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Property Services
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| “Innovation First
Notice’s rules-driven claim intake engine
is extremely powerful. It’s designed to
automatically select the losses that qualify
for AlacNET’s
contractor services based on a carrier’s
custom business rules. This results in immediate
contractor
referrals, improved customer service, and lower
indemnity costs.” |
| Warren
Erickson,
Alacrity Services |
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With property losses, insurance carriers face two main challenges
in getting policyholders back to pre-loss condition. The first
is finding a suitable provider—fast. Few carriers have
the infrastructure in place to quickly respond to structural
claims around the clock, so policyholders are left on their
own to find means of repair. They use hit-or-miss, time-consuming
methods to locate vendors varying greatly in price and quality.
Not ideal when delays can be especially costly for certain
claim types, like water damage, that increase in severity
with time.
The other challenge for carriers is managing loss expenses
when so many different vendors across so many locations are
involved. How can they be sure they’re being charged
fairly for repairing burst pipes in Wisconsin when they have
no experience with that damage in that location?
Innovation First Notice has partnered with Alacrity Services to solve
these two challenges. AlacNET is their nationwide
network of general
contractors
and mitigation service providers that have all been pre-qualified
and have willingly agreed to conform to quality procedures
and pricing guidelines. Since 1999, Alacrity has produced
more than 100,000 structural loss estimates and managed
more than
$200 million in direct structural repairs.
When a policyholder reports a claim to First Notice, the
carrier’s business rules (using location, policy/coverage,
loss type, and severity) determine if the caller qualifies
for a contractor referral. Innovation First Notice then accesses the
AlacNET
network, which includes 1,400 contractors throughout the
U.S.,
to find those that meet the criteria. Policyholders can elect
to have a contractor visit the damage site and generate
an
estimate without any obligation to use this contractor. In
emergencies, contractors follow up with policyholders within
1 hour and are on site within 4 hours. In non-emergency cases,
policyholders are contacted within 24 hours and visited
within
48 hours. Once on-site, AlacNET contractors create estimates
using pre-approved pricing guidelines and guarantee workmanship
for 1 year and materials for 3 years.
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