Here To Help: Meet The Adjuster

So you've filed a claim with your insurance company, and now it's time to meet your insurance adjuster. If you haven't already filed a claim, then you can go back to our article Filing An Insurance Claim.

For many reasons, a lot of property owners are nervous about this step, but mostly the fear stems from one thing: not knowing what to expect/ So let's go through this step-by-step so you can handle this process with confidence.

• You will receive a phone call from a DESK adjuster. They will set a date and time for the FIELD adjuster to come out to your property. Some companies forego DESK adjuster and just have the FIELD adjuster call you and set their own appointments. This is all normal procedure. It just depends on which insurance company you have.
• The next step is the adjuster meeting. Once you get the date and time your field adjuster is arriving, it would be extremely beneficial that you contact a general contractor or tradesman who specializes in the trade of the damage being inspected to be there during the meeting.

• The adjuster will inspect your property for any sudden and catastrophic damage. Qualifying for this damage means the damage had to occur suddenly, not over a long period of time. And your general contractor and/or tradesman will be there to answer any questions you or the adjuster may have.
• Once the adjuster completes their inspection, they are going to explain everything they have discovered. At this moment, it will depend on if you have an independent adjuster or an in-house adjuster on how they present the information to you.

An independent adjuster is not allowed to make the final decision on property loss. They must turn their report into the desk adjuster assigned to your claim. The desk adjuster will then go over all the details and will determine your estimate of loss.

The only power the independent adjuster holds is a recommendation for your property damage to be paid for or not. An independent adjuster will NOT make the final decision on your property.

Some in-house adjusters will have to follow the same procedure as an independent.

However, there is a fair amount of in-house field adjusters that will be able to decide on the spot if your claim is approved or denied. If they approve your claim, they will write up an estimate of loss on site.

They oftentimes will also write the first check on site.

• If your insurance company does not give you a conclusion or cut a check on site after the adjuster inspections, then you will receive a letter by email or snail mail.
• This letter will inform you if your claim was denied or approved.
• An Estimate of Loss document will also accompany it. This document is usually around 5 to 10 pages long.
• This paperwork can be tricky to understand, so it will be helpful if you have a trained professional to help go through it with you.