Developmental Services

Finds the Service & Safety Assistance They Need

In the 1980s, Developmental Services, Inc., a management company providing services to businesses that serve the elderly and developmentally disabled, found the health of its own workers' compensation program was failing.

"We were using another company's fully insured product and it was a terrible experience," said Ken Schultz, CFO for Developmental Services. "They couldn't get us the claims information we needed, and when they did, the information was sometimes inaccurate. To make matters worse, they were no help in controlling costs, either."

Developmental Services switched insurers, and costs did come down a bit. But service was still lacking. So in 1986, they decided to give FHM a try.

"FHM had services the other carrier couldn't offer," said Mr. Schultz. "Their reporting system is very good, which is vital to our business. With FHM, we get a monthly print-out of all our claims activity. That helps us stay on top of things by monitoring the reports and taking action to reduce problems."

The safety of their employees was another important consideration for Developmental Services when choosing an insurer. FHM's safety suggestions, such as having safety committees at each location, have enabled the company to take action in-house to reduce accidents.

"We are extremely happy with FHM," added Mr. Schultz. "We found another insurer that was less expensive than FHM, and we tried them for a year. But we came back, because we've found that with FHM, you truly get what you pay for."

A Policy To Do More — Case by Case

• Implemented a retro workers' compensation plan that kept costs under control
• Improved reporting via monthly updates on all claim activity
• Reduced accidents with safety ideas that empowered staff to be proactive
• Received unequalled customer service and convenient, quality programs