At a new training center in Dallas, claims professionals from insurance giant Allstate Corp. can now immerse themselves in real-world scenarios policyholders face.
Two labs at the 33,000-square-foot Allstate Claims University campus enable claims professionals to learn from re-created situations that replicate damage to homes and cars.
The Property Lab features two full-scale, two-story homes. One home duplicates damage caused by water, fire, wind, hail and structural impacts. The other home exposes building systems and materials normally hidden from view. Together, they show what can happen behind walls, above ceilings and below floors.
Allstate’s Auto Lab includes electric, hybrid and conventional vehicles representing common and complex damage scenarios. [Photo: Allstate]
At the Auto Lab, claims professionals can examine nearly 30 electric, hybrid and traditional vehicles. Allstate designed the lab using insights drawn from more than 3.5 million claims data points, selecting vehicles that represent common and complex damage. Claims experts train on collision, flood, hail and structural damage. They also learn about repairs involving airbags, cameras, sensors and advanced driver-assistance systems.
Together, the labs are meant to help claims professionals gauge the full scope of damage, identify what repairs might require and explain the recovery process to customers more clearly, Allstate said.
Preparing for more complex claims
Training at the labs helps claims teams make better assessments, more clearly explain repair recommendations and “provide a more consistent experience throughout the recovery process,” the company said.
At its core, the university aims to equip Allstate’s 23,000 claims professionals with more knowledge — knowledge they can share with policyholders. The insurer handles about 8.5 million claims each year and manages more than 216 million policies.
“The investment in Allstate Claims University starts with our people and ends with our customers,” Mike Fiato, executive vice president and chief claims officer at Allstate, said in a statement.
“When someone’s home is damaged by a storm or their vehicle is involved in an accident, they need more than a claim processed,” Fiato said. “They need an expert who can understand what happened, explain what comes next and help them move forward.”
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