Frequently Asked Questions

How do I download the program?

Go to our website which is www.serafininvestigations.com, go to Our Products which is located in the Tool Bar, choose Data Investigator Pro, then click the Download Now button for a 30-day free trial.

If you want us to send you a Data Investigator Pro installation disc, please send us an e-mail and we will immediately mail one to you.

Once the Download Now button is clicked, you will be required to fill out the contact information, once that is complete you will go to the Trial Download page, at that point click Data Investigator Pro, and you will be able to download the program.

If you plan on running Data Investigator Pro from a server, it has to be installed into the server and also all the desktops that will be sharing the server.

When the first window comes up during initial installation, you will want to save the program, and after the installation is complete, you will be prompted to run the program.

What happens after the program is downloaded? How do I configure the program?

A configuration screen will come up and, under the Data Server Computer, a folder has to be pointed to where all the data is going to be stored. The program by default will save to local computer, which means the desktop where the program is downloaded, and if all the information is going to be stored on a server, go to the arrow, locate the server, highlight the server, and then push Test.

The default points to the claims images where all claims image information will be stored. By default you save on the hard drive, and if you want all the claims images to stay in the server, you have to create a folder in the server where it will be saved.

After that information is chosen, click the button to the right that has three dots, wait for it to be complete, and then click Quit to close the window.

Do I need to purchase a separate license for each computer the program will be used on?

Yes. We offer discounts on multiple license purchases. Please contact us by e-mail or phone for details.

What is the first thing to be done when the program is downloaded?

Open up the program, go to Edit on the top Tool Bar, go to the bottom of the Edit function, and open up General Settings. When General Settings is open, go to Company Information and then type in your company name, address, telephone number, fax number, e-mail address, e-mail server, and fax server machines. It is VERY important to put the correct information in the e-mail server because all bulk mail sent from the program will go through this e-mail address.

After all the information is entered, click OK and the window will close.

Next, go to Edit on the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to General Settings, and open up the window. After the window is open, go to the top of the Tool Bar and click on Other which will open up another window.

At the bottom of this window, select the Operating System for your computer which is either Windows XP or Windows Vista (Windows 7). Check the correct operating system, click OK and the window will close.

What is the second thing to do after inputting my company information?

The second most important information to input after entering company information is to type in information in the Customer Database. The fields in the Customer Database are self-explanatory and as many fields should be completed as possible. Everyone you deal with, including investigators, clients, insurance companies, attorneys, private clients, personal contacts, etc., should be inputted in the Customer Database.

A claim or case cannot be set up until client or insurance carrier information is inputted into the Customer Database.

Client or insurance company information has to be inputted into the Customer Database before a new claim or case can be set up.

What are Customer Categories?

Customer Categories allows you to categorize everyone that will be in the Customer Database. This will include all employees, clients, insurance companies, vendors, potential clients, or any category you want to set up.

How do I set up Customer Categories?

Go to Edit on the top Tool Bar, Click Customer Categories, a window will appear, click the button New, type in the category in Description, then click the Update button. Close out this window by clicking the Quit button.

How do I set up a new case or claim?

To open the Case Index, go to the top Tool Bar, click the View button, scroll to Case Index, click Case Index, and the claims page will open. Click the New button on the bottom of the page and a new file number will appear.

The first case set up in this program will be 1, and each new case will be in sequential order going up. Fill in all the fields on this page starting with Company Claim Number or File Number. This is a mandatory field. If a claim number or case number already exists, after you input the information hit Enter or tab down to the next field, the program will tell you that this claim or case number already exists, and click the button that you DO NOT want to continue, and the already set-up claim or case information will appear. Change the information necessary and click Update button located at the bottom of the window, and all the current information you input will be saved.

The name of the person who gave you the assignment or the case should be inputted in the Adjuster window. Type all or part of the name, click Search to bring up the name and, when the appropriate name appears, click Select, and the program will automatically input that name and company into the Case Index file.

To input the Employee or Investigator, type in either all or part of the name in Employee, click Search and, when the appropriate name comes up, click Select which will automatically input the name, the date you inputted the Employee or Investigator will automatically appear, scroll down the Status of whatever has to be done by that Employee or Investigator, and then hit the Update Employee button.

