Structured Settlements Claims Professionals Look to Insurance Companies and Brokers for Education and Training
September 13 2022 - 10:15AM
Business Wire
MetLife’s 2022 Structured Settlements Poll
finds opportunities for broker outreach and support
Nearly nine in 10 claims professionals (88%) are familiar with
the benefits of structured settlements for personal physical injury
clients and 84% view them as a prudent recommendation, especially
when a minor is involved, according to MetLife’s 2022 Structured
Settlements Poll. However, 58% say more structured settlements
training from either structured settlements annuity providers or
structured settlements brokers/consultants is needed. The full
report is available online.
With a structured settlement, which is a voluntary agreement
between the injury claimant and the defendant and, when necessary,
approved by the presiding judge, the injury claimant does not
receive compensation for his or her injuries in one lump sum.
Rather, they receive a stream of tax-free payments — either for a
certain period of time or for the rest of the individual’s life —
from a life insurance company.
“Claims professionals understand the risk of claimants
potentially spending funds too quickly and the role structured
settlements play to ensure that money will not run out when
claimants need it most,” says Mari Hioki, vice president and head
of Structured Settlements with MetLife. “In fact, 76% of claims
professionals say they would be likely to use a structured
settlement if they were a personal injury claimant.”
Claims Professionals Play Important Role in Structured
Settlement Decisions
If a claimant takes a lump sum, they may lack the financial
sophistication to ensure the funds last as long as they may need
them and potentially run the risk of spending the money too
rapidly. This is a concern for claims professionals—the Poll found
half of claims professionals (49%) are concerned that a claimant
will deplete their personal physical injury settlement award too
quickly, regardless of the size of the claim.
As a result of these concerns, claims professionals believe they
are the ones most likely to introduce the idea of structured
settlements, with 44% of respondents reporting this. Twenty-four
percent believe that defense counsel introduces the idea, followed
by claims supervisors or someone else, at 12% respectively, and 8%
believe plaintiff counsel plays this role.
The biggest obstacles to using a structured settlement are a
preference for a lump sum and a lack of agreement by the
plaintiff’s attorney. According to the claims professionals
surveyed, current interest rates, which are sometimes cited as a
reason for not structuring a settlement, appear to have minimal
impact.
Brokers Play an Important Role in Demonstrating the Value of
Structured Settlements
Claims professionals (90%) overwhelmingly believe that
structured settlement brokers/consultants play an important role in
positioning the value of a structured settlement and/or helping to
calculate the cost of a personal physical injury claimant’s medical
care, basic living expenses and family needs.
More than half (58%) of claims professionals would like
additional training to further develop their knowledge of
structured settlements. They are evenly split on whether they would
prefer structured settlements annuity providers (48%) or structured
settlements brokers/consultants (48%) to provide it.
The first step to address this demand may be more proactive
outreach. An important opportunity exists for brokers and
consultants to increase the frequency with which they contact
claims professionals. According to the poll, only 22% of claims
professionals are contacted by a structured settlement
broker/consultant once a month or more, 38% hear from brokers less
than once a month and 40% of claims professionals say they never
receive a call or email from a structured settlement
broker/consultant.
“Claims professionals are looking to brokers, consultants and
insurance companies for their knowledge and experience to help them
better understand structured settlements and identify claims that
could be structured,” says Hioki. “This knowledge and expertise can
enable them to successfully position structured settlement
solutions with their clients, and ensures proceeds due to personal
injury claimants are not depleted too quickly.”
About the Study The MetLife 2022 Structured Settlements
Poll was fielded between April 21 and June 13. MetLife commissioned
MMR Research Associates, Inc. to conduct the telephone survey of
claims professionals. Survey responses were received from 50 claims
adjusters, claims managers, directors/vice presidents of claims and
other claims handlers, the majority of whom had a high level of
familiarity with structured settlements.
About MetLife MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its
subsidiaries and affiliates (“MetLife”), is one of the world’s
leading financial services companies, providing insurance,
annuities, employee benefits and asset management to help its
individual and institutional customers navigate their changing
world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40
markets globally and holds leading positions in the United States,
Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more
information, visit www.metlife.com.
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Judi Mahaney jmahaney@metlife.com 212-578-7977
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