Three emails about the same bracelet
A claims handler emails asking you to quote for a replacement for a stolen gold bracelet, attaching an old valuation report. You quote. A week later the policyholder visits and wants a slightly different style. You requote. The claims handler approves the first quote, not the second. The customer asks if she can pay the difference.
Meanwhile another claim, for a lost engagement ring, is waiting for the handler to confirm the claim reference, and a third has been approved, supplied and collected, but the invoice has not gone because nobody is sure which email address it goes to.
All of it is in your inbox, under subject lines like 'RE: RE: FW: Claim'.
Why claims work gets tangled
Each claim has at least three parties: the insurer or claims handler, the policyholder and you. Each has their own references and their own expectations of what happens next. Your shop system probably has no concept of a claim, so the work is managed in email and memory.
Quotes change as the customer chooses between options, and handlers approve specific versions. If the version is not clear, you may supply something different from what was approved and end up with an invoice query.
Invoicing a third party is also unlike a counter sale. Different handlers want different details on the invoice, and payment may come weeks later against a batch.
What tangled claims cost
| Problem | Effect |
|---|---|
| Claim references not recorded consistently | Invoices rejected or queried |
| Unclear quote versions | Supplying something other than what was approved |
| Customer top-ups not recorded | Confusion about who owes what |
| Invoices delayed | Money owed for items already handed over |
| Inbox as the only record | Only one person can follow a claim |
Replacement work can be a steady part of the business for jewellers who do it well. Each claim that becomes a paperwork puzzle makes it less attractive.
Timing adds pressure from the policyholder's side. Someone whose engagement ring was stolen wants a replacement quickly, and every day that a quote waits unanswered in a thread feels like the shop's delay, even when the hold-up is with the claims handler. Without a clear status for each claim, your counter staff cannot explain where things stand, and the policyholder rings more often, which takes more time away from moving the claim forward.
The claims workflow we build
- A shared claims inbox is connected to the system. New emails are matched to an existing claim by reference, or flagged as a possible new claim for a person to confirm.
- Each claim record holds the handler, the claim reference, the policyholder, the items claimed and any supplied reports, such as the original valuation.
- Quotes are created against the claim with version numbers. When the handler approves, the approval email is attached to the specific version.
- The policyholder's choice, and any difference they pay themselves, is recorded separately from the insurer's approved amount.
- When the item is handed over, the invoice is prepared using that handler's required format and references, and sent to the right address.
- A list shows claims awaiting quote, awaiting approval, awaiting customer, ready to invoice and unpaid, so nothing waits unnoticed.
What insurers pay for and on what terms is between them and the policyholder. We simply make your side of the paperwork orderly.
We start by reading a few months of your claims emails with you, to see which handlers you deal with most and what each one asks for. That shapes the claim record and the invoice formats, so the system reflects the handlers you actually work with rather than a generic template.
Following a claim from start to finish
A claim arrives, is recorded with its reference and gets a quote with a version number. The approval sits on that version. The customer's choice and any top-up are clear. The invoice goes out when the item is collected, in the right format.
- Every claim visible in one list with its current status
- Quote versions matched to approvals
- Customer contributions recorded separately
- Invoices sent promptly and correctly referenced
Signs your claims work needs a system
- Claims are tracked through email threads.
- You have supplied an item against the wrong quote version.
- Claim invoices are sometimes queried or rejected.
- Only one person really knows where each claim stands.
- Payments for claims are hard to match to the work.