Collaboration, early and often.

Why getting everyone rowing in the same direction before positions harden does more for a nuclear verdict than any single tactic, and why her favorite claim story isn't about a claim at all.

Briana Ford is Assistant Vice President and Head of Excess Claims at Xceedance. In the 7th episode of Claims Conversations with Scott Francis, she talks about her path into claims leadership, what she tells her team about nuclear verdicts, and the one question she asks on every file.

No two days are the same

Briana started as a claim setup tech, then moved into handling claims, first low severity, then more complex, before moving into leadership. "There's common themes between files, but each one tells a different story," she says. She points to the mentors she's had along the way, and to the experience of helping people on her team develop, gain confidence, and move into leadership roles themselves.

Collaboration, early and often

Asked what she's seen work against social inflation and nuclear verdicts, Briana doesn't name one fix. "I'm not really sure that there's one single thing that's a difference maker," she says, "but I always preach to my team the importance of collaboration early and often." Every new piece of information gets a thorough look at how it affects the outcome of the claim, positively or negatively.

Claims that go nuclear usually show signs early, in her experience. Her approach: get the adjuster, defense counsel, coverage counsel, and appellate counsel (if involved), and the client aligned before positions become entrenched. She credits a mentor with advice she still uses: "You have to pick and choose the hills you're gonna die on, and it's never good to pick all of them." That means finding where you can collaborate with the other side instead of fighting every issue.

She also points to proactive communication with the claimant or their counsel. "It carries a lot more weight than people realize," she says. Some assume the other side won't talk or listen, but she'd rather try, and says opening that line of communication early has helped her resolve cases sooner than expected. Silence between both sides, in her view, tends to create assumptions on each side.

What did we miss

Her advice for an adjuster to apply on the next file: look at each claim and ask, "if this case resulted in a nuclear verdict tomorrow, what did we miss?" It's a simple question, she says, but it changes the conversation and forces the team to be proactive. From there, identify one action, an additional liability investigation, an early mediation discussion, more expert work, a reserve review, and give real thought to whether making that change earlier would improve the outcome.

Not a claims story

Asked for her favorite claim story, Briana says she'd have to dig into her vault, but the answer isn't a specific case. It's watching an adjuster work through a difficult or unfamiliar claim, gain confidence through the process, and start leading discussions instead of following them. "Claims really is about the people," she says.

Outside of claims

Briana and her husband have their eye on a piece of property where they can eventually slow down and disconnect. Two teenage boys keep her on her toes. She spends her spare time cooking and by the pool with her family in the summer.

About Claims Conversations

Claims Conversations is an interview series hosted by amaise General Manager Scott Francis. Each episode is a short, on-the-record conversation with a VP, Director, or Head of Claims about one specific thing that is working in their shop.

Previous episodes

EP.01 - Dale Diamond, VP of Claims, NAMIC Insurance: "How mid-sized carriers punch above their weight on severity."

EP.02 - Mark Konerman, Director of Claims: "Resolving complex injury files before they escalate."

EP.03 - Michelle Raue, Founder & Advisor, Raue Strategic Advisory: "Use AI to take manual work off and let adjusters actually talk to people."

EP.04 - Awais Farooq, Chief Claims Officer, Venbrook: "A good claim is a closed claim."

EP.05 - Mike LaFond, Assistant Vice President of Claims, Pekin Insurance: "Take notes like it's gonna be read aloud in court."

EP.06 - Sherry Merber, Chief Claims Officer, Palms Insurance: "It's all about the people."

Be a guest

If your team has changed something that moved severity, cycle time, or BI outcomes in the last 12 months, email scott.francis@amaise.com.