Top Blogs of Interest to New Adjusters July 2007- April 2008

 

You can search the Archives for all blogs we’ve entered since we began this blog in July 2007 but it’s very time consuming we know! In an effort to assist new adjusters entering the claims field, we are providing the links to the top read blogs on careers, fee schedules, claim salaries, adjuster safety issues, errors and omissions coverage and other blogs that would be of interest to new claims folks such as those seeking careers also as auto adjusters. Here’s a link to everything in our archives applicable to new adjusters (and experienced alike who may want some up to date information):

)
http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/07/27/claim-career-information-the-pros-and-cons-of-going-staff-adjuster-versus-independent-adjuster/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/10/13/auto-adjuster-claim-careers-an-interview-with-adjusting-firm-owner-carey-oconnor-with-csp-claims/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/07/26/most-commonly-asked-question-is-how-much-income-can-i-make-as-an-adjuster/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/07/26/catastrophe-adjuster-resumes-the-requirements-to-get-noticed-do-differ/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/08/30/adjustin-to-adjusting-guest-blogger-linda-goodson-first-storm-duty-was-katrina/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/08/24/claims-magazine-claims-salary-survey-is-upplease-participate/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/10/19/claim-salary-survey-is-up-at-claims-magazine/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/08/17/billingual-adjusters-in-big-demand-please-update-your-resume-if-applicable/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/08/14/adjuster-fees-in-the-news-the-time-is-now-to-educate-the-insurance-media-and-press/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/08/12/splish-splash-dont-go-takin-a-bath-understanding-independent-firm-contracts/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/09/27/independent-adjuster-vs-employee/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/09/24/insurance-adjuster-overtime-pay-issues-and-complaints-in-the-news/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/09/14/field-adjuster-safety-concerns-be-careful-remembering-katie-froeschle-of-tampa-fl/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2008/04/10/adjuster-safety-another-warning-march-08-nationwide-adjuster-shot-in-vehicle-in-tn-while-on-storm-duty/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/commitment-part-2-standby-calls-what-should-i-do-how-are-cat-codes-determined/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/10/24/california-insurance-commissioner-clears-the-way-for-non-cdi-emergency-adjusters-to-handle-wildfire-losses/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/10/20/cat-tales-by-guest-bloggers-kim-and-nelson-stegall-their-first-storm-experience/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/10/11/auto-claim-training-what-options-do-i-have/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/11/20/major-changes-in-the-way-carriers-recruit-and-train-adjustersis-there-really-a-lack-of-available-adjusters/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/11/14/tomorrow-is-postmark-deadline-to-get-applications-in-to-join-naca-national-assn-of-catastrophe-adjusters/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2007/12/12/nfip-national-flood-2008-adjuster-certification-classes-are-now-posted/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2008/01/10/do-you-really-know-what-your-errors-and-omissions-coverage-covers/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2008/02/08/errors-and-omissions-coverage-guest-bloggers-dale-moore-client-relations-director-for-cplic/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2008/02/05/luckwhere-preparation-meets-opportunity-published-208-in-claims-education-magazine/

http://dimechimes.wordpress.com/2008/04/23/registration-deadline-42508-for-next-40-hour-fundamentals-of-claims-online-live-class/
--

National Association of Catastrophe Adjusters Membership Drive to 3/15/08

The National Association of Catastrophe adjusters has changed their membership drive deadline to a new deadline of March 15, 2008 for new and experienced adjusters as well as adjusting firms wishing to join (prior deadline was this past November).

I’ve written about this organization before after becoming quite impressed with them while attending the 2006 yearly convention. I was quite pleased to find such a professional organization holding a meeting that was equal in value to annual carrier claim conventions with their professionalism, opportunities to obtain CE credits for adjusters and I note this coming year (Jan 09) they will offer the National Flood NFIP certification classes as well as the California Earthquake certification.

Here is a link to their membership information! Won’t you consider joining this very worthwhile group? By getting your application in prior to the March 15, 2008 deadline, you will have the opportunity once approved for membership to be in their 2008 directory.

Again we appreciate the 2007 President, Woody Britton, for letting us know about the extension of this year’s registration deadline. We also wish a very successful year to incoming 2008 President, Angelo Cassanese.

