Too much recruitment; too few claims candidates

As insurers and reinsurers struggle to cope with a backlog of claims in the wake of recent natural disasters, claims employees remain in short supply.

"The demand for staff is evident across the country. The impact of storms, fires and flooding - in particular the Queensland floods - has been felt in every state and territory as customers service teams divert calls from Queensland to other states to handle the volume," says Jane McNeill, senior regional director, Hays Insurance.

Much of this reactive recruitment has already taken place and there has been a decrease in the availability of claims candidates as a result.

Another potential problem on the candidate supply side is that claims can be a high-turnover job function, according to an insurance recruiter, who asked not to be named.

"Sometimes people only stay for 9 to 12 months because it's a breeding ground for other areas, especially underwriting. And because claims departments are often not in the CBD, it's more difficult to retain staff who move to a different suburb."

Yet demand is only continuing to increase, says McNeill. "We expect to see this need for insurance professionals grow over the next few months, particularly for experienced account executives and claims staff."

So how are insurance firms going about their recruitment? There has been a large increase in temporary assignments and volume campaigns. "Employers are also turning to less qualified staff, such as assistant account executives," says McNeill.

There are now claims opportunities for candidates with no experience in the insurance sector. "We've seen employers recruit individuals with good phone-based experience and strong customer service skills in order to handle the volume of calls," she adds.