Recognizing that many of its contract customers are not experts at managing accident claims, Penske Truck Leasing now offers Claims InSite, a collision management solution, to complement its North America truck collision repair centers. Even if a customer uses Penske trucks for a portion of its fleet, the customer can enroll all vehicles in the service, the company says.
Claims InSite is designed to facilitate management of the entire accident process in real time, from incident reporting to ensuring vehicles are repaired in a quick, efficient and cost-effective manner. “Claims InSite turns the process over to professionals,” says Frank Mileto, senior vice president of business ventures for Penske Truck Leasing.
The solution also identifies the right collision repair centers and finds the best locations for chassis, body and trailer repairs, complete vehicle refinishing, and frame and alignment work for commercial trucks and vehicles via a national network, Mileto says. Penske’s Claims InSite does not provide the data for repairs done outside its repair network, he says.
Penske operates 16 commercial truck collision repair centers across North America, where both Penske equipment and other retail fleet customers are serviced. More than 200 trained technicians utilizing the latest repair and refinishing techniques staff the centers, annually repairing more than 18,000 vehicles, the company says.
Developed in collaboration with The CEI Group Inc., a collision and claims management provider, Claims InSite is designed to expedite and organize the end-to-end accident management process – managing physical damage claims; identifying high-quality cost-effective collision repair facilities; capturing metrics and statistical analyses of accident reports; and securing payment from at-fault parties.
The company says that when an accident occurs, Penske customers can call the 24/7 Claims InSite national call center for assistance; claims specialists gather claim information, including incident details from the driver, vehicle photos and police reports, and upload it to a Web-based management system. With all of the vehicle information already entered into Claims InSite, the driver only needs to report his truck unit number and how the accident occurred.
Claims InSite also will collect and scan police reports and other documents and upload them to the site, according to Penske; as details regarding repairs and insurance claims are processed, customers can track progress in real time through the password-protected www.MyFleetAtPenske.com site.
The Claims InSite service includes subrogation services if fleets do not have these resources themselves, Mileto says. “By partnering with CEI to create Claims InSite, we provide customers with a white-glove accident management service,” he says.
