Adjusters often juggle 150 claims at once. When parties can't agree, the company offers the services of human facilitators. Over the past several months, Travelers has registered 800 cases on the Web site. Since January, Fireman's Fund has entered bids on about 75 cases. Of cases in which both sides joined bidding, a third were settled.
Plaintiffs have as long as two months to respond.
But they just don't know that. Company executives say settling over the Internet is no riskier than old-fashioned negotiating, and they say it might even be easier to enforce a settlement reached online than over the telephone because both sides leave an electronic paper trail. But so far, the key advantage to plaintiffs appears to be speed. Anthony Barsamian, a plaintiffs' attorney in Wellesley, Mass., says faster settlement can be beneficial. Inc. All Rights Reserved.