Crawford mobilizing resources to respond to Fort McMurray wildfire

TORONTO (May 4, 2016) – Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc. has been closely monitoring the developing wildfire situation in Fort McMurray, Alberta and is rapidly mobilizing resources to respond to the region. With emergency operations actively underway in the region, direct access to loss locations will be delayed. However, a large number of resources are being readied for rapid deployment when access is available.

Crawford’s CLAIMSALERT® call centre is receiving a large number of calls from policyholders that are being evacuated in the region who are seeking advice and assistance. We are working closely with our insurer partners to provide emergency financial relief and instructions on how to proceed. We are monitoring call volumes closely and are preparing for an influx of those calls as evacuees reach safety and are able to contact us.

Crawford’s Catastrophe Response Team is actively communicating with our insurer partners, commercial and government clients to establish an early assessment of their exposure and engage the Catastrophe Response Plans we have in place with them. Work is now underway to estimate claims volumes through policy counts and media reports from the region. Technical resources including loss adjusters, engineers and accountants from the Western region, across Canada, and around the world are ready to attend losses as soon as the region is cleared for entry.

Contractor Connection has also activated its Catastrophe Response Plan and is in close contact with members in Fort McMurray and the surrounding area to help with their immediate needs during evacuation efforts. Contactor Connection is also staging resources and equipment from firms across Canada that will be called upon to respond to the losses when they are reported.

Crawford Appraisal Management has been in contact with its network partners and key clients to assess their immediate needs and prepare to respond to what is expected to be a large number of assignments. “We understand that the magnitude of the event that is occurring in the Fort McMurray area has not yet been fully realized and is changing rapidly,” commented Pat Van Bakel, chief executive officer and president, adding “as we learned in Kelowna and Slave Lake, this event will have an impact on the community and the people in it for quite some time. Our thoughts are with those people today as we work around the clock to help them recover from this devastating event.”

Crawford will be issuing market updates as information becomes available. For further information and assistance, please contact:

Mike Koch, Manager, National Property & Catastrophe – 519‐389‐7314 or Mike.Koch@crawco.ca

Bruce Toma, Branch Manager, Edmonton – 780‐486‐8083 or Bruce.Toma@crawco.ca

Jim Eso, Senior Vice President, Property & Casualty – 1‐800‐267‐5540 or Jim.Eso@crawco.ca

Sandra Buckberrough, Vice President & National Account Executive – 416‐957‐5061 or Sandra.Buckberrough@crawco.ca

 

About Crawford

Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Crawford & Company. Based in Atlanta, Ga., Crawford & Company is the world’s largest independent provider of claims management solutions to the risk management and insurance industry as well as self‐insured entities, with an expansive global network serving clients in more than 70 countries. The Crawford SolutionSM offers comprehensive, integrated claims services, business process outsourcing and consulting services for major product lines including property and casualty claims management, workers compensation claims and medical management, and legal settlement administration.

The Company’s shares are traded on the NYSE under the symbols CRDA and CRDB.