INSURANCE SAMPLE-TEST
PROCEDURES
I. Format: See attached example for clarification
* This document must be typed in Word
* Question/Answer format – no other format accepted
Q(period)(tab)
A(period)(tab)
Example:
Q. WHAT IS YOUR NAME?
A. MY NAME IS JOHN.
* Introductory paragraph – states the facts of the accident. First question asked in the interview is the first Q.
* Type in ALL CAPITAL letters
* Font: Courier New, 12 pts
* Double space
* Type verbatim – including all um’s and uh’s (see below for clarification)
II. Guidelines: See attached example for clarification
* Asterisks - type two asterisks in front of any city, medicine or medical procedure if you are not certain of the correct spelling, and then spell it phonetically. The asterisks would need to be typed consistently each time the word appears in the document.
Example:
Q. ARE YOU LOCATED IN **
People’s names and street names are typed as accurately as possible—no asterisks.
* Type (INAUDIBLE) for anything you cannot hear or decipher.
Example:
Q. WHAT STREET WERE YOU
TRAVELING ON (INAUDIBLE) ACCIDENT OCCURRED?
* Time
If time is said: Type it this way:
"
"
“eight”
Remember: if
the word "o'clock" is said, then it's spelled
out.
* Numbers
Series of
numbers--use all as digits or all as written out--do not mix
Spell out
numbers one through ten; use digits for numbers above 11
Use digits for all highway
numbers, street names, social security numbers, telephone numbers, dates, and
dollar amounts
Ordinal is only used when the word
“the” is used.
Example:
THE ACCIDENT HAPPENED ON THE 13TH
OF MARCH.
THE ACCIDENT HAPPENED ON MARCH THE 13TH
* Utterances
The
following is a list of acceptable forms of utterances
UH UM UM-HUM UNH-UNH
Note
that neither “uh” nor “um” should EVER be punctuated with a period. Always follow the utterance with a comma if
it should begin a sentence. Non‑verbals are surrounded by commas (front and back) if it
appears in the middle of a sentence.
* Surrounding commas
There
are words and phrases that follow the same "surrounding" set of
rules:
EXCUSE ME,
I'M SORRY,
YOU KNOW,
I MEAN,
LIKE (When it's used as a verbal pause
and is not necessary to the sentence)
Example:
I
JUST WAS, LIKE, GOING TO, YOU KNOW, LIKE, GO THEN TO THE, LIKE, TO THE STORE.
If you can take “like” out of the sentence and it makes no difference to the meaning, surround it with commas.
* DOUBLE DASHES
Use double dashes to
denote an interruption.
If double dashes are used at the end of a speaker’s remarks, make sure there is no punctuation after them. (like question marks, quotation marks, etc.)
Example:
A. I DON’T HAVE HIS, UH, NAME IN FRONT OF ME SO--
Example:
A. A CAR PULLED OUT RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME, MAKING A LEFT-HAND TURN--
Q. UM-HUM.
A. --INTO MY LANE.
Be sure when the speaker
continues his sentence that you begin with double dashes.
Double dashes with non-verbals only when it follows an unfinished word.
Examples:
SHE WAS IN A BLA--UH, RED CAR.
OR WHEN THE SPEAKER’S LINE TRAILS OFF, SUCH AS:
THE DRIVER WAS, UM--
Stutters should be
double dashed:
Examples:
THE--THE ROAD WAS W--WET.
CHANGE
OF THOUGHT IN MID-SENTENCE:
HE WAS GOING TO--WELL, MAYBE
HE HAD ALREADY GONE.
* UM UH
UM-HUM UNH-UNH
We
recognize “UM” and “UH” in our documents. Please type as such.
Example:
Q. DID YOU, UM, HAVE THE, UH, RIGHT-OF-WAY?
A. UM, YES.
I BELIEVE SO.
Q. UM-HUM.
We
also use UM-HUM (positive response) and UNH-UNH (for negative responses).
UH-HUH or UH-HUM are not acceptable.
* WORDS
OKAY
ALL RIGHT
These are usually followed by a period and two spaces. If the sentence is very short, a comma may be used:
Examples:
Okay, I will.
All right, you can.
* SPELL THE FOLLOWING WORDS AS INDICATED.
ALRIGHTY
DRIVEABLE
STOP
SIGN
STOPLIGHT
Final
Note: PROOFREAD AND RUN A SPELL-CHECK ON
YOUR SAMPLE-TEST BEFORE SENDING IT TO US.