Bankers manage an exceptional amount of wealth and assets on a regular basis. With these high-risk responsibilities comes a high risk for liability. While many bankers rely on their expertise and knowledge to guide their decisions, no one is immune to Banker Professional Liability claims. Therefore, heed the following operational best practices to share with your teams to mitigate risk, responsibility, and financial obligations.
Plan ahead.
Rather than address your employees as mistakes are encountered, provide them with the proper training and FAQ documentation they need to be successful. This will increase accuracy and customer service while minimizing loss and the potential for claims.
Use client interaction guides.
Learning the ropes presents a learning curve that every banker has to adjust to. However, the client interaction guides provided by each unique bank can help new and experienced bankers to improve their customer service skills, cross-sell, and provide accurate information and advice.
Prevent commercial lending mishaps.
Bankers should not rely on a verbal mention of potential issues that could arise for each individual loan application. Instead, ensure that commercial loan officers provide underwriting with a cover letter for each loan application to inform the underwriter of both the positives and negatives about the case, states Ops Dog.
Mortgage lending best practices.
Develop a standard triage process for underwriting incoming mortgage applications. Send simpler files through an automated underwriting system or an entry-level underwriter, while assigning more difficult cases to senior, experienced underwriters, states the article. Do not just arbitrarily assign these tasks to underwriters without specific instruction and experience.
Cash management.
While formal reviews of cash management might only be completed on an as-needed basis, experts recommend doing so biannually or even quarterly. These formal reports should review the performance and structures of bank accounts, as well as the relevant fees and signers on the accounts.
About FGIB
Since 1983, Financial Guaranty Insurance Brokers has distinguished itself as a provider of Professional Liability, Cyber Liability, and Crime insurance products for financial entities, in addition to providing crime insurance and general business insurance products to a number of firms across the United States. To receive timely, personalized service from a knowledgeable and experienced staff, call us today at (877) 485-4413 to speak with one of our professionals.