Step-by-Step Checklist to Boost Your POMS Score and Win More TPA Jobs

A strong POMS Score is one of the most important factors in whether a third-party administrator (TPA) continues to feed you work or turns to one of your competitors. In fact, your POMS Score is like your company’s report card in the eyes of TPAs and carriers. A low score can get you suspended or drastically reduce your job assignments, while a high score can open the door to steady work and even lucrative large-loss opportunities. The following checklist will guide you step by step through the key actions you need to take to keep your score high, prevent unnecessary penalties, and ensure your company is a trusted partner for TPAs.

Step 1: Understand What a POMS Score Really Means

Your company’s POMS (Performance Outcomes Measurement System) score is the main way TPAs track whether or not your business is performing consistently across all service expectations. It is not always clear how every factor is weighted, but the score generally reflects your ability to complete required tasks on time, submit documentation correctly, and earn positive customer reviews.

Step 2: Make Initial Contact Quickly (and Document It)

Two of the most critical factors in your company’s POMS Score are the speed and documentation pertaining to your first contact with the homeowner. In most TPA programs, you are required to reach out within three hours of receiving an assignment. But calling within the deadline isn’t enough: you must also log into the TPA portal, check the box confirming your attempt, and record your notes. If you don’t click the confirmation, the system doesn’t recognize that you met the requirement, even if you made the call and left a voicemail.

To succeed:

• Always have a process in place to make the first contact promptly, even on weekends or evenings.
• Assign this responsibility clearly, ensuring someone is both calling the customer and checking the box in the portal.
• Consider internal reminders or scheduling tools so that a missed click doesn’t wipe out your efforts.

Missing this step can instantly hurt your company’s POMS Score and perhaps disqualify your business from new assignments.

Step 3: Submit Accurate, Revision-Proof Estimates

TPAs evaluate every estimate before it reaches the carrier, and the number of quality assurance (QA) revision requests you face directly impacts your company’s POMS Score. A pattern of rejected line items or constant revisions suggests your company is inconsistent or careless.

To avoid this:

• Commit to thorough on-site documentation so your estimate matches the actual scope of work.
• Include photo-rich evidence for every line item you add. Timestamped and geo-tagged photos and 360-degree panoramas provide undeniable proof, making it harder for reviewers to push back.
• Follow the carrier-specific guidelines provided by the TPA. Line items must be coded and placed correctly to survive the first review.

Accurate estimating supported by strong documentation is not just about speeding up payment. It’s also about protecting your company’s POMS Score by reducing QA disputes.

Step 4: Keep Up With Every TPA Communication Task

Beyond initial contact and estimates, TPAs often require that you check off multiple tasks in their online systems: for example, uploading dry logs for water mitigation, reporting claim status, or updating timelines. Even if you perform a task, failing to log it can penalize your company’s score. Every “click-box” task serves as proof within the automated scoring system that the action was completed on time.

Practical habits include:

• Creating a daily checklist for every open TPA claim.
• Delegating communication tasks to staff, but building in accountability so nothing is assumed.
• Monitoring each relevant TPA portal multiple times per day to prevent gaps (e.g., you may have to monitor XactAnalysis and/or Crawford Contractor Connection, and possibly the Alacrity claims portal or Sedgwick claims portal).

The key lesson here: in the world of TPAs, the click is just as important as the task.

Step 5: Monitor Customer Satisfaction Scores Closely

Many TPAs survey your customers after completion, asking them to rate their experience on a scale of one to ten. While this may seem subjective, results directly influence your company’s POMS performance. Anything less than a nine can be treated as a failure, so a few poor surveys can tank your score.

To stay ahead:

• Improve customer communication at every stage of the job. Proactive updates can reduce frustration.
• Educate your crews on customer service basics, since field interactions heavily inform customer opinions.
• Follow up with homeowners yourself before closing files to ensure they feel supported and understand what was done.

Since you can’t control every score, the best way to safeguard your results is consistent, positive engagement from first contact to completion.

Step 6: Track Your Weekly Score Reports

Most TPAs send weekly or monthly score updates, including both your company’s core and benchmark comparisons against local competitors. Ignoring these reports is a mistake. If your company’s score dips, suspension may occur, and you’ll be required to submit a corrective action plan before reinstatement. If no one in your company monitors the weekly results, you may not catch issues in time.

Assign responsibility for reviewing POMS updates weekly and keep score trends posted internally. This shows your team where improvements are needed and encourages accountability across departments.

Step 7: Use Technology to Support Accuracy and Compliance

Much of what helps you maintain a high POMS Score comes down to accurate documentation, on-time submissions, and streamlined workflows. So, it makes sense to use a digital app that is designed to help meet those requirements without adding more administrative burden.

For example, here are a few specific ways the magicplan app can protect your company’s POMS Score:

• Accurate measurements and floor sketches keep estimates aligned with adjuster expectations.
• Timestamped, geo-tagged photos and videos serve as indisputable evidence for scope items, reducing QA revisions and rejections.
• Built-in checklists and forms help your teams remember required tasks, such as documenting that first contact within three hours.
• Moisture mapping can be completed easily and precisely during any moisture inspection to demonstrate drying equipment moisture control effectiveness.
• Direct integrations into estimating platforms (such as Xactimate or Cotality) eliminate data re-entry errors and speed up submissions to comply with strict TPA deadlines.

While a digital app alone won’t raise your score, integrating it into your daily processes will help eliminate the very types of errors (missed clicks, weak documentation, missed deadlines) that cause POM scores to drop.

Summary

Your company’s POMS Score is more than just a metric. It is the deciding factor for whether TPAs trust your business with more jobs, repeat assignments, and higher-value projects. By systematically following the step-by-step checklist above, you  can position your company for steady, profitable growth in the TPA network.

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