Message from the Claims Desk 8.16.16

stewartms • August 16, 2016
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Good Morning Stewart Family,

It’s time to fill up those backpacks and put on those new back-to-school clothes. That’s right; this week marks the beginning of the school year for the majority of the school systems in the United States. By the end of the month each student’s family will have spent approximately $700.00 (on average) on apparel, shoes, supplies, and electronics for the start of the school year. So as we are packing up our customer’s homes we need to ensure that we are properly marking what is in each carton.

This week I would like to talk about missing items from boxes. I routinely see a claim that an expensive laptop, gaming system, or phone is missing from a carton that has only been marked with the word “electronics” or box listed as “living room items.” These claims are next to impossible to disprove and typically results in the customer being compensated hundreds and even thousands of dollars for a new item.

The best way to protect yourself and the company from these types of claims is to be as specific as possible as to what is packed in each carton. Each notation must be made on the box as well and more importantly the inventory. When these inventories just show general terms such as “clothes” and “closet items” we are forced to assume that the claim is valid and pay. However if you specifically list what is in each box, it gives a lot more validity to the inventory and we can avoid these fraudulent claims.

So specifically list what you pack, write in on the outside of the box, and also on the inventory.

Cheers,

Robert Wright – Claims Manager

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