Auto Adjuster Claim Training- What options do I have?

One of the interesting aspects of owning a website or blog is reading the user statistics on what search terms bring users to your website. One of the most frequently used search phrases we often get on both this blog and my staffing firm website  is “Auto Claim Training” so today we are going to concentrate on that topic.

Adjusters in our ClaimSmentor forums often ask if they should train as auto adjusters in addition to the training they are doing on property claims. If you are looking at it from the aspect of working as an independent and expanding the value you have to bring to the table to adjusting firms and carriers, the answer is a definite YES! I do recommend first you complete your training first on property claims if that is where your primary interest lies as it is of utmost importance you first do a great job in your primary area of expertise such as residential claims. I’ll blog in the next week on my favorite picks on property claim training options for new adjusters with some online options, self study training options, and field classes and schools but for today, let’s concentrate on the auto side of things!

First, why learn auto claim handling? Let’s look at some statistics on recent storms in 2007 to give you an idea on the number of auto claims reported versus property claims so you have a true perspective on the opportunities to work auto claim losses. Click HERE to see a Claims Journal article from August 2007 regarding a major hailstorm in Colorado which says in part:

“The Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association says insurance companies expect claims from nearly 5,200 homeowners and 11,000 car owners.”

These are not isolated numbers as it is very common to see these kind of loss statistics on auto versus property claims during a storm. Matter of fact, here are some interesting numbers from the Insurance Information Institute in this article stating that $68.00 of every $100.00 in auto insurance premiums is used to pay claims. This article also attributes 25% of the comprehensive claims on the auto policy are for theft losses. Claims for property damage account for $16 for collision, another $16 for property damage liability, and $7 for the comprehensive claims for a total of about $40.00 of these claim dollars going to property claims when you add in the other expense dollars shown in this report. Unbelievably the attorneys fees are 11% of the $68.00 claim dollars split evenly between plaintiff and defense counsel according to this report linked above.

Claims Magazine ran a very good article in the October 2007 issue regarding a survey with auto repair facilities polling them on their complaints with insurance carriers on auto claims. Here is a link to this article. This article lists “Lack of field staff training” first on the list and then lists the 3 worst carrier offenders according to the shops survey results. Having worked for an excellent carrier, I was surprised to see some of these negative results for carriers such as Progressive listed as the worst offender at training (in the eyes of the repair shops surveyed). Take the time to read the rest of this survey on other topics as the carriers involved might just surprise you! I’d also previously posted a bad faith article on the Merlin Law Group website and carrier training is one of the issues listed in this article as a reason for bad faith claims against carriers. In today’s environment, I’m amazed to see this as even an issue since all carriers should have training as a top priority. As a staff claim employee, we often cross trained between the auto claims department and the property claims division especially in the catastrophe claim divisions when there may not have been enough work to keep auto catastrophe adjusters busy year round. In 1985, all fire adjusters went to auto school and property adjusters to auto school! That effort to switch us around lasted about 1 year when property adjusters wanted to paint cars by the square foot like a wall! (Just kidding but the project ended and we returned to our former positions when they felt it was best to let auto folks do what they knew best and fire adjusters do their residential estimating they did best,etc).

Here is an example of an auto staff adjuster opportunity with Farmers Insurance. You will see that while they prefer a 4 year degree, they will accept those with a 2 year Associates degree and substitute auto body management experience or lead estimator experience for the degree requirements. Just as with staff homeowner positions, each carrier will differ on their requirements. Here is also an article you will find interesting about Nationwide Insurance indicating they were reducing homeowners policies and concentrating on auto…another reason in the “Who moved my Claims Cheese” blog series comments as a reason to consider auto claim training to find an additional source of claim assignments when the property side remains slow. I constantly keep my eye on all job opportunities on the staff side as well as the independent side to post in our Career Forum on ClaimSmentor and recently have seen alot of postings for Auto property and liability adjusters as well as for claim managers. Just two companies that come to mind are Safeco and Farmers with recent postings. I can also tell you from an independent staffing position, I am thrilled to receive resumes from multi line adjusters who can work residential property AND liability AND auto claims as they are most useful for adjusting firms who can utilize them for all operations as needed. It’s definitely something to consider!

