Allianz Australia has hailed the work of its claims staff after winning the Gold Mansfield Award for excellence in claims-handling for the second year in a row.

As well as the top award, the insurer also won trophies for the SME property and casualty and personal lines categories.

Accepting the accolades at last week’s event, attended by more than 200 industry leaders and claims professionals in Sydney’s Establishment Ballroom, Allianz Chief Customer Services Officer Brendan Dunne noted the “uniqueness of the [Mansfield] awards”.

“The Mansfield Awards are determined by a broad range of industry stakeholders, and through reports, making them a true and real testament to the quality of our people and their hard work,” he said.

“Winning three awards for overall excellence in claims-handling, SME property and casualty, and personal lines, shows the positive impact Allianz employees are having in the moments that really matter.

“It’s not always easy to navigate the complexity of claims management, and I’m proud of our people for constantly working towards improving the claims journey for our customers and partners.”

Other finalists for the overall award were FM Global, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) and TravelCard.

BHSI and FM Global were joint winners of corporate property and casualty, while TravelCard took out the specialty section.

The awards, named after the English Lord Chief Justice who introduced the concept of utmost good faith to the insurance process in 1766, are organised by Insurance News and LMI Group.

Insurance News Publisher Terry McMullan says the success of last week’s event “cements the place of the Mansfield Awards on the industry’s calendar".

"No company or individual gets to make submissions for an award, and the event is run on a not-for-profit basis,” he said.

“We set the Mansfields up three years ago to put claims back in the spotlight. The continuing support of this event by senior managers and claims professionals gives me great confidence that we’re achieving this.”

The awards were again sponsored by Insurance & Care NSW (icare) and Steadfast, who have backed the scheme since its inception. Any funds surplus are used to support an orphanage in Indonesia.

Winners and finalists are calculated using official reports and surveys conducted by LMI, with the results “weighted” so all insurers are viewed equally.

The full results in the Mansfield Awards for Claims Excellence, with the finalists, are as follows:

Personal lines: The winner was Allianz. The other finalists were Blue Zebra, Catholic Church Insurance, RAC Insurance and RACQ Insurance.

SME property and casualty: The winner was Allianz. The other finalists were 360 Underwriting, Ansvar Insurance and Insure That.

Corporate property and casualty: The joint winners were BHSI and FM Global. The other finalists were Chubb and Allianz.

Specialty: The winner was TravelCard. The other finalists were Global Transport Insurance, Mecon Insurance, National Transport Insurance and Shannons Insurance.

The Gold Mansfield Award for overall excellence in claims: The winner was Allianz. The other finalists were BHSI, FM Global and TravelCard.