MIB Newsletter - the Motor Insurers' Bureau

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TOTTENHAM DECLARED LONDON'S WORSTRecent figures have exposed Tottenham asLondon's worst district for uninsured driving.The numbers of uninsured drivers inTottenham, per head of population, are morethan four times the national average.Southwark is second in London's uninsureddriving hall of shame, followed by Woolwich,Seven Sisters and Norwood Green.These statistics will help police forces crackdown on uninsured driving hotspots acrossthe capital. “Together with the police, we willmake it increasingly tougher for uninsuredmotorists in these areas to escapedetection,” said Ashton West, chief executiveof the MIB. “Now that the police know whichdistricts contain the highest proportions ofuninsured motorists, they can focus theirresources and make life very difficult forthese criminals.”The measures that police forces apply includemaking ever-increasing use of automaticnumber plate recognition (ANPR) cameras,and new hand-held technology that enablesofficers to check vehicle details at theroadside.In addition, the MIB now regularly forwardsdetails of suspected uninsured drivers directlyto police forces, under new powers containedwithin the Serious Organised Crime andPolice Act.This has enabled police forces up and downthe country to seize more than 20,000vehicles since the beginning of the year.Over 40% of these have already beencrushed, because drivers have not providedsatisfactory evidence of insurance requiredfor return of the vehicle.If the Metropolitan Police Force takes asimilar stance to Greater Manchester, wherethe driver of every seized vehicle is alsoreported for the offence of uninsured driving,rather than offered a fixed penalty notice,then the number of prosecutions will rocket inthe next 12 months.Research has shown that uninsureddrivers are:• 10 times more likely to have beenconvicted of drink-driving• 6 times more likely to have been convictedof driving a non-roadworthy vehicle• 3 times more likely to have been convictedof driving without due care and attention.NOW THE NETCLOSES ONLONDONFollowing highly successful operationsin other parts of the country, notablyLiverpool and Greater Manchester,London has become another targetin the fight against uninsured driving.A small roadside check in Haringeyon July 24th produced the followingdramatic results.35 vehicles stopped in total.16 vehicles were seized for no insurance.Six drivers were arrested, one for forgery,one for producing a forged document(altered insurance certificate), one forimmigration offences, one for theft of amotor vehicle, one who was a disqualifieddriver, and one for giving false detailsrelating to an offence of no insurance.In addition, numerous drivers werereported for other offences, and the bailiffat the scene seized a couple of carsbelonging to drivers with outstandingfines against them.THE FIGHT AGAINST FRAUD GATHERS PACEWhilst it is the overriding objective of the MotorInsurers' Bureau, and indeed all insurers, tosettle claims promptly and efficiently, it is alsoessential that processes exist to detect theminority of claims submitted with fraudulentintent.There is now an ongoing fraud project thatincludes a review of the current processesadopted within the Bureau. In addition, thereview will look at the services and softwareavailable to the insurance industry.Internally, the project is focussing on the datacaptured on the AS400 system and making useof daily reporting to highlight potential fraud.For example, SCU (Special Claims Unit) nowreceives reports indicating claims where eitherthe home, mobile or work telephone numberhas been used on an earlier claim. The sameapplies for witness details and also NationalInsurance numbers. We are also in the earlystages of defining an automated fraud scoringsystem that highlights potential fraud at thetime that the claim is first loaded onto the AS400.Finally, with regard to the internal review,a fraud procedures manual will be created andall staff will receive appropriate fraudawareness training.As part of the external review, we shall belooking at data matching software, andconsidering the use of cognitive interviewingtechniques.The MIB is represented on the committee ofboth the Insurers’ Fraud Investigators Group(IFIG) and the Eastern Fraud Forum (EFF). Bothof these bodies share the aim of increasingfraud awareness, not just within insurance, butoutside the sector as well. Members includebanks, solicitors, government agencies and thepolice.The insurance industry has taken a huge stepforward in the fight against insurance fraud,with the formation of the Insurance FraudBureau (IFB). With estimates of £3.5m of fraudbeing detected each week, this is longoverdue. The IFB will be tasked to tackle, onbehalf of the insurance industry, the problem oforganized fraud, which will largely focus on thefraud rings operating within the motor sector.There has been large-scale commitment to thisinitiative by the industry, with all the majorplayers agreeing to share their claims data.The Bureau has also committed to submitdata to the IFB.Perhaps the biggest hurdle that the industryfaces is changing the public perception ofinsurance fraud. At the moment, due to the fewconvictions, there remains the view that this isa 'victimless crime'. Certainly, with theformation of the IFB it is hoped that, with thesupport of the Police Authority, more offenderswill be brought to book.Mark JacobsAnti-Fraud Manager2 3