You can input as many Employees or Investigators as you want in the Case Index. Remember to always click Update at the bottom of the page to save all newly inputted information.

Comments at the bottom of the Case Index page allow you to make any type of notes you want and, in order to make these notes, you have to click the button Comments on the left side of the page, type in whatever text you want, and then hit the Save button. This inputted information is not permanently saved in the database.

What are Claims Status codes?

Claim status codes are a brief description of what has to be done on a claim or case from the time it is set up until the time it is closed, and the status can be changed at any time. This also applies to investigators and employees. Remember the Update button always has to be clicked whenever any new information is added in order to save this information.

To set up Claims Status codes, go to Edit on the top Tool Bar, scroll down to Claims Status Codes, and open the window. After the window is open, click the New button at the bottom of the page, and type a short text in Description. Next to Description, check Open which means that the claim or case will always be open when this status is in the Case Index, and then click the Update button at the bottom of the page to save this information.

If the Open button is not checked, the claim or case will always remain closed. The only recommended button that should NOT be checked is Close, which means the claim or case will be closed.

Can I access the Internet or other programs while working in the Data Investigator Pro programs?

Yes, the program is designed so you can go to the Internet or Other Programs on your computer without having to minimize or exit the Data Investigator Pro program. You can also create shortcuts to open other windows in the Data Investigator Pro program.

If you open up the Data Investigator Pro, there is an arrow on the right side of the window in the dark blue section, click this arrow, an Add button or Remove button will appear, and click the Add button.

After the Add button is clicked, all the Data Investigator Pro functions that can be in this category will be shown, scroll down, pick whatever categories you want, click Save, and that icon will automatically be saved on whatever window you are working on in the program.

You can also create automatic shortcuts to other programs or create a shortcut to a custom program you want to use.

How do I locate a particular claim or case number?

Open up the Case Index, type in your file number or claim number and click the button Find Now.

If you do not know the file number or claim number, click the button Advanced Search located on the bottom of the page, type in a name you know is in that particular case index file, click Find Now, and the search will list all cases with that particular name in the claims lookup. You can highlight any of the cases and click the button Select Now.

What are Images?

The Images window is where all documents, reports, photographs, e-mails, invoices, and scanned documents are stored.

Open up the Case Index, on the left side of the window you’ll see the word Images, click that word, and the Images window will open.

File folders can be created in the Images window by placing your mouse in the white ssection of the files in claims, right-click the mouse, scroll down to Create New Ffolder, left-click, and a small window will appear which will say “New Folder Name”. Type in whatever you want to name the file folder and click Create. The window will automatically close and that folder will always appear in this Images window for thatparticular claim or case.

Any image that you want to save in this folder can be done by clicking that particular folder to open it and saving whatever item you want to save to this folder. To close the folder, go to the right side of the current folder, click the left-arrow button, and the main Images window will reappear.

Up to 10 folders can be set up by default, which will appear automatically in the Images window when a new claim or case is set up. In order to do this, go to Edit at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to General Settings, and click the button. When the window appears, go to the top Tool Bar and click the Claim button. Another window will appear and, next to Folder Name to Invoices, type in the word Invoices. This will automatically save all created invoices to this folder.

Below the file folder, you can create 10 individual file folders by typing in whatever name you want to give the folders. After inputting the information, click OK and the window will close.

How do I copy a Word document into the Images window?

Open up the Case Index, click Images, and select whatever file folder you want the Word document to be save in. After opening up the file, at the bottom of the window click the button “Get Other Files”, and another window will appear.

If you want to protect the Word document which will not allow anyone you e-mail the document to change it without knowing the password, type in a password in the appropriate location. After typing in the password, click the button “Get File”.

You then have to go wherever the Word document is stored on your desktop or server, select the document, click Open, and that window will close.

Click the button Save, a window will appear that asks if you want to protect your document, click Yes, and the document will be saved in the file folder in that particular Case Index.

