I’m Not a Salesperson, I’m a Claim Rep

I had the privilege of working with John Petrucci, CPCU, for several decades. I learned more about sales from John during the first year we worked together than I’d learned in my first 10 years in the insurance industry!

Here’s the interesting thing; John started out in claims. When he was approached about a sales position, he said, “I’m not a salesperson, I’m a claim rep.” The manager who was encouraging him to consider the sales role asked, “What kind of claims do you work on?” John replied, “Bodily injury from auto accidents.” What came next changed John’s career trajectory. The salesman said, “You have to convince people to take a certain payment for physical injuries suffered in an auto accident and you don’t think you’re selling?”

The lightbulb came and suddenly John realized he had to sell the idea of fair compensation for something that has no set value. After all, settling a bodily injury claim isn’t like setting the fair market value for an automobile or home loss.

Settling a claim may not be a “sale” in the sense of exchanging a product or service for money but here’s the reality; settling any claim takes a lot of influence because of the need to persuade.

During my time at State Auto Insurance, now part of Liberty Mutual, I had the opportunity to work with the claims team because the Chief Claims Officer, Steve Hunckler, knew that fast, friendly, and fair claims settlements involved getting claimants to do certain things to expedite the claims process.

A common example: an auto accident

The sooner the insured gets their car repaired, the happier they’ll be and the less likely they are to contact an attorney. That’s a win for them and your company. How you, the claim rep, talk to the claimant can make a big difference when it comes to them getting their car repaired quickly.

Wanting to seem reasonable and easy to work with, most claim reps ask, “When do you think you can get your car to the shop?” At that moment the claimant starts considering their schedule for a time that’s most convenient for them. Unfortunately, that could be three or four days in the future.

The claim rep who understands how to ethically influence people would say, “Is there any chance you can get your car to the shop tomorrow (Tuesday)?” This small change does something remarkable—it prompts the claimant to consider how they could make tomorrow work.

But what if they say there’s no possibility of Tuesday? Again, the influential claim rep knows there’s a moment of power after hearing no, so they respond, “I’ve done this for a long time, so I get it; accidents are a hassle. Is there any chance you can get it there by Wednesday?” Now the claimant is thinking about how they might get the car to the shop on Wednesday.

A simple approach like this might shave a day or two off of repair time. That might not seem like a big deal, until you multiply that by the number of claims the company settles in a year. Saving one or two days on rental cars has a huge impact on the bottom line which in turn keeps insurance premiums more reasonable! And the sooner the claimant has their car back, the less likely they are to feel like they’re getting the run around from the big, bad insurance company.

I’ve had my share of claims, both auto and homeowner, and let me tell you, it’s stressful. The unknowns can be nerve-wracking. But claim reps who understand Robert Cialdini’s principles of persuasion can turn that tension into trust. That’s what separates an average claims experience from an exceptional one.

Conclusion

I’ve shared one common example of a claim but based on my 30+ year of insurance experience and decades of influence training, I can tell you this for sure; there are countless other opportunities to engage this psychology throughout the claim process to create win-win situations for claimants and insurance companies.

So, to all the claim reps reading this, you might not call yourself a salesperson—but you are an influencer. And when you learn to embrace that role, you’ll create better outcomes for your claimants, your company, and yourself.

Edited with chatGPT

Brian Ahearn

Brian Ahearn is the Chief Influence Officer at Influence PEOPLE and a faculty member at the Cialdini Institute.

An author, TEDx speaker, international trainer, coach, and consultant, Brian helps clients apply influence in everyday situations to boost results.

As one of only a dozen Cialdini Method Certified Trainers in the world, Brian was personally trained and endorsed by Robert Cialdini, Ph.D., the most cited living social psychologist on the science of ethical influence.

Brian’s first book, Influence PEOPLE, was named one of the 100 Best Influence Books of All Time by Book Authority. His follow-up, Persuasive Selling for Relationship Driven Insurance Agents, was an Amazon new release bestseller. His latest book, The Influencer: Secrets to Success and Happiness, is a business parable designed to teach you how to use influence at home and the office.

Brian’s LinkedIn courses on persuasive selling and coaching have been viewed by more than 650,000 people around the world. His TEDx Talk on pre-suasion has more than a million views!