Here is a list of some of the auto claim training options we are aware of you may wish to consider if you are an independent requiring training. Today, we’ll limit that training information to property claim training on the auto side. We’ll have further blog information on liability training on the residential and auto side down the road. Just as with property claims, you need your adjuster’s license first and foremost. After that follows policy training and auto estimatic training as well as auto file requirement training. Auto has many sections of the auto policy to learn. I remember years ago attending a 3 week auto claim training school and finding the policy very frustrating to deal with for a homeowner adjuster. We are used to a coverage section and an exclusion section while the auto policy had many subsections each with their own insuring agreement and exclusions. Testing without an open policy was a true nightmare trying to remember which section applied to which test question,etc. The point I am making here is to make sure you don’t make the mistake that some new property adjusters make thinking that estimatics is all you need to know!

Wardlaw Claims- I list this first as one of their instructors, Tim Whiteman, is a member of ClaimSmentor and has been very supportive of our online mentoring program as well as the fact several of our participating adjusters have taken their Auto classes and highly recommended them. I particularly like the fact that they handle property AND liability claim training at their school in Waco,TX and the cost of the programs looks very reasonable. I note there are auto training classes that Tim is teaching listed for October and November on the auto training classes.Here is a link:

Wardlaw Claims
Auto training classes: http://www.wardlawtraining.com/wctc_classroom.cfm?Value1=3
( Maximum cost is $550 for Auto Claim school)
Auto Self Study classes: http://www.wardlawtraining.com/wctc_selfstudy.cfm (Unbelievably priced at less than 24.00 each)

Pacesetter Claims: http://www.pacesetterclaims.com/PCSTech1.aspx

You need to call them for their latest training schedule. I’d ask for Jim Shrewsbury-VP of Claims in the Auto Division who is also a member of ClaimSmentor.

Crawford and Company
Tractor and Trailer Appraisal School- for adjusters with 3 years of auto experience http://www.crawfordandcompany.com/content.aspx?CID=736&SID=2

Vale National School Neil Robertson in the Fresno, CA branch is a ClaimSmentor member if you want a contact there
( Auto Estimatics only) Cost $1,095. There are 3 locations to choose from.
www.valenational.com/

CNC Resources- Mobile, AL Ask for Becky Leckband, Hr Director for class schedule- she is a member of ClaimSmentor
www.cnc-resource.com/

Southern Farm Bureau Tech- Tractor Trailer School
Auto Claim Training- 3 week program http://www.farmbureautech.com/physical%20damage%20estimating.html
2007 Course Schedule http://www.farmbureautech.com/2007_course_schedule.htm

Worley Adjusting Company

While I don’t see a current Auto Basic Claims Class on the current schedule, they did hold one in March 07 so you might want to contact them for more information on the next class

http://www.worleyco.com/trainingdivision.php

Here’s a link to a prior Accident Reconstruction CE course you may want to contact them for the next class since it is 7 hours of TX CE’s:

http://www.marules.com
http://www.claimspages.com/calendar/viewEvent.asp?RecNo=952

While looking into a career in Auto claims, you might also want to check out this Independent Auto Appraisers group at www.iada.org. They held an interesting automotive repair conference in FL in 07 and I see they have the next scheduled for 2008 in Las Vegas. They have some great links on their site for NADA book values and other useful links for Auto Adjusters and Auto Claims Representatives.

There does seem to be advancement opportunity in the Auto Claims field atleast from the staff adjuster standpoint. Here is a link to a recent job with Travelers Insurance for Training managers to train new auto adjusters as just one of many examples.