In order to open up that report or document, simply click it and it will open. You will be asked to enter the password before you can make any changes to this document. Remember to enter the password when you have completed making changes to the document and also save the document before exiting it.

How do I scan a document into the Case Index?

Open up the Case Index, click Images, and select whatever file folder where you want the scanned document to be saved. Click “Get Other Files”, a window will open, type in tne name of the document next to Enter Image Name, click “Scan File”, highlight the scanner you will be using, select the paper size to be scanned, click Scan, and the document will be scanned.

After scanning is complete, click the button Save, and the scanned object will be saved in the file folder you selected in Images.

If you want to scan the object in color, repeat the same procedure, only click the color button. It should be noted that only one color page can be scanned at a time.

How do I create a Word Template?

If you are working from a server, create a file folder in the server.

If you are working from a desktop, create a folder in the C drive of your desktop.

Open up Case Index, go to New Reports which is located on the left side of the window, click New Reports, and a window will appear. At the bottom of this window, you will see a button which says “View TTemplate Help”. Click that button and instructions to create a Word report, based on the template, will appear. Print this page and use it as a reference.

If you look at the description of the document you just printed everything that appears in the Case Index page is listed under Description with a variable name next to it.

Open up the file folder you created in the server or your desktop, type in any word document using the variable name which will coincide with where you want that item to appear in your report, and save the report.

After you have created reports in the file folder you created, go to Edit at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to General Settings, click it, and a window will open. At the top of this Tool Bar window, click Templates and another window will open.

Next to Folder for Word Template you will have to point the program to the folder you created for the word documents. Click the three dots, highlight the folder you created, and it will appear in the window. I created the folder T:\word_templates in my server to create the word templates.
After that folder appears click Generate Templates Directory, and all the reports you have created will be saved into the Data Investigator Pro program.

You can add reports at any time by repeating the above procedure.

To create a new document, open up Case Index, open up Images, and select and open the file folder you want a report that you are going to create to be saved in. After opening up the folder, click the New Reports button and all the reports you created will appear. Highlight the report you want to save and click the button “ Create a New Word Report from Template”.

Once you click this button, a window will appear which will allow you to change the document name, put in a description, put an author’s name, save it to whatever folder you want, and create a password to protect the Word document. This will prohibit anyone from changing the report in the Data Investigator Pro program without knowing the password.

After all this information is inputted, click the button Create and a new report will be created. You can then add or change anything to the report and save it when done.

How do I copy photographs from a digital camera to the program?

Insert your memory card or the digital camera into the computer.

Go to Edit located on the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to General Settings, click it, and a window will open. At the top Tool Bar of this window, click the Other button.

Halfway down the window, go to “ Default Folder for Source Images”and click the square with three dots.

A window will open and you will have to locate the appropriate external drive where your memory card or digital camera is located. Highlight the location, click OK on the window, and it will close.

Do not take the memory card or digital camera out of the computer.

Open up the Claim or Case where you want the photographs saved, open up Images, select and open up the file folder where you want these photographs to be saved to.

Once the file folder is open, click the button Get Range located at the bottom of the window, and all the numbers of the digital photographs on the memory card or digital camera will appear.

You can select the appropriate numbers of the photographs you want to save or you can copy all the photographs. Click the button Get Pictures and all the photographs you selected will appear. You can check whatever photographs you want to be moved into the Images folder or you can move all the photographs into the Images folder.

Once you check the photographs you want moved, the top arrow between the photographs and the file folder will indicate the items. The arrow just below that arrow will allow you to move all the images to the file folder. Click the appropriate arrow and the photographs will be copied to the folder.

You can now remove the memory card or the digital camera from your computer.

How do I move e-mail attachments into the Data Investigator Pro program?

Word documents, TIF’s and PDF’s which are sent by e-mail can be dragged into the program.

Open up the Case Index, open up the Images window, and open up the folder you want to save the e-mail attachments into.

Open up the e-mail, left-click and highlight with your mouse the attachment you want to drag, place the mouse over the document you want to drag, hold the left button down, and drag the document into the Case Index folder.

What is a calendar?

