Recognising the need to support insurers with their claims investigation process, CRIF has introduced property attribute data into its flagship claims investigation tool, Sherlock. Designed to deliver straightforward, cost effective counter fraud intelligence to claims investigators with minimal input, Sherlock is a web based application accessed via individual user ID and password. Sherlock users can run real time, interactive investigations and receive the consolidated results on a single screen.
Swift, cost effective access to property attribute data enables insurers to rapidly validate property details providing the claims investigator with greater insight into the property which is the subject of the claim. Sherlock operates on a cost effective pay per click model, with no requirement for multiple costly licences. So how can insurers apply property attribute data to best effect during the claims process? Through Sherlock, CRIF’s insurance fraud investigation service, it is possible to access property attribute data covering 80% of the residential property market in the UK. In particular, you can gain the following property insight:
- Rental notification – identifies buy to let and rental properties
- Recent sale notification – identifies if the property has been sold within the last months
- Key property attributes notification – identifies property type, eg. house, bungalow, flat; property style eg. detached, semi-detached, mid or end terrace, purpose built flats, converted flats; number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms
- Access to all available interior and exterior property images and floor plans. Additional in-built enhanced tools are also available to enable property street view, property aerial view and street layout maps if required
- Parking notification – identifies if parking related to the property is off road, single garage or double garage.
Armed with this insight insurers can validate for example whether there are anomalies related to property condition and nature of claim; timing of claim in relation to the property changing ownership; number of bathrooms linked to escape of water claims and gain a clearer overall picture of the specific claim environment. The role of data in insurance investigations is increasingly pivotal and there is a compelling case for taking full advantage of the data sources available to empower data supported decision making. As an innovative solution which continues to evolve in line with market needs, CRIF will continue to enhance the service with additional counter fraud tools.
