Suncorp fuels Motor Assessor’s drag racing victory

Turning a love of cars into a career    

Jason has had a lifelong love of cars. He started his career as an apprentice mechanic at only 16.  

He continued to hone his skills and for the last 18 years he has utilised his expertise as a Motor Assessor at Suncorp. 

He supports Suncorp’s network of brands and is based at the Eagle Farm Motor Hub in Brisbane.  

“I spent around eight years looking after motorcycle claims and then moved into a specialist role doing mechanical-based claims, though I still do some general assessing work too,” he said.  

“My responsibilities include communicating with customers, dealerships and mechanics about the insurance process and whether there is a claim.” 

Discussing his team’s role in the claims process, he added: “When a customer has a car accident or an event occurs and they make a claim, the vehicle goes to a repairer and we get a quote and images sent to our system. 

“Once we have the quote and images to hand, the claim is allocated to an assessor who will review and decide what is fair and reasonable.  

“We keep customers informed during the process and are in close contact with the repairers.” 

During the assessing stage, Jason and his team will do road inspections if required for more complex claims.  

After working as a Motor Assessor for almost two decades, Jason's extensive knowledge is highly valued by his team.  

“I really enjoy helping others in my team and my Leaders listen to my advice and value my opinion and expertise.”  

Life in the fast lane  

Outside of work, cars are also a big part of Jason’s life. He’s passionate about drag racing.  

Jason has only “taken drag racing seriously over the past five years”, as previously the time commitment, cost and travel involved in contests did not fit with family life. 

Now his children are grown, he has stepped his hobby up a gear or two, achieving great success along the way.  

Jason was recently announced as the winner of the ‘OG (Original Gangster) 275’ category in the Kenda Tires 660 Drag Radial Series. 

Jason’s category has the most entrants and his racing car is a LC Holden Torana, with 275 referring to the tyre width in milometers. 

"It is the only drag racing series in Australia that does a 660ft (200m) race, which is half of the racing track,” Jason said.  

“We go very fast in a short distance; my car goes from a standstill to 200m in 4.5 seconds at 265km/h.  

“I love the exhilaration of drag racing. I have a passion to win and be the best.”  

Jason’s victory would not have been possible without his dedicated racing team. 

Teamwork is also vital in his role as a Motor Assessor and his hobby has helped him in the workplace.  

“I also build racing engines in my spare time. I’m then able to use this knowledge at work when assessing cars.” 

A supportive culture at Suncorp  

From Tailem Bend in South Australia to Mackay in North Queensland, the Kenda Tires 660 Drag Radial Series took place across the country.  

The supportive culture at Suncorp enabled Jason to achieve his dream.  

“My Leaders have been fantastic and when dates have changed at the last minute due to bad weather, they have been very flexible with changing leave,” he said. 

“My colleagues have been so supportive and encouraging throughout the series too.” 

Off the track, he values working efficiently to make sure the claims process is as quick as possible for customers.  

“For many customers, their car is their main mode of transport and life can become difficult when they don’t have it, so I always keep that in that in the back of my mind during the claims process,” he said.  

Asked the most rewarding part of his role, he added: “I get a real buzz when a customer calls and says they appreciate me getting the assessment done quickly.”