Fee payments to auto adjusters differs from independent fee schedules we previously blogged about. From the staffing requests we have received, they seem to pay by the vehicle inspected and payment depends on whether you inspect the damage in a carrier drive in or catastrophe operation or if you inspect it at a body shop or other storage facility for non driveable cars. The ranges we are getting are $75.00 per drive in inspection average with the carrier setting the drive in appointments about 30 minutes apart. One such position scheduled 20 appointments per day through the drive in. Remember you will be splitting that fee with the adjusting firm somewhere along the lines of a 60/40 split. The field appointments have averaged about $150.00 per inspection with similar splits. I’ll be interviewing a few Auto Independent Claim managers and blogging about their input on income for auto independent adjusters. I read many forum posts saying there isn’t enough auto work to keep them busy but during 2007 we’ve had as many auto requests for staffing as we have for property so I’m not sure that is true overall in the industry. It is also important to note that normally carrier auto management decisions are made by a seperate group of claim executives on the Auto side so just because the property side may not be using independents does not necessarily mean the auto side will not be. We’ve been working along side an adjusting firm on a consultant standpoint on marketing in recent weeks and it seems our leads are generating more offers for auto independent assignments than property as well. I do believe this in part is due to the fact there are much less adjusting firms willing to take the auto claims versus property as the fee billings are significantly less. We do have several auto associates who also differ with that opinion as they have been fortunate to get multitudes of claims from car dealership carriers for hail damage to vehicles on the lot and to commercial fleets of vehicles. It certainly remains worth exploring these opportunities.

I’ll post a supplement to this blog tomorrow adding additional information. Forgive any format problems as I’m on a Mac today and it’s been difficult going back and forth between websites not being used to the features on this system. I’m counting the days until our computers are set up here!

Field Adjuster Safety Concerns- Be Careful ! Remembering Katie Froeschle of Tampa, FL

News of  hurricanes always brings to mind the many safety concerns for both new and experienced catastrophe adjusters. There are many precautions adjusters need to take for protection of income due such as serious consideration of independent contracts talked about here, personal protection against lawsuits via proper insurance talked about here when we discussed Errors and Omissions coverage, medical safety for your health such as obtaining the proper shots before entering flood zones, (here is a link to many other health safety concerns by CDC you should read )but nothing compares to the safety concerns for your life by being ever prepared and cognizant of your surroundings when out in the field working losses alone.

This sad reminder in the Tampa, FL news  about a tribute today for insurance adjuster, Katie Froeschle in Tampa, FL reminds us of the horrific events in 2004 when Katie was murdered while inspecting a loss. While I did not know Katie, we do know an adjuster who did work with Katie. He recalls her calling into their carrier office when she could not find the insured’s home and that is the last they heard of her. He says there is NOTHING she could have done differently. The home was tenant occupied. This article from 7/4/07  says Forensic Files  ran a story on Katie this past summer. The details in this article indicate she was beaten over the head with a motorcycle muffler pipe and her partially clothed body was dumped in the Hillsborough river. The tenant was arrested and is serving life in prison. Here are some additional stories I could locate on this horror story here and here providing more details about the arrest and the perpetrator. Katie apparently was an adjuster at Florida Farm Bureau and only 25 years young. A very bright promising upcoming adjuster and individual based on all stories in these accounts.

Carriers have policies for both staff and independent adjuster’s as do adjusting firms in Code of Conduct forms which include company policies on carrying and the use of weapons. Here are a few examples we could locate on the web. The first from Citizens of FL found here on page 36 provision 5.4 states an adjuster may not carry any type of weapon on Citizens property or a Citizens policyholder’s property. Here is another example from one of the Scruggs group evidence exhibits on E.A.Renfroe’s (an independent adjusting firm) code of conduct form on page 4 specifying it applies to “firearms and other weapons” on their property, clients or their customers or while conducting their firms’ business”. Here is one other carrier’s code of conduct form found in some  Worley IDL preparation documents online here which basically says you can’t carry firearms or other weapons on their property or while conducting their business (see page 6 under workplace safety). None of these forms we’ve located online  to share define “other weapons” or expand on what “while conducting their business “means. I’ve seen many independent adjusting firm documents that are similar while some are silent altogether on the issue but the carrier code of conduct form would apply if the adjuster has signed on atleast from the carrier standpoint. This is an important issue I would not think any adjusting firm would be silent on.

