Crawford TPA is a business on the rise. Following its rebranding last year, the team has seen exceptional growth, increasing headcount close to 100% and expanding its footprint in the UK to new regional hubs in Leeds, Croydon, Manchester and Birmingham.
A trusted third-party claims partner to a range of corporates, insurers, brokers, captives and MGAs, Crawford TPA has seen a significant uptick in demand with the number of claims handled in the UK soaring in the past year.
“We’re building on this momentum by reinvesting in the business - primarily in people, quality and technology,” explains Wayne Brand, Head of Crawford TPA in the UK and Ireland.
Early careers recruitment and training is a key focus area, with Crawford TPA harnessing a range of approaches to attract a stream of new talent into entry level roles then up-skilling them through the business.
As well as bringing fresh talent into the insurance industry, the growth of the Crawford TPA team has also been driven by 38% internal hires and employee turnover in the business is extremely low despite the competitive market for talent.
“This illustrates our commitment to making Crawford a great place to work, whether that’s looking after people’s wellbeing, offering enhanced employee benefits or helping them progress their careers,”
says Brand. “This is helping us build a stable and sustainable workforce which will support continued growth and momentum.”
As well as helping the business to recruit a more diverse range of talent from across the country, the expansion of the team into new parts of the UK strengthens Crawford TPA’s global hub proposition which seamlessly blends both remote and in-person services.
“We’re focused on building long-term partnerships with our clients, so the ability to offer a flexible, people-centred response, regardless of location, is central to meeting their needs and building that trust,” says Brand.
Crawford TPA offers specialist expertise across a wide spectrum of classes of business, and a commitment to quality is also central to its value proposition. “Corporate clients want consistency, specialist expertise and technical proficiency from a TPA,” Brand says.
The company has made significant investments in these areas, expanding its technical claims unit from four to ten people and appointed its first TPA dedicated technical manager. It has also created a key new quality assurance role - head of operational excellence - while its central auditing team helps ensure consistency of service across each of Crawford TPA’s UK and global locations, Brand explains.
“We’re committed to consistent quality, delivered promptly, across all our clients and locations,” he says
“Our international teams are connected via centralised systems, enabling us to deliver a seamless One Crawford response. This ensures our clients and customers can harness expertise from across our network without having to navigate a global organisation.”
Technology is playing a transformational role in all areas of the business, simplifying business processes, driving internal efficiencies and enhancing the customer journey. Crawford TPA has, for example, implemented an automated text messaging service to keep customers informed and updated on their claim timelines. “This means we never miss an opportunity to communicate,” says Brand.
Customised digital solutions such as self-serve portals and live video streaming help reduce costs and streamline the claims process, while a multi-lingual digital first notification of loss (FNOL) system also enables increased inclusivity, he adds.
The business can now also gather net promoter scores and feedback from a wide range of customers - not just clients - to continuously enhance the customer experience. “A customer’s claim experience reflects back on our clients, so even if we decline a claim, it’s important we know customers felt informed and understood the decision - even if it wasn't the outcome they expected,” Brand says.
AI and automation are also driving a range of efficiencies in Crawford TPA’s own operations and processes. Tools like Power BI for data visualisation, for example, enhance the business’s ability to report to clients on their programs while also managing operational productivity. Crawford TPA has also recently launched a digital supplier module enabling the automated deployment of appropriate contractors - a process which used to be coordinated manually.
“Tools like these ensure we always have the right people doing the right thing at the right time,” Brand says. “Ultimately, technology enables us to deliver better outcomes for customers, drive down the cost of claims for clients and deliver actionable insights - all of which will help us continue to grow and innovate into the future.”
