Official Injury Claim portal – will you be data driven from the start?

Author / contact: Chris Stubbs.

23-04-21

In this blog we explore what the new Official Injury Claim whiplash reform landscape might look like post 31st May and ask: will you be data driven from the start? We analyse the number of claims that might fall within the new tariff and what the claimant market may look like and their anticipated behaviours.

Collecting and analysing your claims data from day one will get you a step ahead and allow you to navigate the changes that will inevitably come about. In this blog we tell you how you achieve this.

Whiplash tariff injuries

Quantum by Kennedys IQ is a tool that automatically identifies injuries and prognosis periods from medical reports by using text analytics and machine learning. Using Quantum we have been able to analyse a sample of 1600 RTA medical reports. Of those, 19% fit within the new definition of whiplash under the new tariff. That number rises to 34% when you include minor psychological injuries. In the last 12 months from January there have been 527,711 claims submitted on the current Claims Portal, therefore our analysis suggests that there could be around 180,000 tariff only injury claims going through the Official Injury Claim portal a year, however things will likely start slow and ramp up over the next 12 months from the end of May.

However, past experience doesn’t necessarily translate into future experience, this remains to be seen as we await the initial round of claims through the Official Injury Claim portal and our analysis which will follow.

Which platform will you use?

Will you be opting to use the web-based platform from day one, or have you lined up an integration to manage your claim records?

We recently polled our insurer clients to identify which platform they would be using for the OIC platform. 79% of respondents indicated they would be using the website version of OIC with no integration from the start.

No plans to use a system integration 37%
Waiting to see what happens before deciding 36%
Using an integration at launch 21%
Using an integration within 6 months of launch 5%

Using an integration over just relying on the Official Injury Claim website.

The OIC portal and the whiplash reforms redefine the battleground, if you’re not collecting and analysing your claims data from the outset you will miss a significant opportunity to understand how the market reacts and looks to capitalise on these changes.

Like the Claims Portal, the OIC is not a claims management system.

OIC have yet to publish the data retention policy for claims data within the OIC platform, assuming the data retention policy will be the same or similar to the existing Claims Portal, your claims data won’t remain within the platform for very long, settled claims on the Claims Portal are purged after 30 days. https://www.claimsportal.org.uk/more-from-us/data-retention-policy/

Are you comfortable missing out on valuable data for early analysis of trends and insight?

Save your data! Ideally you want to be collecting this from day one. Our Portal Manager product is OIC-ready, it can maintain your OIC claims record from day one.

Understanding the market landscape

Ensuring you have access to your claims data from day one will position you to understand how the market landscape is shaping up, so that you are armed and ready with your claims strategy.

Will there be many Litigants in person using the OIC? I suspect not. A significant amount of time, energy and money currently goes into capturing potential claimants in order to represent them, I can’t imagine this activity ceasing.

Litigants in person have been able to use the existing claims portal since it was setup, the claims portal website recognises uptake has been minimal.

“Whilst access to the Portal is available to litigants in person (LiP), the number of LiPs that have registered to use the Portal in the last 10 years is minimal. The majority of users submitting claims through the Portal are claimant representatives”

https://www.claimsportal.org.uk/unrepresented-claimant/unrepresented-claimant-litigant-in-person/what-are-my-options-as-a-unrepresented-claimant/

From my experience in the personal injury claim space I have seen how the claimant market has restructured itself as costs continue to be squeezed by reform. The current reforms open the door to new CMC market entrants, in an already crowded market place. I believe you will be able to carve up the CMC / claimant representative market by business model. Each market segment’s behaviour and approach to pursuing personal injury claims will differ. There will be overlap, however I believe the market segments will be divided into three approaches, as set out in the diagram below.

I have previously outlined changes in the market in relation to how claimant firms have been adapting in order to replace revenue by providing more of the associated services from linked businesses, e.g. rehabilitation.

It is going to be more important than ever to ensure that you are well positioned to understand the trends in the changing market landscape and the behaviours that will follow. By collecting your data from day one you will be able to understand the market segmentation and then use the data to inform your decisions and optimise your claim outcomes.

I for one look forward to the new battle ground and to seeing how the future will shape up in the personal injury claim space, as it quickly evolves in the months following the 31st May 2021.

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