There is a calendar in the program which allows you to put any task item or appointment that has to be set up for any claim or case, and you can also set up personal appointments.

To open up the Calendar, if you have not created an icon go to the top of the Tool Bar, click View, scroll down to Calendar, and open the Calendar.

You can also create an icon for appointments to be set up in a personal calendar or go to View at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Personal Calendar, and click Personal Calendar.

What are Task Codes?

Task codes are items that need to be scheduled on particular dates and times to be completed.

How do I create Task Codes?

Go to Edit on the top Tool Bar and open up the Task Codes window.

After opening up the window, click the New button at the bottom of the page, type any short note you want in Description, then click the Update button. You will note all Description items are categorized alphabetically.

After the Task Codes are inputted, click Quit to close the window.

Anything that you plan on putting into the calender has to be created in the task Codes.

How do I set up a task or appointments?

Go to Case Index and open up the claim or case you want to set up a task for. Click the Claim Activity button on the left side of the window. Click the Task- Enter button at the top of the window. Designate the task type, designate the due date, designate the due time, type in the name of the person for this tasc in Assigned To, click the search button, click the select button once the correct name is located, type anything you want in comments, and click Update at the bottom of the window.

This task will automatically be set up in the Calendar on the date and time you designated.

If you open up the Calendar and click the task, the case or claim for that task will automatically open.

What is a log?

A log is a history of all informationthat you type into that specific case or claim.

How do I type notes or activity into a claim or case?

Open the Case Index, go to the particular claim or case you want to input information, click Claim Activity button located on the left side of the window, a window will open, the opening page is the log, type whatever information you want, and click the Update button on the bottom of the page.

If you want to enter hours and expenses or tasks, click the update and continue at the bottom of the window which will keep this window open.

Remember when you are completely finished entering all the items click the update button and the window will close

How do I create Log Types?

Log types are short headings that can be created to designate entries in the file log.

To create Log Types, go to Edit located on the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Claim Logging, and open up the window. Click the New button at the bottom of the page, add a short note in Description, and click Update. The description will automatically be saved alphabetically. Click Quit to close the window.

How do I view any items noted in the log?

Open up Case Index, on the left side of the window click Log, and scroll down and select the Log or Task that you want to open. After the item is open, click Quit on the bottom of the page and the window will close.

What is Task Completed?

In order to remove a task or personal appointment from the calendar, you have to open up that particular case or claim, click Log located on the left side of the window, scroll to Pending in the Log, highlight and click select, click the Task Completed button on the top of the Tool Bar, another window will open, click Task-Completed which is at the top of the window, go to Completion Status, choose Completed, Cancelled or Rescheduled, if the task is completed or cancelled today’s date will automatically appear by default, the current time will also appear by default, click Update, and the task will be completed and removed from the calendar.

If the task has to be rescheduled, input a new date and time, along with any comments, click Update and the window will close.

How do I create Invoice Concepts?

Everything you are going to bill on an invoice has to be created in the Invoice Concepts window.

Go to Edit at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Invoice Layout, click that icon, and the Invoice Concepts window will open.

Click the New button at the bottom of the page, type in whatever item(s) you want to bill, you can change the description if you want to make a change after the invoice is created but before it is saved, type in any Comments, check if tax is going to be charged, go to Unit and enter the desired amount, next go to Default Price by Unit, type in the amount that is going to be charged for that particular item, check Can Change Price if you want to be able to change the price before this invoice is saved.

If you enter a Default Price by Unit amount, the amount will always appear by default and, if you check Default amount, you will be able to change that figure before the invoice is saved.

Please note that Default Price by Unit and Default cannot both be entered for the same description item.

After the fields are entered, click Update and those items will be saved. All description items are saved in alphabetical order and can be changed at any time.

Remember any items on the invoice you want to charge sales tax item have to be checked.

Can I create a State sales tax to be added to every invoice?

If you want to charge a sales tax by default on every invoice created, go to the top Tool Bar, click Edit, scroll down to General Settings, open up the window, then Click Invoice, and a window will open.

