Curbside, online, and by phone.

In premium audit, we are delivering our services in new and responsive ways, much like other industries over the course of 2020. For us, that means finding common ground that respects a policyholder’s Covid-19 guidelines—which vary by industry and state—and conforms with A.I.M. Mutual’s guidelines as well.

There are logistics, to be sure. Have you ever worked on a laptop in an automobile while trying to hold records so you can see them? How many times has your pen or phone dropped down by the side of your seat, necessitating a disembarkment to move the seat forward and crawl under it? It’s a job best left to a trained busker attuned to manipulating and balancing many items at once, making sure to drop none.

Although there is no applause at the end, the satisfaction comes from getting the job done with the comfort level of our customers intact. Their safety and ours is priority one.

An Audit—Right Now?

Premium audits are an essential part of the life cycle of a workers’ compensation policy. Some might say a necessary evil, but the fact remains the same: one way or another, they need to be conducted. After all, calculating insurance costs correctly by completing annual audit adjustments not only makes sense but is a requirement.

Yet during the pandemic, with fluctuations in payroll, audits took on more urgency in some industries. A recent challenge has been the ability to get out to see our customers to do these physical audits. Our territories can cover a wide region. In my case, I’m responsible for parts of northern and central Massachusetts.

Our own procedures restricting in-person visits along with those of the “would-be visited” create a need to find alternative ways of completing our obligations to our policyholders and to our governing bodies.

Many folks we have visited year-in and year-out in the past are not able to meet face-to-face under current circumstances. Others allow modified on-site visits while some join us for virtual audits. Still others are opting for “curbside service;” that is, we work on an audit in their parking lot, perfecting that juggling act in the car.

It’s a case of what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. Our company currently limits outside visitors, and we respect the requests of our insureds to keep their employees safe. We share the same common goal. Among other things, it’s the right thing to do and our efforts have not gone unappreciated by our customers.

With a Nod to Our Brokers

For some policyholders, the notion of an audit is as familiar to them as the surface of Mars . . . maybe less so. Broker involvement in reaching a fair share of our customers and being a conduit to us as a carrier is essential.

In the current crisis, we have expanded communications with our brokers to get in touch with customers as well as to secure the information required. Our broker community is an invaluable resource, helping customers understand and comply with audits. In turn, brokers appreciate when we go the extra mile. One recently thanked me for calling before sending out an estimated audit, a last resort when repeated attempts to reach an employer fail. The broker succeeded where we could not, noting “most companies would have sent a massive AP bill by now.”

To reach parts of our small business book, we have a direct connection via The Fairway Agency, a valuable liaison to customers who may not be familiar with the process. They communicate both with their brokers and our customers to inform them of the importance of audits and their contractual requirement.

Our need to balance public health, safety, and social distancing with getting our jobs done has forced a rethink from both insured and insurer to come up with new, secure ways to communicate and transfer information. As keepers of our customers’ information, we must be respectful, courteous, and, above all, imbue trust in the way we handle ourselves. 

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