PI Claims and the DWP – Are You Missing Something?

At a time when insurers are focussed on improving business efficiency and streamlining work processes to reduce costs, I am often found asking: ‘Do you realise the cost and time savings you are missing out on in relation to personal injury claims?’   

We are all aware that it is mandatory for insurers to notify the Department of Work & Pensions Compensation Recovery Unit [CRU] about applicable personal injury claims at FNOL, in order that the DWP can recover social security benefits paid as a result of an accident, injury or disease, where a compensation payment has been made.
Similarly CRU can recover costs incurred by NHS Hospitals and Ambulance Trusts for treatment of injuries from road traffic accidents and personal injury claims.

But why is so much of the market still handling CRU notifications manually?
I should qualify that and acknowledge that some, although not all, insurers handle the first stage of the process, formal notification and submission of a CRU1 form electronically. And then, the majority of the market reverts to a manual, paper based process for the remaining document exchanges.

Those remaining document exchanges reflect the other stages of the CRU process, CRU4 Certificate request through to CRU102 Settlement notification and when you consider that the lifespan of an open claim can be up to two years, you can begin to appreciate the amount of paperwork, data entry, manual recording, photocopying, paper and postage costs involved.  

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