After eighteen months of development, Allianz Canada is ready to launch electronic claims
reporting using web-based software. On February 19th, under a pilot project, the first
Allianz customer transmitted their motor vehicle accident report electronically from North
York Accident Support Services Ltd., one of Toronto’s three Collision Reporting Centres
(CRCs), directly to Allianz Canada’s Toronto claims office.
In many Ontario cities, motorists who have been involved in
motor vehicle accidents report these accidents at a CRC. In addition to the three Toronto
CRCs, Accident Support Services International Ltd. has Centres located in London, Barrie,
Orillia and Peterborough. In other cities, like Ottawa, CRC’s are operated by the local
police force. There, motorists complete an accident report and review it with a police
officer. CRC staff take digital photographs of the damage to the vehicle, then assist the
motorist to contact their insurance company.
Completion of the government regulated accident report can
be confusing and time intensive for the consumer. After police verification, these reports
are currently faxed or couriered to insurers for use in settling the insurance claim. In
some cases, the customer must relay the same information to a CRC employee, the police,
their insurance broker, and one or more insurance adjusters. During the development of its
new claims management system, Allianz Canada saw an opportunity to apply technology to the
front-end reporting process in order to improve customer service while decreasing claim
processing time and costs.
Under the new model, the customer enters the accident
information directly into a PC at the CRC, using a customer-friendly software program that
Allianz Canada has developed. CRC staff members assist the customer in the process. The
report is reviewed by police at the CRC and then transmitted to an electronic mailbox in
Allianz’s claims office. This model eliminates much of the duplication of effort,
increasing the speed with which the claim is handled and decreasing processing costs for
both the CRC and Allianz.
Discussions are now underway to make the software available
to other insurers and CRC locations, including those independently owned and operated
under contract with the municipal government and those operated by police. Ultimately,
widespread use of the system will speed and simplify the process of matching reports from
the various parties involved in the same collision. Later in 2002, Allianz will integrate
the revolutionary new software into its new claims system to automatically generate a
“new client report”. It will also be integrated into the CROMS (Collision
Reporting & Occurrence Management System) software being developed by Accident Support
Services International Ltd. Allianz Canada is also considering how this system might be
adapted in the future to enable on-line reporting from brokers’ offices for all types of claims.
Bob Jewett, Allianz Canada’s Senior Vice President of
Claims, says the system “harnesses the latest technology to achieve multiple goals
and benefit our customers, the CRC’s, and our own claims operation.” He is pleased
with the pilot and, together with the Management Team at Accident Support Services
International Ltd., is involved in discussions with Toronto police and government
officials in preparation for a full launch. While Mr. Jewett believes that this innovative
system is the way of the future, he notes, “Ultimately the consumer will tell us if
this is how they want to report their accidents. We believe they will appreciate the
increased convenience and the improved speed of response on their claim.”
