Xactware and Verisk Climate Make It Easier to Validate Weather-Related Claims
Benchmark for Xactimate helps adjusters and contractors save time and improve customer service
LEHI, Utah, and LEXINGTON, Mass., March 31 2015 - A new integration announced today, Benchmark(TM) for Xactimate®, expands the ways claims handlers and contractors can use weather analysis to more effectively validate storm damage claims. Users of the Xactware loss-estimating system Xactimate can now receive Benchmark reports detailing the history of hail, wind, and lightning at a property location. The same Benchmark reports are also available to users of XactAnalysis®, Xactware's claims management and analytical tool. Xactware and Verisk Climate are Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq:VRSK) businesses.
Verisk Climate research and analysis indicates that approximately 30 percent of hail claims have an incorrect date of loss. Loss-date inaccuracy can unnecessarily increase claim cycle time and reduce the effectiveness of using claims experience to implement new risk management strategies.
Benchmark for Xactimate extends Verisk's leadership in workflow-integrated weather claims verification across the full claims life cycle. With Benchmark, claims adjusters and repair contractors can better confirm coverage, verify damage, assign the correct date of loss, and provide transparency to the policyholder throughout the adjustment and repair process.
"The integration of the Verisk Climate weather reports into the Xactware line of solutions has helped us improve efficiencies during both catastrophe and non-cat situations," said Gary Willis, senior manager of property claims at Georgia Farm Bureau. "Whether it's an outlier hail or lightning claim or thousands of claims within a catastrophe, our claims handlers are now able to quickly analyze the weather data provided and use it as a tool within their investigation and handling of the claims."
Claims teams can validate claims information and recode the date or cause of loss by accessing hail, wind, and lightning reports automatically or on-demand from within their claims workflows. Precisely understanding potentially damaging weather that occurred at each property address helps claims managers ensure the right adjuster is in the right place at the right time, and claims investigators can more quickly identify potential vandalism or fraud.
Contractors can use Benchmark for Xactimate hail and wind reports to help verify the cause of roof damage.
Field staff can use Benchmark Web and Benchmark-Mobile to view maps of storm regions and severity and locate their precise location or an individual roof within the storm swath. The combined solution of reports and maps provides comprehensive support to on-site users.
"Since integrating Benchmark reports into XactAnalysis two years ago, hundreds of thousands of reports have been issued, leading to faster claims verification and higher customer satisfaction," said Ryan Johnson, Xactware's assistant vice president of Xactimate. "Now we've made the same industry-standard reports available in Xactimate, which extends the capability to more insurers, independent adjusters, restoration service providers, and roofing contractors who work together to help make the policyholder whole."
"Benchmark is arguably the standard for weather claims verification in the insurance industry. With this integration, Verisk Climate and Xactware are extending our commitment to provide insurance firms and their networks of service providers with highly accurate reports designed specifically for the insurance process," said Patrick Pollard, Verisk Climate's vice president of insurance solutions. "We're committed to delivering these reports through multiple integration points to provide convenient and seamless access at all parts of the claim life cycle."
For more information on Benchmark for Xactimate, go to http://www.veriskclimate.com/solutions/benchmark/benchmark-xactimate.
About Xactware
Xactware specializes in technologies for the property insurance, remodeling, restoration, and mortgage and lending industries. Xactware's tools provide claims estimating, contents replacement, claims management, and property maintenance solutions for desktop, mobile, and online platforms. Xactware's services include repair cost research and reports, aerial imagery, and real-time business intelligence. Xactware has been providing cloud services for customers since 1995. Xactware is a Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq:VRSK) business. For more information about Xactware's solutions, contact Xactware at 1-800-424-9228 or Xactware.com.
About Verisk Climate
Verisk Climate helps make society more resilient to the volatile natural environment. The business provides software, data, and analytics for enterprise climate risk management. Its solutions help corporations improve resilience and profitability while enhancing service to their customers. Manufacturers, distributors, and retailers rely on Verisk Climate to accelerate revenue growth through more accurate forecasts of product demand and to promote stable operations by helping mitigate supply chain risk. Insurance carriers can apply Verisk Climate solutions to help improve customer service and reduce their property combined ratios through more accurate risk selection and lower claims expense. Verisk Climate innovations draw on the data and proprietary analytics of Verisk Analytics, including disaster risk models from AIR Worldwide and environmental data and expertise from Atmospheric and Environmental Research (AER). Verisk Climate is a Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq:VRSK) business. For more information, visit veriskclimate.com
Media Contacts:
Xactware
Jens Dana
1-801-932-8653
jadana@xactware.com
Verisk Climate
Brenda Kelly
1-781-761-2348
bkelly@veriskclimate.com