Whether it involves an employee injury, damage to property or a liability claim, the First Notice of Loss (FNOL) significantly impacts the entire insurance claim, shaping its cost, complexity and resolution timeline. A recent survey into the impact of FNOLs on customers revealed that 80% of policyholders who reported a satisfactory claims process, attributed it to an effective FNOL.
What is the FNOL process?
The FNOL process is the first step in an insurance claim. It involves the policyholder reporting an incident to their provider, and helps the insurer determine if a claim needs to be filed.
To demonstrate value for money to policyholders, improve retention and maintain brand value, the onus is on insurers to provide a quality FNOL experience. Yet gathering timely, objective and reliable information for FNOL reporting, assessing a claim’s urgency, assigning resources, and beginning a liability review – all without a reliable witness report – can prove challenging for insurers.
The FNOL bottleneck
When the FNOL relies solely on phone calls or written reports, it becomes vulnerable to information omissions and delays. This leaves the process open to ambiguity, misreporting and even fraud. For retail claims concerning incidents happening out of sight – at remote job location sites, on factory floors or behind the wheel – claims adjusters are often left piecing together what happened based on secondhand accounts, which can often be inconsistent. This delays the claim resolution, increases the costs involved, and puts strain on relationships between providers and policyholders. Enter body cameras.
Wearable cameras: A claims efficiency solution
Once seen primarily as tools for law enforcement, body cameras have quickly become an invaluable employee safety solution, essential in the retail and hospitality space. Body worn camera video evidence is indisputable, deterring crime and de-escalating conflict to enhance safety and security for both the wearer and the general public. For insurance providers, video evidence is transforming claims efficiency, a reliable solution that improves the FNOL workflow, reduces fraud and supports accurate decision-making.
Motorola Solutions body cameras, including the VB400 and V200 provide visibility into incidents that occurred where fixed video coverage wasn’t present. An employee equipped with a body camera can record high-quality video and audio from their perspective. Serving as a real-time documentation tool, body cameras capture the full context of an incident as it unfolds, and have several benefits for insurers:
- Producing objective, time-stamped footage to accompany an FNOL
- Verifying events, facilitating a faster claims triage and decision making
- Providing crucial evidence for preventing insurance fraud or exaggerated claims and managing workplace injury reporting
The V200 also includes bi-directional audio, which allows the employee to instantly connect to a supervisor or security personnel, and make a verbal request or report. This enhances the employee’s safety, while providing additional context to both law enforcement and claims investigators.
Addressing a critical blind spot
For industries such as global manufacturing, construction or field services, body cameras provide crucial visibility. In isolated or hazardous areas, where injuries and incidents have occurred beyond the view of security cameras or supervisors, a body camera’s documentation is priceless. As a result, protection for both the worker and the employee is greatly improved.
From reactive to proactive
When an insurance claim is submitted alongside body camera footage, insurers gain immediate insight into the incident, helping to validate the claimant’s circumstances both quickly and accurately. This condenses the investigation, accelerating payouts for legitimate claims, and offering powerful evidence to contest questionable reports.
Installing body cameras in workplaces effectively reshapes the insurance model, allowing the insurer to take the initiative. Empowered with clearer data that holds less room for error from the outset, the insurer is no longer at the mercy of the evidence supplied.
- Accelerating FNOL workflows, the claims process becomes more efficient, and a resolution is reached more quickly
- Objective visual records improve fraud detection
- Fewer contested claims mean lower legal costs
- Underwriting insights are enhanced by real-world risk visibility
A safer, smarter claims process
At Motorola Solutions, our mission is to provide technology that protects people and strengthens organizations. The VB400 and V200 body cameras are designed for enterprise: durable, secure and easy to deploy across a distributed workforce. When paired with our cloud-based VideoManager EX or CommandCentral Evidence platforms, they deliver reliable, scalable access to incident footage, ensuring every frame is not only protected, but always on hand.
For insurance companies looking to enhance their FNOL process and strengthen policyholder satisfaction, body cameras are a crucial workplace tool.
