Return on Investment- Insurance Surveillance and Company Owned Cars

This is the first installment of our Return on Investment blog series, we will be highlighting services and features available in the insurance defense community that have brought the best return on investment for our clients.     

When investing resources towards anything most would want to make sure that they had the best chance of getting a return on their investment. When surveillance is approved for a claimant, an insurance carrier has made the decision to make a significant investment towards the claim.

At times, we have the opportunity to ask an insurance adjustor or insurance defense attorney the question: Are the vehicles used during your surveillance investigations owned by the investigations firm or are they owned by the subcontractor? We usually get a confused look, usually then followed by the reply “I don’t know, why? or What is the difference?”. The difference is, that it can be one of the most significant factors in a surveillance investigation being successful or not. Cars that are owned by investigative companies are usually equipped with cameras specifically for surveillance and outfitted to remain covert.

If an investigative firm relies on the vehicles owned by their 1099 contractors, it is likely that more than one of the following is true:

·         The vehicle does not have professional hidden surveillance cameras

·         Vehicle does not have tinted windows to stay covert

·          The same vehicle will be used repeatedly throughout the investigation

·          Pedestrians, neighbors or the claimant will likely notice the same car parked in the neighborhood. 

Most likely if any one of the factors above are true during your insurance surveillance investigations in an urban environment, there is an over 25 percent chance that the investigator will be compromised and your investigation will not be successful.  All Capital Insurance Defense Services surveillance cars are all company owned, we absorb the additional expense to ensure our clients have the best chance obtaining the best return on investment for our clients.