When an insured reports a claim, the professional, independent insurance agent and the insurance company claims adjuster work together to help the insured get back on his or her feet.

Company claims adjusters and agents can benefit from a mutual understanding that fosters synergy and a positive working relationship. PIA magazine asked claims adjusters from two insurance companies for their perspective regarding claims handling and how they handle the more personal side of their job. Gary Desnoyers, claims management specialist at Selective Insurance Co. of America; and David Moses, general adjuster for major property claims at The Hartford, shared their experiences with PIA.

Jaye CzuprynaPIA’s member information manager

Make the adjuster your BFF

Let the adjuster help you weather a c laim

112119B Article for may2015 r3b .indd 24-25 4/14/2015 12:31:19 PM

Professional insurance agents magazine2 2

—Reprinted with permission from PIA Management Services Inc.—

When an insured reports a claim, the professional, independent insurance agent and the insurance company claims adjuster work together to help the insured get back on his or her feet.

Company claims adjusters and agents can benefit from a mutual understanding that fosters synergy and a positive working relationship. PIA magazine asked claims adjusters from two insurance companies for their perspective regarding claims handling and how they handle the more personal side of their job. Gary Desnoyers, claims management specialist at Selective Insurance Co. of America; and David Moses, general adjuster for major property claims at The Hartford, shared their experiences with PIA.

Jaye CzuprynaPIA’s member information manager

Make the adjuster your BFF

Let the adjuster help you weather a c laim

112119B Article for may2015 r3b .indd 24-25 4/14/2015 12:31:19 PM

www.Pia.org 2 3

—Reprinted with permission from PIA Management Services Inc.—

Desnoyers has worked at Selective for 11 years. Moses has been with The Hart-ford for 17 years and has adjusted more than 5,000 claims.

When you first arrive at a claim, what goes through your mind? Desnoyers: It depends on the type of claim. I handle property losses involving vehicles, homes and commercial structures. If I am at a house fire, my objec-tive is to locate the property owners and reassure them that I will walk them through the claims process. House fires evoke varying emotions from the parties affected. There are many people milling about and the property owners may have no idea who they are or why they are there. As the adjuster, I try to be as empathetic as possible, take control of the situation for the customer and provide the necessary guidance.

Moses: The damage from fire or wind can be extraordinary, but I am able to look beyond that. When I arrive at the scene of a claim, my first priority is our customer. I look into their eyes and try to put them at ease. I let them know that I am there to help make things better in this most difficult time for them. My focus is on making a connection and gaining our customers’ trust. After that initial meeting, I look at the physical damages. I had spent 15 years building homes before becoming a claims adjuster, which gave me a good understanding of construction and contractors.

What was your most difficult claim? Desnoyers: The most difficult claim for me to handle involves a loss of life. Fatalities require an empathetic approach. Completing an investigation while

a family is grieving takes sensitivity. Adjusters who have handled these types of claims for many years can become numb to the tragedy because they do not have a personal connec-tion to the deceased. As a field-based employee—who lives in the same community as the deceased—my ability to connect is greater.

Moses: There have been several diffi-cult claims over the years, but one that comes to mind involved a small house fire during the October 2011 snowstorm. The homeowner tried to call 911, but his phone wouldn’t work. He went next door to his neighbor’s house to call and came back to his home to get his wife out of the house. By then, the home was fully engulfed with flames, and his wife did not make it.

When I came to the house, I did not go in to see the damages or advise the husband about what his policy could do for him. I asked him about his wife. He was in his early 80s, and his wife was a college professor. They had met at a dance 60 years ago. He said she had a boyfriend at the time, but he was able to take her away from him.

When our Cause & Origin team was investigating the fire, I asked them to look for our customer’s wedding ring, which he kept by his bed. There was more than a foot of ash, but our C&O team was able to find his wedding ring. He cried when I gave it to him.

What’s your best claim/deed? Desnoyers: My best accomplish-ment over the past many years is the relationships I have built with my peers, vendors, agents and members of the community. Working for Selective as a field-based employee

Gary Desnoyers claims management specialist

at Selective Insurance Co. of America

David Moses general adjuster for major

property claims at The Hartford

Professional insurance agents magazine2 4

—Reprinted with permission from PIA Management Services Inc.—

makes me accessible to people and allows me to create and maintain these personal relationships. You cannot experience or accomplish this in every insurance company or position. The personal touch has been lost by many companies due to technology or the geography of their claims structure.

Moses: I had a claim a few years ago. Our customer was dying of cancer. He took his own life in a way that burned down his house. We paid the claim to his wife. Over months of phone calls, I got to know her. Even after the claim was paid, she would call me every few months to say hello or send me a quick email. One day after a long winter, I received a call from her. She told me she was close to taking her own life, but she thought about me and how I would feel, after all I had done to help her. She checked herself into a hospital and got help.

How has handling claims affected your personal life? Desnoyers: It has changed how I view certain everyday occurrences. I am more conscious of the risks involved in normal and fun activities such as using a trampoline or swim-ming pool. The older I get and the more claims experience I gain, the less likely I am to take chances with certain situations involving other people. I also find that as a claims adjuster, I have become the insur-ance expert for all my friends and family who look to me for guidance on anything insurance-related.

Moses: After all the damage I have seen, I make sure to unplug small appliances when they are not in

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use, clean my fireplace flues, replace water heaters and change washing machine hoses. But seeing all the physical damage, devastation and death has made me grateful for what I have in my life: my family, friends, co-workers and The Hartford, which has been very good to me over the years.

What should everyone know about a “day in the life” of an adjuster?Desnoyers: A day in the life of a claims adjuster can be hectic, exciting, intriguing, educational, or occasionally uneventful. We do not know what to expect from one day to the next. We meet most of our customers for the first time at their worst time, and it is our job to guide them through the claims experience and make it as positive as possible. At the end of each day I like to take a step back, take a deep breath and reflect on what I have accomplished.

Moses: As an adjuster, there is no standard day. The “day” can span an entire career. We need to be able to respond quickly as situations arise … I could receive a claim in the next couple of minutes and be in New York City or parts of Connecticut this afternoon. There could be a tornado or hurricane or other cata-strophic weather event, and I could be in Florida, Virginia or Michigan the next day. It’s an exciting life that always is changing and never the same. At end of the day, it’s about making that connection with our customers and being responsive to their needs.

Final thoughts?Desnoyers: When you start working as a claims adjuster, you discover that helping people in their time of need in your own community provides great satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment. After 16 years of claims handling, I’m still amazed when I run into a situation I have not yet experienced. Insurance, like any other field, is constantly changing. Through all the changes, I strive to approach my job with the same posi-tive outlook and enthusiasm that I had when I began my career.

Moses: Life is about having passion for what you do. If you have that passion, then you will be successful and it will translate to good things.

Czupryna is PIA’s member information manager.

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—Reprinted with permission from PIA Management Services Inc.—