No Stone Left Unturned

Before closing a file, P. C. A. Adjusters ensures that all the T’s are crossed and the I’s are dotted.

“We don’t process claims here, we investigate and adjust them and that’s our main focus,” David Cernak, president of P. C. A. Adjusters notes. “We like to make sure that there is nothing left unturned, that everything has been covered.”

What started as a one-office company with two employees in 1970 in Montreal has grown into a three-office operation with 14 staff covering Eastern Ontario. This is not including the newest addition in Belleville, Ont. scheduled to open in May. This is in a big part thanks to the dedication of the entire staff doing the most thorough job possible every time.

“Experience the difference experience makes,” Cernak says.

Not just a ma and pa shop

P.C.A. Adjusters was founded in Montreal in 1970 by Val Cernak and was federally chartered in 1971. By the late ’70s, the staff count had risen from two to 28.

The company moved from Montreal to Ottawa in 1978, and opened up its second office, this one in Cornwall, Ont. in 1998. In 2001 the company opened a third office, this time in Kingston, Ont. and is currently working on its fourth location in Belleville.

Opening a new office poses challenges in and of itself, what with all the unknowns, but Cernak is confident in the markets the company works with and the need for another location within those markets.

“It’s rounding us out much better as a regional firm,” Cernak says. “As a regional firm if one particular area in the region gets hit we take a team approach. One office gets inundated and a lot of the players from the other offices will jump in and work as a team in getting everything resolved — especially on the service side of things for our markets.”

Focusing on customer service

Are there plans for further expansion? “You can never say never,” Cernak chuckles. “We’ll just have to see how the market handles itself right now. From what I gather there seems to be a whole lot of shaking going on!”

Cernak hopes, however, that there might be a positive to the shaking economy: that it might help to bring back old-school service values across the industry — something P.C.A. has never lost sight of. He notes that the main focus across the industry as of late seems to be on expense containment rather than on the policyholders who are providing the industry with its livelihood. “The cost containment can happen much more effectively by controlling an insurer’s exposure to a loss,” Cernak notes.

The goal is to provide the insured and the insurer with the level of professional service that they are paying for. “Their premium is paying for insurance, yes, but it’s also paying for a service to be taken care of in the event of a claim and we just think that’s been overlooked,” Cernak points out. “Following Val’s (the founder) belief that we must always remember that the policyholder is buying what you are delivering.” The claims process takes time and by speeding it up, much of the service and the good points in the claims experience are taken away.

By hiring the levels of professionals required, who understand that providing top-notch customer service is a priority, P. C. A Adjusters is able to guarantee that they stand out in the service they provide to customers.

“Everybody takes a very personal approach to their file, paying special attention to detail, to ensure that both the insured public and the [insurance] companies themselves are getting the information that they need an in a timely manner,” Cernak says. “We do a full and proper job and bill our time accordingly. We don’t work off book rates, we don’t work off a set structure. The actual time that is spent working on a file is what is billed, no more, no less.”

Constant training is a priority

And in order to ensure that the files are worked on by the most skilled adjusters, the company supports training industry-wide, be it accident benefits or legislative changes, or required software or attending seminars. The company supports their staff in the quest to complete their CIP or FCIP or any other investigative degree, in addition to reimbursing any costs associated with that.

“We have had the good fortune of gathering a team of individual adjusters that stand out on delivering a quality product and quality service and are well-diversified in the breadth of knowledge that they have,” Cernak says.

But it isn’t just about work all the time at P. C. A. Adjusters. There is a great deal of emphasis placed on respect and fairness and understanding. Staff meetings are held offsite as a way to get away from the office to clear the mind and come up with new ways to improve business or productivity. Holiday office parties are treated as a time to get together and do something creative, be it heading out of town on an excursion or chartering a bus and heading somewhere in town.

Even heading out to trade shows becomes a company affair and not just something attended by upper management, providing staff with the opportunity to meet with clients and keep in contact with the industry.

And being in constant contact with its peers is important for P. C. A. Adjusters. This is why being a member of the Canadian Independent Adjusters’ Association is so essential. By being involved, the company is able to stay abreast of what is happening within the industry and what changes are coming down the pipe, Cernak notes. Not to mention, the associations one can build with other member firms. “We’ve built great relationships with a number of firms from one end of the country to the other, and we do a lot of third party administration work with them,” he adds.

And what is coming down the pipe at P. C. A. Adjusters? Comfortable growth with a continued emphasis on professional claims handling coupled with customer service excellence.”