Client Billing Experience Specialist

Overview:

The Customer Service Representative coordinates resolution of customer inquiries and complaints from start to finish for direct bill, policy services, agent and mutual secured sites, and direct agent statements. Provides direct customer support to insureds, agents, and Grinnell Mutual staff, as well as performing all functions associated with customer billing to ensure account accuracy and customer service standards are met.

This job will require 2-3 days a week in the home office located in Grinnell, Iowa. Please note that candidates must be eligible to work in the U.S. without Grinnell Mutual sponsorship.

Responsibilities:

• Demonstrates achievement of service level standards by assisting customers via phone and email with questions related to billing, policy services, collections, agent statements, and the Grinnell Mutual Reinsurance website and public website; initiates and follows up regarding activities with other areas as required to resolve concerns promptly.
• Provides first line customer support to external and internal customers, including Agents, Insureds, Non-insured Claimants, Third party lenders.
• Works with internal departments, daily, including Underwriting, Finance, Auditing, Direct Claims, Reinsurance, Sales, Legal, Marketing, and Administrative services.
• Ability to analyze and process exception reports, refunds for disbursement, and acceptability of collections and referrals as part of the daily workload.
• Prepares daily direct bill, collection, and agent bill bank deposits, financial reconciliation reports, and updates customer records.
• Analyzes customers’ electronic records about payments (full, partial, and delinquent), billing, refunds, and collections. Includes banking information for electronic transfers and the handling of customer credit/debit card payments.
• Analyzes acceptability of late/inadequate payments and produces letters to acknowledge receipt of payment and verify the insurance status.
• Calculates earned, and unearned premium, and performs analysis to ensure the accuracy of insured refunds.
• Assists customers having difficulties or reporting a problem with the company website.
• Reconciles bank deposits and customer records.
• Posts payments to accounts and monitors to ensure accuracy.
• Processes time-sensitive financial transactions daily.
• Supporting team members by assisting with additional financial transactional reports to ensure deadlines are met.
• Minimal fiscal responsibilities to ensure the accuracy of the payment application and regulatory guidelines.
• Responsible for problem resolution of customer accounts. Coordinates with individuals to find a resolution if the issue is beyond the position’s scope.
• Demonstrate a high degree of confidentiality and protects customer and agent information within the billing and policy system.
• Working with highly confidential banking information while adhering to NACHA bank regulations and PCI regulations and internal/external audit controls.
• Evaluates requests for reinstatement exceptions and special payment arrangements; Accept, reject, and coordinate policy reinstatement exceptions/accommodations.
• Evaluates requests for rewrite exceptions and special payment arrangements; Accept, reject, and coordinate policy rewrite exceptions with the Underwriter.
• All other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

High School diploma required. Associate degree preferred and 2 or more years of Customer Service and Accounting/Finance and/or billing experience, insurance-related experience, or equivalent combination of experience and education.

• Ability to use critical thinking skills, personal judgment, experience, known facts and figures to make decisions, resolve problems, and, within a given authority, the ability to adjust insured accounts.
• Ability to demonstrate excellent interpersonal, communication, listening, and customer service skills. Includes the ability to listen patiently, wait to speak, and ask appropriate questions.
• Ability to balance transaction workload with frequent interruptions from the high volume of customer calls while maintaining attention to detail. Demonstrate organizational skills, including the ability to multi-task while maintaining a work area where items can be easily accessed and worked in priority order regardless of interruptions.
• Ability to relay information accurately to others.
• Demonstrate attention to detail in order to produce an accurate work product.
• Ability to use general office equipment including personal computer, telephone, fax, copier/scanner, calculator and demonstrate basic knowledge of, including but not limited to software including the Microsoft Office suite of products as well as computer applications specific to Grinnell Mutual Reinsurance.
• Ability to complete mathematical functions on a calculator.
• Ability to follow directions and complete work projects on a timely basis.
• Ability to work harmoniously with others.
• Ability to maintain a regular and predictable work schedule with regular attendance to meet the needs of our customers and provide adequate coverage during our core business hours.
• Must be able to maintain confidentiality and propriety of information.
• Demonstrated ability to adhere to all Grinnell Mutual policies.
• Demonstrated ability to incorporate Grinnell Mutual core values in all areas of work.

Working conditions and physical efforts:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential function satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable people with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

This position requires high use of a computer and multiple system applications. It requires long periods of sitting and working with customers via the telephone. Work may be repetitious with some occasional stress encountered when dealing with difficult individuals. There are frequent interruptions by customer phone calls.

The work environment requires the ability to multi-task working exception request, reports and research, while maintaining availability to answer incoming calls and returning calls.

The individual has frequent interaction with internal customers including members of Underwriting, Finance, Auditing, Direct Claims, Reinsurance, Sales, Legal, Marketing, and Administrative Services.

This position involves repetitive work with computer keyboard and phone. Requires visual acuity and may cause eye strain.

Required to be stationary for long periods of times.

Direct contact with the policyholders, agents, and the general public primarily via telephone and e-mail.

This job description is not intended to describe in detail the multitude of tasks that may be assigned, but rather to give the employee a general sense of the responsibilities and expectations of his/her position. As the nature of the demands changes, so may the essential functions of this job.