On the left side of the page choose the State of the Sales tax to be charged, type in the percentage next to the state and under the Tax, click OK, the percentage will be saved, and the window will close.

An example is New Jersey charges 7% sales tax and the tax is noted as 7.00.

It should be noted the top State in the window is the tax for that State charged by default.

Can I customize the layout of an invoice?

Yes. When the descriptions are inputted on the Invoice Concepts, they can be placed in any order that you want them to appear on the invoice.

Please note only the items you are billing on a particular invoice will appear on that saved invoice.

Go to the top Tool Bar, click Edit, scroll down to General Settings, and open up the window. At the top of this Tool Bar in the window, click Invoice and a window will open.

On the right side of the window is Invoice Layout Definitions, scroll down, and input each item in the order you want them to appear in the invoice. Please note that the items selected at the top of the window will be the first items to appear on your invoice.

It should also be noted that each desktop has to create its own Invoice Layout Definitions, even if several desktops are utilizing one server.

How do I create an invoice?

Open up the claim or case where you want to create an invoice. Click the View Invoices button on the bottom of the page. If there are no invoices alreaty created for that claim or case the the program will ask if you want to create one, click Yes, and a blank invoice will appear. Check either the Interim or Final bill at the top of the page, and all fields inputted will be shown at the top of the invoice.

All items you set up in Invoice Concepts will appear on blank invoice.

Whatever items you want billed need to be inputted, click Update at the bottom of the page, the invoice will automatically be saved to the Invoice folder in the Images of this particular claim or case, and you will also be asked if you want to Print this invoice. Please note if you checked Charge Interest on Overdue Invoices, the amount on overdue invoices will be charged automatically.

How do I charge interest on overdue invoices?

You can charge whatever percentage amount of interest you want on invoices that are over 30 days old.

To create parameters to charge interest, go to Edit at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to General Parameters, click it and a window will open. Click Other which is located at the top of this second tool bar and another window will open.

Since I charge 1.5% interest per month on any overdue invoices, on overdue invoices of 30 days or more I would type in 0.015, on overdue invoices of 60 days or more I would type in 0.03, on overdue invoices of 90 days I would type in 0.045, and on overdue invoices more than 120 days old I would type in 0.015.

Underneath the Interest Amount entry, in the Invoice Interest text you can type in whatever description you want which will appear on all overdue invoices. I type in Interest Will Be Charged on Overdue Accounts at a Rate of 1.5% Per Month (18% p.a.).

How do I record payments?

Open up the Receipts icon or, at the top of the Tool Bar go to File, scroll down and click Open Receipts, and a window will open.

All unpaid invoices will appear. Next to the Search field, type in either the company claim number, your file number, or the invoice sequence number, click the Find Nowbutton, and the open invoice should appear.

Highlight the invoice, click Select, and the invoice will appear at the bottom half of the window.

Underneath the days the invoice was open, the amount due will appear by default next to Amount to Apply. Whatever amount you want to apply to the invoice can be typed here.

It should be noted that, if the interest is not paid but the original amount of the invoice is paid, when you type in that amount and hit Enter, a prompt will ask you if you will consider this invoice paid in full. If you do not consider the invoice is paid in full, you can check No and the unpaid amount will appear as open after all the information is inputted.

If you are paid on more than one claim or file by the same person and you want to note all payment, you can click More Invoices on the window, and repeat the Search process for the second invoice.

After you have completed the Amount to Apply, type in the name of the bank, the check number, the amount received will be displayed, click Confirm Payment, and the invoice will be marked as Paid and no longer will be an Unpaid invoice. A prompt will also ask you if you want to print a receipt for the payment received.

You will have a record of this transaction in that case or claim Log.

Can I change an invoice once it is completed?

Yes. Go to File at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Open Invoices, and open the window. You can add or delete anything from the invoice, click Update and the new information will be saved.

How do I view and create a report of all paid invoices?

Go to View on the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Receipts Reports, click and a window will open. At the bottom of this window is “Date From” to “Date To”, type in whatever parameters of dates you want covered, click View Report on the right, and all payments for that period will be displayed.

You will note this report will also give the amount of sales tax paid.

