Coming Soon To a windscreen near you

Standing on the hard shoulder by the motorway on a cold, wet, windy day is not much fun. And it's even worse if you are on the phone, without your policy details to hand, battling to convince a disinterested call centre operator that you really are a policyholder.

Zurich and windscreen fitter Autoglass have a claims handling partnership that they claim makes the experience less painful.

Autoglass managing director Ian Carlisle, who was central to hammering out the deal, works closely with Zurich claims supplier manager Anne Bing and claims director Andy Pearce.

Carlisle explains that, while Autoglass has replacement windscreens provision contracts with many insurers and large fleets, the process has gone much further with Zurich.

In an unprecendented display of trust, Zurich has provided Autoglass with its database and allows Autoglass complete authorisation to handle claims from start to finish. This means a faster reaction to an accident.

"If customers find their cars have been broken into or vandalised, they can be in an emotional state. We are often the first people they will speak to after the police," Carlisle says.

"The last thing the victim wants is to get caught up in a bureaucratic phone loop where details have to be checked and rechecked before work can begin."

Calling direct
Zurich policyholders call Autoglass directly: the operator can immediately verify policy details from simple personal information; take the excess payment and book an appointment for the repair.

The details of all Zurich's policyholders are stored on Autoglass's IT system, so the process takes minutes.

The windscreen repair or replacement is now sorted out automatically; before, the paperwork would typically add a further two days to the work.

Both Zurich and Autoglass claim their costs are lower following the partnership deal. Although Autoglass has invested around £500,000 in new IT, the company claims this will be recouped through increased efficiency.

Carlisle says there are now fewer customer complaints as Zurich policyholders have a single point of contact and know their claim is handled immediately.

Other insurers working with Autoglass handle the verification and excess recovery themselves and checking the facts can be unwieldy and cumbersome.

"You have cases where insurers have consolidated and don't even have records in the same place. Added to this, many drivers don't have their policy documents with them when they need to claim. In some cases, they may not be valid.

"With Zurich, we can tell the caller at once if he is covered. It also means we wipe out billing errors, as there is only one lot of keying in and of course, it eliminates the paperchase of invoices being sent backwards and forwards."

He says errors are down by around 40%.

Bing comments: "Our relationship with Autoglass is successful because we work in partnership to solve problems and generate ideas for improvements. We want to provide customers with a service that is quick, convenient and personal."

In-house benefit
The relationship has been in place for ten years, but the decision to move to a fully automated system was taken a year ago.

According to Carlisle, the fact that Autoglass can take all calls from policyholders in-house - rather than using an outsourced call centre - was a major selling point.

Formerly, Autoglass had outsourced calls to BT and Hays - both major providers of call centre services. Carlisle has no complaints about the companies, saying that outsourcing worked adequately for two years, but he argues that in-house service is superior.

"You can have greater expertise and commitment. Those in outsourced call centres are selling insurance one minute and pizzas the next. With an in-house service, you know who is taking the calls and how they are being answered. Even though costs can be higher, we felt it was the right way to provide a quality service."

Carlisle explains that being able to promise Zurich that the operators handling calls were passionate about their work was crucial. He says the last two years at Autoglass have seen a dramatic turnaround in company culture. "[Chief executive] Gary Lubner had a vision and wanted to see real change here. The culture is now very different, it's non-political, open and dynamic."

The company is based on the outskirts of Bedford, in large purpose-built offices, where glass is the dominant feature. It employs about 2,000 staff at head office, with 1,100 mobile service units.

Autoglass has a training centre in Birmingham, which is attended by all staff, and a national glass distribution centre in Leicester.

The Bedford office is open-plan and even though Carlisle has a plum view overlooking the business park lake, he emphasises there is no reserved parking and everyone eats in the atrium canteen.

"If you want a real partnership, then companies you work with need to know what you stand for. In recent times we've taken a campaigning stance on cracking car crime and most recently in emphasising the importance of safety.

"Zurich stands for being a quality insurer and one that is not prepared to sacrifice this for being the cheapest. These are values that we share."

Retail lessons
Carlisle has a background in retailing. He says he started his career at the age of 11, working with his dad on Saturdays selling shoes from market stalls. Carlisle junior moved on to Marks & Spencer, becoming one of the firm's high flyers. He worked at its head office in Baker Street before taking over as director for the north of England, with responsibility for 50 stores.

But, although he says there are many great things about M&S, he has also learnt from the negatives. "There were things there that were wrong. At one time, it did not speak to the press, refused to take credit cards and refused to admit it sometimes got buying wrong."

A call from a headhunter in 1996 changed his career path and he says, after some initial reservations, he has never looked back. "I thought that working in windscreens had to be boring. It's not. This is a great place to work. In 2003, I'd like to see us do more true partnership deals. We can't be complacent, but our work with Zurich has shown it can be done." n

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