Hail/Wind Claims: Effective Handling & Coverage

Curriculum: Adjusting Property

State Approved CE Credits:DE FL NH NC TX

Monday, March 18 — 10:30 - 12:00
Tuesday, March 19 — 8:00 - 9:30

Michele A. Chapnick, JD, Shareholder, Gregory, Meyer & Chapnick, PC, Troy, MI
Jason Shaw, Sr. Tech. Claims Specialist, State Auto Insurance Companies, Columbus, OH

• Identify principal claims handling and coverage issues facing hail and wind claims
• Explore specific Policy tools available to adjusters to better investigate and evaluate hail and wind losses
• Identify red flags of fraud and distinguish coverage issues from appraisal issues
• Utilize case scenarios to analyze unique issues, scenarios for investigation and handling

Handling Challenging People & Difficult Circumstances

Curriculum: General Interest

State Approved CE Credits:

Wednesday, March 20 — 8:30 - 10:00
Tuesday, March 19 — 8:00 - 9:30

Richard Ainsworth, CPCU, AIC, AIM, Sr. Consultant, Equis Consulting, Indianapolis, IN
Tom Meier, Senior Consultant, Equis Consulting, Indianapolis, IN

• Recognize the three dysfunctional go-to responses that will result in making the situation worse for you and the insured
• Establish a system of boundaries that can help defuse your reaction to conflict
• Increase your ability to manage dysfunctional patterns of interaction
• Eliminate words that trigger reaction and provoke anger

Have you Lied Today? (A Unique Ethics Discussion)

Curriculum: General Interest

State Approved CE Credits:FL NC

Monday, March 18 — 10:30 - 12:00
Tuesday, March 19 — 1:30 - 3:00

Jackie Jones, Manager, Property & SIU Claims, Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, Indianapolis, IN
Terence Kadlec, PE, VP-Engineering & Specialty, MC Consultants, Inc., Carlsbad, CA

• Attendees will be challenged to be honest with themselves on why we lie through an ethics-focused session
• Through interaction with the attendees, the session presenters will bring examples and case studies for discussion, while probing attendees to open up
• Assess our ethical responsibilities in the workforce and develop tools to correct our actions
• By the end of the session, we will have an Understanding that we lie, but the fact that we lie doesn't make us bad people

Hidden Forces of Litigation

Curriculum: General Interest

State Approved CE Credits:

Tuesday, March 19 — 8:00 - 9:00
Wednesday, March 20 — 8:30 - 9:30

William H. McKenzie, IV, JD, Litigation Attorney, Norman Wood Kendrick & Turner, Birmingham, AL

• Identify 4 common mistakes and 4 proven tactics in litigation
• Describe how jurors' cognitive biases shape how they receive and process information
• Explain how creating intentional powerful moments at trial can positively influence juror's emotional decision-making in the defense's favor
• Develop strategies to tactically ease tension and promote a favorable atmosphere at trial to disarm nuclear verdicts

High Exposure Commercial Liability Claims Handling

Curriculum: Casualty Campus

State Approved CE Credits:FL NC

Monday, March 18 — 3:30 - 5:00
Tuesday, March 19 — 3:30 - 5:00

Christopher P. Flanagan, JD, Partner, Wilson Elser, Boston, MA
Richard Harer, CFE, CFS, CPI, WCCA, Executive Vice President, Command Investigations, LLC, Lake Mary, FL
Peter Schifrin, President, Schifrin, Gagnon & Dickey, Simi Valley, CA

• Analyze aggressive strategies for mitigating a questionable liability large loss claim
• Learn about the identification, investigation, and containment of inflated medical treatment/costs and questionable medical providers
• Learn how and why time limit demands are utilized by claimant attorneys and strategies on how to address and counteract them
• Recognize the impact litigation financing has and how to mitigate or minimize their “return on investment”
• Develop and implement an aggressive claims handling and/or litigation strategy rather than a defensive position

Homeowners' Claims: Sticky Issues Facing Adjusters

Curriculum: Property Coverage

State Approved CE Credits:DE FL NC TX

Monday, March 18 — 3:30 - 5:00
Wednesday, March 20 — 8:30 - 10:00

John McLaughlin, AIC, Sr. Claims Specialist, Choice Solutions Services, Richardson, TX
Michael T. Ryan, JD, Partner, Merry, Farnen & Ryan, P.C., St. Clair Shores, MI

• Understand residency and its impact upon coverage
• Discover the scope of worldwide contents coverage
• Determine when appraisal is appropriate
• Discern what constitutes an "other structure"

Household Calamities: Subrogation of Everyday Things

Curriculum: Subrogation

State Approved CE Credits:FL NC

Monday, March 18 — 3:30 - 5:00
Wednesday, March 20 — 1:30 - 3:00

Mark Majewski, PhD, PE, Principal Consultant, Envista Forensics/AREPA, Nashua, NH
Dan Nucci, CSRP, Operations Manager, Hanover Insurance Group, Worcester, MA
Shannon Warren, JD, Member, Cozen O'Connor, Boston, MA

• Develop an understanding of common failure modes for appliances, everyday consumer electronics and household goods leading to a loss event with significant damages from a variety of perils.
• Understand how a subrogation investigation proceeds from loss event to recovery. Appreciate the communication and teamwork required to assess subrogation potential, preserve evidence through a chain of custody and ultimately recover claim dollars paid. This will include explanation of the scientific method, the application of NFPA 921 and other standards as well as common product liability and tort recovery theories.
• Recognize the legal hurdles in domestic and international product liability subrogation and litigation, including knowing when to abandon pursuit. Assess nodes within the chain of commerce causing or contributing to the product failure loss, including offshore manufacturing, distributors, component manufacturers and retailers.
• Witness examples of failure scenarios using exemplar household products and consumer electronics that have precipitated fire and water damages to property. Case studies to be developed to illustrate concepts above.