Having just graduated from university, our colleague Ashley joined us in a sales role. Since then, he has climbed the ladder to become a Technical Claims Negotiator.
Ashley shares his experiences of growing with Hasting Direct, a journey that has led him to being a member of our brilliant Claims team – read his internal progression story.
What does your role entail?
As a Technical Claims Negotiator within the Technical Claims Unit, I deal with a variety of claims involving personal injury across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland with a handling authority of £50K per claimant.
Talk us through your journey at Hastings
Whilst working in sales, I was always curious as to what the premiums we took went towards, so I started to gain an interest in Claims. I moved internally to the FNOL (new claims) department shortly after and enjoyed helping customers get through difficult, sometimes traumatic times, and ensure they were back on the road as soon as possible after an accident.
Shortly after, I joined the Third Party Property Damage team where my role was to assess if a claim was covered, if we were at fault for the incident and how much we should be paying out for the claim. This also involved protecting our innocent customers and disputing claims we weren’t at fault for. Within this role, I had the great opportunity to help set up the Subrogation Portal / Verify department. This opened my eyes to the insurance industry as a whole and gave me the opportunity to visit other insurance companies to reach agreements on how we can settle claims as efficiently and amicably as possible.
For the last four years, I have worked my way up through the Personal Injury department starting with simple whiplash claims to now dealing with more complex injuries which can last several years or even permanently affect the injured claimant.
What do you enjoy most about Hastings?
I know everyone says it but the people! I get to work with like-minded colleagues and leaders who have a genuine passion for greatness and success. I also get a lot of job satisfaction in my current role and again, I know it’s cliché, but no day is the same. Even four years on, I still come across different scenarios, injuries and challenges that I’ve not come across before which keep the job feeling fresh and exciting.
Do you have any advice for people looking to progress?
Own your personal development and don’t just sit and hope that opportunities come your way: be proactive. I would always say to evidence your own success stories and don’t be afraid to highlight these to your peers and leaders. Equally, don’t be disheartened with any pushbacks, whether they are in your control or not – just make sure you learn from them!
Join us: We’d love for you to join, grow and develop with us like Ashley! Check out our available opportunities.