Risky business in a post-COVID-19 world

James Harvey

Partner, Insurance risk and commercial law firm, BLM

Alistair Kinley

Director of Policy & Government Affairs, Insurance risk and commercial law firm, BLM

COVID-19 has forced businesses to accelerate their move into digital processes, increasing opportunities and efficiencies but also bringing new and different risks.

With risk control and claims management also moving to digital and data-driven responses, what have been the consequences so far?

The power of data

James Harvey, partner in insurance risk and commercial law firm, BLM, says: “It has increased the power of structured data in managing risk. We code risk and claims data in fields agreed with clients and use it, for example, to identify particular claims activity or disproportionate issues at a given location. We pick out both non-compliance with existing systems of work and failures to implement appropriate systems.” Harvey adds that the aim is to “help businesses identify where change is needed and then to implement solutions.”

The impact of digitisation on claims handling

Digitisation has made a positive impact on claims and investigation. “Through being able to conduct investigations in a digital way, we can speed up the investigation time and achieve greater efficiencies,” says Harvey. “We can share key evidence in cases even when client contacts are in different locations, such as the operations lead being on site and the risk manager back at head office. We can all be in the same ‘room’ digitally without having to spend three hours in a car.”

BLM’s Director of Policy & Government Affairs Alistair Kinley observes that the firm has ramped up digital working given the restrictions on meeting face-to-face: “Using our systems to share claim documents securely on-line and in real time has been transformative.”

“Digitisation has had a powerful impact, especially on fraud risk” adds Harvey. “Smart data capture and using data from the past to inform the present means you can quickly evaluate your opponents’ behaviour to inform your own proactive strategies.”

Kinley notes that the courts have also adapted since the start of the coronavirus crisis. “There has been clearer guidance about using electronic case bundles and remote hearings have been very positive for lawyer to lawyer meetings and procedural matters, although some subtleties can be lost in remote settings.”

To read more advice and guidance from BLM on a variety COVID related issues, please click here.