BUSINESS CONTINUITY / DISASTER RECOVERY
BUSINESS CONTINUITY / DISASTER RECOVERY
ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY ADOBE STOCK
PREPARING YOUR CALL CENTER FOR HURRICANE SEASON
GET AHEAD OF THE NEXT NATURAL DISASTER WITH THESE SIMPLE PREP TIPS .
BY BILL BROWER , SOLERA
A
severe storm is coming ashore in the insurance claims industry , and we ’ re not just talking about the upcoming hurricane season .
It has been building for a while , and like a tropical storm growing into a hurricane , the conditions are just right for this storm to wreak havoc on the claims industry .
With a unique set of challenges disrupting the industry this past year , call centers must be knowledgeable and proactive if they want to come out of the upcoming hurricane season relatively unscathed .
28 CONTACT CENTER PIPELINE
INFLATION , SUPPLY CHAIN ISSUES , TURNOVER FUEL STORM
Inflation is as high as it ’ s been in about 40 years , and there ’ s no real way of knowing how long it will last or if we ’ re approaching the high or low points of inflation rates .
The rapid rise in inflation is like kryptonite to insurance companies as they often can ’ t increase premiums across the 50 U . S . states quickly enough to offset surging costs . This means insurance companies are behind the 8-ball , often losing money during these times . In fact , AM Best maintained its negative outlook on US Personal Lines Insurance for 2023 .
On top of rising inflation , supply chain backlogs continue plaguing the industry . This is slowing repair cycle times and often inflating the number of incoming status calls , leading to a deterioration of loss ratios .
This is evident in rental days per repair . Enterprise Rent-A-Car recently reported that the average length of rental for collision replacement-related rentals is up by nearly a third compared to cycle times in 2020 .
The Great Resignation and minuscule unemployment rates have pushed employee turnover levels at call centers well above industry norms . For this reason , the cost of turnover is another added expense to an already struggling sector . And with inflation pushing up the cost of living and wages , it is an endless effort for some call centers to maintain a fully staffed team .