ABI In Agreement With Rescue Services To Increase Emergency Responsiveness

by Stewart Douglas

Story link: ABI In Agreement With Rescue Services To Increase Emergency Responsiveness

The insurance industry will now be more responsive to emergency incidents after a cooperative agreement with recuse services and local authorities was announced today, allowing more rapid response to claims management.

Under the agreement announced today, the Association of British Insurers will be informed as to the extent of damage at any emergency scene by rescue services in partnership with local authority agents, before bringing this to the attention of their memebers to allow earlier access and claims adjustment on-site at a much more rapid pace.

The ABI represents the insurance industry at large, and has a reach of over 90% of the UK insurance market, making it the largest professional body within the industry. As such, it is highly influencial in treating emergency situations and their insurance consequences, and in accordance with the deal announced today, it should be able to more rapidly communicate levels of potential damage to insurers as they arise.

It is thought that this kind of arrangement will prove useful in situations like the extensive flooding seen throughout England earlier in the summer, where insurers were left in the lurch as to the extent of claims, and the possible level of losses that could be sustained.

The programme, cooperatively signed between the fire and rescue service, local government, the police and the ABI, as well as the Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters, is designed to allow policy holders more transparency in the event of emergency situations as to how much of any claim will be met by their existing policies.

The announcement has been welcomed by insurers as a more robust strategy for handling crisis situations, which should lead to a heightened responsiveness from the relevant insurers in terms of assessing damaging and administering claims in unexpected, life threatening or extensive damage environments.