THE IMPROVEMENTS HAVE ALREADY STARTEDANNUAL CUSTOMER SATISFACTION SURVEY - YEAR 1STAFF FORUMActionsActions have already been identified and implemented to addressthe majority of the issues, namely:How claimants see the BureauOur aim is to make many more stakeholder experiences as positiveas these examples from our files of letters received.• The introduction of risk based claims handling• The introduction of the claims training and development academy• The re-design of the claim form and information booklet,which will assist in the earlier acquisition of appropriate information• Plans are in place for the reduction of files in capacity managementto the equivalent of one week's new claims by the end of the yearHonest and helpful approachthroughout all stages of the claim• Use of the telephone is being strongly encouraged as the bestmeans to progress claims• Internal quality audits have been introduced…pleasant throughout with nothingtoo much effort…• Greater controls have been put in place with our suppliers to reduceEarlier this year, and for the first time in our 60-year history,an independent survey was carried out on behalf of the Bureau.Its aim was to establish solicitors' views regarding the service currentlyprovided by MIB, together with a better understanding of customerexpectations.Conducted by Samson Consulting, one of the objectives of the surveywas to put down a marker from which future performance could bemonitored and measured.The survey took place between December 2005 and February2006, and responses were received from 25 firms of solicitors.We have compiled a database of the top 200 claims providersand will use this as the basis for future surveys, which will takeplace annually.• There are mixed views of how fair our offers of compensation are• Solicitors strongly disagree that we provide a prompt service• 84% of solicitors check MID within 10 days• Solicitors are aware of MIBLES but 50% do not use it• No firm rated the Bureau as excellent or good, when comparedwith other insurance companies in any of the categories• Solicitors are very dissatisfied with our level of proactivity.Not surprisingly, there is a marked difference between the expectationsof solicitors and perceptions of our service delivery.Changes since 2004delays. For example, on average medical reports were taking 161days to complete from instruction to the report being received.This has been reduced to 92 days.• Staffing is now at an appropriate level for the volume of claimsreceived and we will ensure it remains that wayOur plans will also include greater use of email and web-basedcommunication.Helpful and informative approach todealing with claim and claimant direct.2006 Survey ResultsIn broad terms the results are:• Solicitors' preferred method of communication is e-mail• There is general satisfaction with our communication, including thequality of our letters• Solicitors consider the claim form for uninsured and untracedagreements satisfactory.• Solicitors believe it is relatively important to receive police reportsbut less important to receive medical notes and reportsIn 2004, there were some 72,000 cases outstanding within theBureau. This has now reduced to below 58,000, a reduction ofsome 20% over the period. Similarly, the volume of work in progresshas reduced by almost 25%. We receive something in the order of60,000 claims per year and over the last two years we have settledmore claims than we have received, hence the reduction inoutstanding numbers.During the same period, we have increased claims handlingresources and have developed a training academy that has recentlyacquired Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) accreditation. There area number of other improvements, for example, a significant reductionin the average lifecycle of claims.IT'S BUSINESS AS USUAL• Solicitors are dissatisfied with how we deal with cases comingto the end of the limitation periodWhile there have been many internal changes to improve theefficiency of the Bureau, we are acutely aware that these arenot immediately obvious to our stakeholders.4 5
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MIB Newsletter - the Motor Insurers' Bureau

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