Misrepresentation

While investigations into application misrepresentations are common, proving materiality of a misrepresentation at trial depends entirely on a quality and targeted investigation and coordination with underwriting. So many quality investigations that seemingly prove misrepresentations in the insurance application are undone by an inability to prove materiality or to prove that a representation was actually false. As an industry we often fail to understand the interplay of misrepresentations and materiality and how to prove both. This seminar will discuss best practices for undertaking a quality and reliable investigation to ensure the results are valid and sufficient for trial.

Webinar: Undetermined Fire? Don't Throw in the Towel

This session will attempt to dispel the common misconception that an insurance carrier cannot raise an arson defense to coverage when the cause of the fire has been classified as undetermined. The speaker will give an overview of the insurance carrier's burden of proof in arson cases - specifically the preponderance of evidence standard applicable in many states. The speaker will then discuss how an insurance carrier can meet its burden of proof, even when faced with an undetermined fire, through the use of circumstantial evidence relating to motive and opportunity. The session will provide a real-life example of an arson case, recently tried by the speaker, which resulted in a verdict for the insurance carrier, even though the fire experts classified the cause of the fire as undetermined. 

Webinar: Biohazard Cleanup

The cleanup of a biohazard situation, whether it be rodent infestation or dead bodies, is an unenviable task on the best of days. As an industry we have regularly paid exorbitant biohazard invoices with a shrug of frustrated acceptance. But, such ambivalence has now bread a cottage industry where biohazard firms are taking advantage of carriers who do not know and who do not want to know the full extent of the work performed. The bills for biohazard cleanup regularly include massive charges for whole building remediation even when the biohazard is contained to a single room. The charges are unregulated, astronomical, and regularly paid without question. Now, many biohazard companies are going so far as to offer their services for cash to an insured at a rate typically less than 10% of what they charge an insurance company for the same charge and regularly demand an insured enter into a confidentiality agreement whereby the insured is precluded from discussing their knowledge of the biohazard company with the insurance carrier. This presentation is designed to educate SIU and claims in the best practices of investigating these claims and developing evidence to combat the legitimacy of the biohazard invoices, identify the true scope of work and damage, and defeat the claimed reasonableness of their invoices.