Navigating the TPA maze: the choice between handling claims in house or using a TPA is never simple. Here are some considerations for risk managers to think about. (Tpas).
When you ask about the relative advantages of handling claims in house or outsourcing them to a third-party administrator (TPA), a lot of risk managers have strong opinions. Some consistently recommend holding onto the claims and hiring the staff to manage them. Others will opt for a TPA every...

Casio's QV-3500EX digital camera. (Educator's Evaluation).
Earlier digital cameras, with their low resolution, were best suited for Web pictures and professions like insurance claims adjusters, for whom instant images were more important than quality. However, digital cameras have reached a quality level where they have real educational potential. The ability to take a high-quality image...

Small devices, big challenges: handhelds present insurers with an assortment of new risks. But new technology is now helping many of them protect against the worst were it to happen. (Technology for Insurers).
Claims adjusters at the scene of an accident know there is nothing more important than recording data accurately and making sure it is communicated back to the home office quickly. More and more these days, field agents rely on their mobile devices to record critical information on the scene...

Technology: a claims enabler? Technology breakthroughs are making self-administration of workers' compensation more attractive. But is bringing claim administration in-house the right move for your company? (Workers' Comp).
Many risk managers in pursuit of containing their cost of risk are reevaluating their company's policy on handling property and casualty claims. Should they have an insurer or third-party administrator handle claims, or should they handle them in-house? We set about to ask a number of risk managers and...

Calendar of upcoming events.
April 10 Schiff's Insurance Conference. This one-day mega-roundtable will feature commentary and debate on the motor insurance issues facing the industry today, delivered by professionals from financial, legal, accounting and insurance industries. The conference topic, "Endless Risk", will serve as a guidepost for discussion. Schiff's...

Time to face new realities.
New, compensable conditions enter the workers' compensation system from time to time, yet one millennia old condition is still not adequately accepted: post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Until it is, our workers' comp system serves as a doubtful shield against the ravages of PTSD. How...

Corrosion confusion cleared up.
There's a risk manager out there looking to find coverage under an existing commercial property insurance program for pinhole leaks in a building's sprinkler piping. Most risk management professionals who can lay claim to a high level of expertise about property insurance forms and coverage dismiss the...

REDWOOD ROBIN HOOD BOOSTS FAILING BALLET.
Depending on which side of the economic scale you stand, Robin Hood is either a scoundrel or a hero. Transfer of wealth is a time-honored activity, whether it's government-approved through tax-deductible charitable contributions or government-fought, as when the Sheriff chased Robin and his merry fellows through the woods of...

The price of progress.
Productivity improvements occur in bits and pieces, often flowing from the economy's leading sector, information technology. The full impact is very difficult to perceive, however, wherever you sit. A case study can awaken us as if jolted by an alarm clock. We are going to look at...

Treating the whole person.
As we move rapidly into the information and technology explosion of the 21st century, we must begin to look at the treatment of our patients and the ways in which we conceptualize their problems differently. As the saying goes, we must begin to think dynamically and think outside of...