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Useful experience for insurance claims officers includes other work in the insurance industry – for example, in underwriting or sales.

Work in retail sales, banking, customer service, finance, health and law is also useful.

Insurance claims officers may do some or all of the following:

• analyse claims and decide whether they are covered by policy
• make recommendations for the settlement of claims
• inform clients if claims are accepted and how they will be allocated
• organise payments to clients and repair or replacement of lost items
• make sure all enquiries and payments are dealt with quickly
• appoint insurance loss adjusters and private investigators when required
• contact independent experts in case of disputes and attend disputes tribunals.

Customer service and sales skills improve chances of getting insurance claims officer job

Chances of getting a job as an insurance claims officer are average because:

• although some companies have outsourced jobs to overseas call centres to cut costs, demand for workers in New Zealand remains stable
• jobs for insurance claims officers may decrease if employers start using artificial intelligence for customer queries, sales, and dealing with claims
• earthquakes, storms and flooding often create an increase in demand for insurance claims officers, but it is short term, with many jobs being fixed term rather than permanent.

Your chances of securing a job as an insurance claims officer are best if you have customer service or sales experience.

According to the Census, 2,793 insurance claims officers worked in New Zealand in 2018.

Insurance claims officers usually work for insurance companies

Most insurance claims officers work for insurance companies. Many insurance brands in New Zealand are owned by IAG or Suncorp.

Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance

(09) 379 7128 - nzbranch@anziif.com - anziif.com

Strategi

09 414 1300 - support@strategi.ac.nz - https://shop.strategi.ac.nz/

Insurance claims officers can progress into supervisory or management roles within insurance companies, or move into other insurance roles such as insurance agent or insurance loss adjuster.

Insurance claims officers may specialise in:

• general insurance, which includes house and contents, commercial, motor vehicle and marine insurance
• life insurance, which includes health insurance, disability insurance and superannuation.

• Insurance agent job information
• Insurance loss adjuster job information

Insurance claims officers need to be:

• good at listening and able to relate to a wide range of people
• tactful, patient and calm
• empathetic and fair
• good communicators and negotiators
• good at report writing
• good at analysing and interpreting information, including legal documents
• accurate, with an eye for detail
• organised and able to work under pressure.