Method and system for processing data relating to determining subrogation recovery

Abstract

A method for identifying select ones of insurance records which possess a favorable subrogation potential. The method includes receiving data indicative of a plurality of claims; automatically calculating a base score to identify select ones of the claims which demonstrate at least a given probability of expected subrogation recovery dependently upon the received data; automatically identifying risk factors for each of the select claims; and, automatically scoring each of the select claims dependently upon the base scores and identified risk factors to provide a value indicative of an expected subrogation recovery.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A computer system for processing data relating to determining an expected subrogation recovery for one or more insurance claims, comprising:
 a data storage device storing data relating to a plurality of insurance claims as to which an insurer has a right of subrogation,   a computer processor in communication with the data storage device and configured to:   calculate, for one or more of the plurality of insurance claims a first score indicative of a likelihood of expected subrogation recovery;   access one or more risk factors for the one or more insurance claims;   determine, based on the first score and the one or more risk factors, a value indicative of an expected subrogation recovery, the value not representing a sum certain of an obligation to the insurer, and   store the determined value indicative of an expected subrogation recovery, in a memory device.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the stored data relating to the one or more insurance claims comprises a type of insurance claim, a size of the insurance claim, a type of responsible person, and whether the policy under which the claim is made is a personal or business policy. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the computer processor is further configured to calculate the first score based on one or more of: (a) an insurance claim type value, the insurance claim type values comprising automobile physical damage, automobile collision, and workers compensation; (b) a value range of an underlying insurance claim; (c) a type of responsible person, the responsible person type values comprising individual or business. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the risk factors comprise one or more of: (a) whether a policy under which a claim was made is a personal or a business insurance policy; and (b) degree of insured's and tortfeasor's culpability for subrogation recovery. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the data relating to one or more claims comprises data extracted from a web-based interface at a point of loss entry. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a device in communication with the system component configured to effect file transfer of a batch of claims closed during a target period and to store the batch of claims closed during the target period in the data storage device. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a system component configured to effect file transfer of a batch of claims placed for subrogation collection, and to store the batch of claims placed for subrogation collection in the data storage device. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the computer processor is further configured to, prior to determining the first score, perform a screening process, wherein the first score is determined for an insurance claim responsive to the screening process providing a result indicative of a positive subrogation potential, the screening process comprising one or more of the following: (a) determining whether the insurance claim is a first party claim which insurers typically have the right to subrogate; (b) determining whether there are legal prohibitions against subrogation in the particular state of legal jurisdiction; (c) determining whether the claim is closed or expected to close without payments; (d) determining whether rights under the statute of limitation have been preserved; (e) determining whether an accident description shows another might be liable for all or part of the loss; (f) determining whether the state bars recovery based on the insured's degree of negligence; and (g) determining whether there is enough information to identify and locate the alleged legally liable party. 
     
     
         9 . A computer-implemented process for determining a likelihood of subrogation of one or more insurance claims, comprising:
 storing data relating to a plurality of insurance claims in a data storage device;   accessing by a computer processor data relating to one of the plurality of insurance claims;   determining by the computer processor a first score relating to a likelihood of subrogation of the insurance claim;   determining by the computer processor, based on the first score and one or more risk factors, a value indicative of an expected subrogation recovery, the value not representing a sum certain of an obligation to the insurer, and   storing the value in a memory device.   
     
     
         10 . The computer-implemented process of  claim 9 , wherein the determining the first score is based at least in part on resistance to pay characteristics of an insurer of a responsible party. 
     
     
         11 . The computer-implemented process of  claim 9 , wherein the determining the first score is based at least in part on membership in one or more common dispute resolution pools of an insurer of a responsible party. 
     
     
         12 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 9 , wherein the determining the first score is based at least in part on financial strength of an insurer of a responsible party. 
     
     
         13 . The computer-implemented process of  claim 9 , wherein the risk factors comprise one or more of: (a) limitation of legal process due to statute of limitations; and (b) degree of insured's and tortfeasor's culpability for subrogation recovery. 
     
     
         14 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 9 , further comprising determining an estimated cost of recovery, and wherein the determining the value indicative of an expected subrogation recovery is further based on the determined estimated cost of recovery. 
     
     
         15 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 14 , wherein the determining an estimated cost of recovery comprises employing unit costs of collection activity under a selected operational scenario. 
     
     
         16 . A computer system for processing data relating to determining a value of subrogation recovery for one or more insurance claims, comprising:
 a data storage device storing data relating to a plurality of insurance claims as to which an insurer has a right of subrogation; and   one or more computer processors configured to:
 generate a user interface configured to implement an interview process relating to an insurance claim; 
 receive data relating to the insurance claim from the user interface; 
 calculate, for one or more of the plurality of insurance claims, from at least one of the data stored in the data storage device and the data received from the user interface, a first score indicative of a likelihood of expected subrogation recovery; 
 access one or more risk factors for the one or more insurance claims; 
 determine, based on the first score and the one or more risk factors, a value indicative of an expected subrogation recovery, the value not representing a sum certain of an obligation to the insurer; 
 store the determined value indicative of an expected subrogation recovery, in a memory device; and 
 pass the one or more insurance claims to a subrogation process. 
   
     
     
         17 . The computer system of  claim 16 , wherein the calculating the first score is based at least in part on data relating to a favorable police report. 
     
     
         18 . The computer system of  claim 16 , wherein the calculating the first score is based at least in part on existence of an insurance carrier of a responsible party. 
     
     
         19 . The computer system of  claim 16 , wherein the one or more computer processors are further configured to, responsive to determining that no subrogation opportunity is identified with respect to an insurance claim, close the insurance claim. 
     
     
         20 . The computer system of  claim 16 , further comprising a system component configured to effect file transfer of a batch of claims passed to the subrogation process.