You can also print this report.

Can I view and create a report of all invoices that have not been paid?

Yes. Go to View at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Invoice Reports, click and a window will open. Type in whatever parameters of dates you want to cover, check “Only Not Paid” at the bottom of the window, click View Report, and all unpaid invoices will be displayed.

You can also print this report.

How do I back up all the information in the program?

It is highly recommended that you back up all data inputted into the Data Investigator Pro at least once a day.

It is also recommended that you back up the data with an external hard drive that is taken off-premise or that is stored in a fireproof box.

In the event you lose any data in your computer, you will be able to restore all the data that you saved on the external drive.

Go to System at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Full Backup, click it, and a window will appear. Click the three dots next to Backup Drive, select the External Backup Drive, and click OK.

Next to the Backup label, type in whatever day of the week you are backing up the data, check Backup Database, Claims Images, and parameters, then click Backup and the process will begin.

When the Backup is complete, you will be prompted to close the window and to remove the external drive that you saved the data to.

It should be noted a flash drive will work as a backup as long as the data in the program does not exceed the amount of storage in the drive.

How do I completely restore the data from an external hard drive?

Go to System at the top of the Tool Bar, scroll down to Complete Restore, click and a window will open.

Next to Restore From Drive, click the three button box and locate the external drive where the data is stored.

Underneath that is Restore From Backup Label, type in the day of the week, the data you want to be restored from.

Next to the Data Server Computer, you have to point to the area where you want the data to be stored to.

Underneath that, next to Folder to Restore Claim Images, you have to direct the folder in your desktop or server where you want the documents to be restored.

Next you to check whatever you want stored. I check Database and Claims Images.

After that information is inputted, click Restore and you will be prompted to type in a word to make you confirm that you understand and will be restoring all the information from the external drive and any information already in the program will be overwritten.

How do I close out the windows?

At the bottom of the Window page, you can either click the Quit button or click the red “X” at the top right corner of the window.

How do I create Hour Types?

Hour Types define time spent on a claim or investigation that you are intending to document or bill. Go to Edit on the top Tool Bar, scroll down and open up Hour Rates. In the Hour Rates window, click the button at the bottom of the window for New, type in whatever text you want in the description, decide whether you want that to be clerical or technical billable hours, put the $ amount in the window for default price by unit, if you want to be able to change the price of the Hour Code when you create an invoice you have to check change, and then click Update to save the information.

The window for default amount is the price you will always charge for that particular item.

It should be noted that you cannot check the default price by unit and default amount for the same item.

How do I create expenses to be billed?

Any expenses that you intend to bill on a claim or case needs to be set up.

Go to Edit on the top Tool Bar, scroll down and open up the Expenses window. Click the button at the bottom of the window for New, type a short text in Description, type in an amount in default price by unit and, if you check the box for change price, that means after you create an invoice, you will be able to change the price before completing the invoice.

Default amount is a set amount to be billed for an expense, and it should be noted that the default price by unit and default amount cannot be checked at the same time.

After the desired information is entered, click Update which will save the information.

It should be noted that the expenses will be saved alphabetically.

How do I document hours and expenses?

Go to Case Index and open up the claim or case you want to document your time and expenses.

Once that window is open, click the Claim Activity button located on the left side of the window and another window will open.

Click Hours, type in the user name or person that hours and expenses will be inputted for, click the Search button, locate the Name, and click Select at the bottom of the window. This window will close.

Enter the Hours type, the price will automatically appear by default, the hours are marked in increments of .1 of an hour, once the hours are inputted go to the lower portion of the window, enter the Expense by scrolling to the desired expense, the price will automatically appear, input the quantity and, if you intend to add additional expenses, check the button Add Expenses. As many expenses as you want can be entered using the same procedure.

Once all the expenses are inputted to that Hour type, if you intend to add any additional hours or expenses, click the button Update and Continue, and if you do not intend to add any additional hours or expenses, click the Update button.

It should be noted that you can add any Hours, Expenses, Logs, or enter a Task in the same window if you continue to hit the Update and Continue button, however once you hit the Update button the window will close.