You can start running real claims the second you're in the system. Most customers are working real claims within a day. Setup time is not the gate — the gate is getting your information together (client list, fee schedules, branding for letters, team logins) and most of that work is on your side, not the platform's. At the most complex level, full setup runs 1-2 days. Anything beyond that is migration scope (legacy closed claims, complex transitions from another system) which is handled customer-by-customer rather than as part of standard onboarding.
Same day — and that's not just for the simple cases
Whether you're a solo adjuster signing up at Grow ($250/month) or a multi-branch IA firm signing up at Sustain ($1,375/month), the platform is ready to handle real claims as soon as you log in. The FileTrac Evolve dashboard activates with all standard modules turned on, the standard role-based access controls and workflows are pre-configured, and you can create your first claim, assign it, document it, and invoice it from day one.
This is true for TPAs as well. The TPA Module ($250 setup + $200/mo flat) gives you out-of-the-box capability for everything: contracts and treaties, reserve management, claim shares, authority levels, checkbook management, Lloyd's bordereaux. Activate it, configure your first contract, and you're processing TPA claims that day.
What "setup" actually means — phased, not all-or-nothing
Most customers do not set up the entire system before working real claims. The pattern is iterative per-client:
Set up your first client — the carrier or program manager whose work you're starting with. That includes the client's contract, the fee schedule, default settings for claims under that contract, claim representatives, and any client-specific configuration (statuses, alert rules, document categories).
Bring your team in for that client. Users, role assignments, license tracking, branch assignment if relevant.
Run claims for that client. Your team works real files, the billing flows, the reports generate. The sample workspace (a single complete worked example pre-loaded for you) gives them a copy-from template if they want to see how a fully populated claim looks.
Add the next client when you're ready. Repeat the pattern. Most operations bring up clients sequentially over the first few weeks rather than configuring everything in parallel.
That phasing is why "setup time" doesn't equal "time before you can run claims." A multi-branch IA firm might take a couple of weeks to fully configure all of its clients, but it's running claims for the first one within hours of sign-up.
What's free in onboarding
Standard onboarding covers most of what new customers need at no additional charge:
Bulk user upload from another system — free.
Current and in-flight claims migration from another system — free.
Configuration import of fee schedules, client lists, and standard workflow rules — free.
What's billed customer-by-customer:
Legacy closed claims brought over for archive or historical reporting purposes — billed by volume and complexity.
Complex migrations from another system — non-standard data formats, custom-field mapping, unusual integration requirements — handled customer-by-customer based on scope.
If you're migrating from a legacy claims platform, the standard pieces (users, in-flight claims, current operations) come over without extra cost. Anything beyond that is scoped at the demo so you know the cost before sign-up.
What can extend timeline beyond 1-2 days
Most delays past the standard "working real claims same day, full setup within 1-2 days" come from outside the platform itself:
Customer-side information gathering — collecting current fee schedules, client contact lists, branding for letterhead, team licensing detail. The platform is ready immediately; the inputs aren't always.
Migration scope — bringing legacy closed claims or complex external data takes its own track.
Integration activation — XactAnalysis, Symbility, HOVER, TORRENT, QuickBooks, NetSuite. Each integration has its own activation process and its own one-time setup fee. Active them as you need them, not all upfront.
Custom development requested at sign-up — custom reports, custom training, Azure Data Factory feeds. Most customers don't need these, and we recommend learning the platform's standard workflows first; the system covers the vast majority of operational use cases without customization.
Updates to ELIAS AI and the FileTrac platform ship weekly — onboarding doesn't put you on a fixed feature snapshot. The platform you start with grows continuously.
Related questions
What does the onboarding process actually look like?
What does "pre-loaded sample workspace" mean — will my real data be mixed with examples?
Can I migrate my existing claim data into FileTrac, and how?
What kind of support do I get, and how fast do you respond?
What's the cheapest tier that still gives me what I need to run claims?