Adjusters in the forums are concerned about these weapon requirements when they are sent into some very bad neighborhoods in cities nationwide. One senior adjuster states it best saying “I’d rather be tried by 12 than carried by 6 ” if he had to shoot. Others argue that by a carrier or adjusting firm not allowing them to protect themselves that they are creating an unsafe work environment and they will “shoot first and ask about the code later”. I can’t advise you here but suggest you clear the air on this BEFORE it’s necessary with your firms.

Here is a summary of mentor advice compiled from input of several senior adjusters on ClaimSmentor we hope you will view to help protect yourself from those who have been there:

USE YOUR WITS

Have someone local mark a local map with unsafe neighborhoods so you aren’t in one unexpectedly

If you have a bad area assigned to you, get in and get out early

Find out from local utility firms when is the best time to be in the neighborhood

Ask the insured to have their contractor present for the inspection in bad neighborhoods so you are not out there alone

Suggestions are made you call the insured on your cellphone and let them know you are out front so they come to the front door so you aren’t out in the neighborhood alone

Be aware of your surroundings and the people around you

Don’t enter unsafe neighborhoods with a low tank of gas or any vehicle maintenance issues in the rush of getting your job done and forgetting to stop and take care of transportation safety issues

Don’t put yourself in a corner when so caught up in inspections and measuring that you can’t see what people behind you are doing

Listen to your gut and leave if you are uncomfortable

Never deny a claim while on a roof

Do not deny a claim during a heated argument with an insured in the field

Always have your cellphone accessible- don’t leave it out in your car

Always have your manager’s number programmed into your cellphone as well as the number of an insurance adjuster buddy that you partner up with to exchange daily agendas

Always carry pepper spray, mace, other protection (what would firms say? Ask!)

Hire an assistant to travel with you and to stay on a lookout in bad neighborhoods while you are inspecting

Turn claims in if you just can’t deal with the situation because you find it unsafe

If you have draft authority and it’s a dangerous denial situation- remember- you can stop payment on the payment AFTER you get to safety- do not argue when endangered and report to claim manager immediately (good discussion topic at an induction center if your running a mobile response unit or other facility with payment issuance capability)

Leave an itinerary with a co-worker or manager with atleast claim numbers for appointments for that day so someone knows where to begin to find you if there is a problem

These suggestions are just tips of the iceburg. We hope you will make sure to take the time to read the carrier and adjusting firm code of conduct forms as you need to know their position on all forms of behavior and their weapon policies but your life is of the utmost importance. Clear these issues up before you go out, use your wits and talk to your managers if you are experiencing any safety issues in the field. They will not expect you to work under unsafe conditions.

We hope many more of you will add your comments to this topic to help prevent the loss of life for any more of your fellow adjusters. We wish Katie’s Family the best on their fund raiser today. There is contact information in the news article about this should anyone wish to contribute in Katie’s honor.

Update 9/15/07:

We just learned that Forensic Files is running this story again according to their schedule on 9/22/07 at 6:30 pm ET “Muffled Cries”. Here is a link to their schedule. Roy Cupps, owner of CADO, has posted this link to a 2004 forum discussion on this murder which you can access here. We have notified Tampa10 who ran the fundraiser notice this past week that we have distributed information about the fundraiser to all 735 members of ClaimSmentor via mass distribution email, we have posted this in our forums on ClaimSmentor, on this blog, and a new forum entry on CADO forums here trying to pass on information about the need for safety precautions and about their fundraiser in hopes they will let Katie’s family know they are in the thoughts and prayers of the adjusting community nationwide.

Claims Magazine August 2007 issue is up online! Visit our Featured news article ” A Box of Chocolates “

Last week we mentioned in our blog about adjuster opportunities to handle losses for condo’s that Claims Magazine would be publishing an article we wrote along with Dennis Martin, CPCU  who is VP of Claims for William Kramer and Associates in the August 2007 issue. The article is now available online here:

http://www.claimsmag.com/cms/claims/monthly%20issues/issues/2007/08/features/

We have also published a self study guide for handling FL Condo losses which is available through our staffing firm.

 

Note that we have also just listed more LIVE online classes for Condo claim handling to be held in both evening and daytime sessions  during August at ClaimSmentor. The classes will include the self study Condo guide. Should you like to participate, visit us at  our ClaimSmentor site today!