Newspeak: Insurance Claims “Counselors”

I just got word of a new example of deceptive claims practices in the insurance industry. A major insurance company is now  referring to its claims adjusters as “counselors.”  When one calls the claims department, the recording says,  “All of our COUNSELORS are busy but someone will be with you shortly.”  It appears the company is changing its nomenclature from “claim rep” (someone who will take advantage of the unrepresented) to “counselor.”

A dictionary definition of “counselor” is:

coun·se·lor

Click for pronunciation key – Spelled Pronunciation [koun-suh-ler] –noun

1. a person who counsels; adviser.
2. a faculty member who advises students on personal and academic problems, career choices, and the like.
3. an assistant at a children’s camp, often a high-school or college student, who supervises a group of children or directs a particular activity, as nature study or a sport.
4. a lawyer, esp. a trial lawyer; counselor-at-law.
5. an official of an embassy or legation who ranks below an ambassador or minister.

 Somehow applying that word to a claims adjuster whose job it is to save shekels for the Holy Grail Insurance Company seems to be a gross abuse of the English language at best, and at worst a deceptive claims practice.