Today’s settlement negotiation landscape has changed dramatically from the 1980s and early 1990s. With Medicare compliance issues, the Affordable Care Act, and needs-based governmental benefits—to name but a few of the many variables at play—it is wise to look beyond the traditional cash settlement approach to resolving personal injury disputes.

Thanks to today’s technology, “Waldo,” or any claimant, is easier to find or track than ever before. Tracking technology available now was unheard of a generation ago, and insurers are exploring this new technology as a vital tool to investigate claims and fight fraud.

The term “succession planning” may send chills down a claims manager’s spine. There are enough claims to be handled without adding active succession planning to the to-do list.

There is an old saying: “If you come at the King, you’d best not miss.” The unspoken addendum to the sentence is “or you undoubtedly will be killed yourself.” How often has this phrase inspired a claimant or insured to get away with fraud in the application for a policy or in the presentation of a claim?

Insurance bad faith continues to be an area of significant concern for the insurance industry. Over the past several years, many jurisdictions have expanded the scope of an insurer’s potential liability for bad faith damages.

If we historically compare the world of special investigation units (SIUs) to Hollywood, the genre of “film noir” comes to mind as an analogy for our industry. For decades, claims investigations were conducted in the shadows.

Revolutionary change-change that upends the norm and establishes a new way of thinking-often is made during crisis, and make no mistake about it, the claims industry is in a state of crisis.

The sweet aroma of cotton candy and the sounds of the carnival midway filled the air at the county fair. The insured and his wife were volunteering in a United Fund booth. The insured was a student body president at a local community college and his wife an elementary school teacher.

The Florida Supreme Court, based on recommendations by the Florida Bar Code and Rules of Evidence Committee, has refused to adopt changes to multiple Florida Statutes to the extent they are procedural. While there is some debate, it appears that this does not yet kill the Daubert standard as the guiding principles for expert witness testimony.

When a tragedy such as a homicide or suicide occurs in a home, families typically look to their homeowner's policy to help mitigate the costs associated with cleanup. Many cleaning and restoration companies offer bioremediation services, but only those that specialize in the field fully understand the science.

As a claims adjuster, have you ever had a situation where a claim was clearly defensible, yet have the case turn on a single bad deposition? Defense counsel tells you your witness was fully prepared and went into the deposition confident that the truth would not only bolster but strengthen your case. Yet afterwards you learn the witness ended up making admissions creating significant issues and problems for your case.

Fire, floods, and other natural disasters. As an insurance adjuster, these are the situations you are trained to respond to. But what happens when your client experiences a biohazard incident in their home?

Outwardly, it was the kind of firm pictured in business advertising: with smiling, uniformed employees posed next to new trucks parked in front of the firm's new plant. Business was about to increase substantially due to a contract with the U.S. Postal Service. How the insured acquired that contract was one of the many questions that arose following the loss.

Adjusting Business Income claims and calculation of the amount payable is typically considered difficult to understand and complex. When claims professional look for how-to information they discover it is hard to find. Yes - several books have been written on coverage, theories and principles but most fail to provide the step-by-step information.