Factors that accelerate
Low exposure
- Small amount under adjuster authority
- Clear coverage
- Simple scope
- No red flags
Clean documentation
- Full scope submitted by policyholder
- No dispute over facts
- Policy compliance clear
- Cooperation evident
High-visibility customer
- Long-tenured
- Multi-policy
- Commercial with multiple relationships
- Community-prominent
Reputation pressure
- Media involvement
- Regulatory attention
- Political attention
- Social-media amplification
Favorable coverage
- Claim aligns with carrier's preferred outcomes
- Marketing or retention value
- Minimizes adverse selection
Factors that decelerate
High exposure
- Above authority thresholds
- Significant reserve
- Legal review triggered
Documentation gaps
- RFI cycles
- Inconsistent statements
- Missing required documents
Coverage disputes
- Legal review required
- External expert engagement
- Multiple rounds of analysis
Complexity
- Multiple policies
- Commercial BI
- Specialty property
- Reinsurance involvement
Strategic considerations
- Precedent concerns (carrier doesn't want to pay this pattern)
- Settlement authority escalation
- External legal review
What policyholders can do
Work for acceleration
- Thorough documentation day one
- Anticipated RFI responses
- Clear communication
- Proportional representation (match complexity to representation)
Force acceleration
- Statutory deadline citations
- DFS complaint (regulatory pressure)
- CRN (legal pressure)
- Media attention (last resort)
Accept deceleration when warranted
- Large losses take time
- Complex matters genuinely take time
- Over-pressing can backfire