What is an Insurance Adjuster?

The insurance sector is extensive and includes a wide range of insurance products, such as life, health, property, and vehicle insurance. You can choose from various jobs in the industry, such as risk analyst, adviser, broker, underwriter, and insurance agent. Becoming an insurance adjuster is a fascinating career option in the insurance industry.

We outline the duties of an insurance adjuster in this post, along with the procedures you can follow to pursue a career in it.

What is an insurance adjuster?

Often referred to as a claims adjuster, an insurance adjuster evaluates a claimant's property damage and decides whether or not the insurance company will pay. Insurance adjusters may specialize in a specific field, for instance, medical cases, catastrophe claims, vehicles or property. Additionally, they can function in a variety of roles, such as:

• Staff insurance adjuster: A staff insurance adjuster is an insurance company employee who works full-time. Only the claims received by their insurance companies—mainly those involving auto accidents—are addressed by these adjusters.

• Independent insurance adjusters: These individuals operate as independent contractors, providing services to various insurance companies or third-party administrators. These experts must be ready to travel to regions with extreme weather or other catastrophic events because they frequently deal with catastrophe claims.

• Public insurance adjusters: These experts represent policyholders, particularly companies or individuals who have made insurance claims and are seeking just compensation. Unlike staff or independent adjusters, public insurance adjusters have the exclusive purpose of assisting claimants in obtaining the maximum compensation for their claims. Typically, public insurance adjusters are self-employed.

What does an insurance adjuster do?

Depending on the kind of insurance adjuster, daily responsibilities could involve the following:

• Assembling data and specifics related to a claim. Examining police reports, witness accounts, incident pictures and videos, and the actual damaged property may be part of this process.

• Interviewing pertinent parties, such as witnesses, builders, architects, physicians, and others, as well as individuals involved in the incident or accident

• Resolving disputes as soon and peacefully as feasible

• Visiting disaster areas as quickly as possible and with efficiency

• Putting together reports that claim examiners will use

• Helping lawyers and other experts defend or represent claimants

How insurance adjusters manage claims

A claims examiner evaluates the claim to decide whether or not the insurance company should pay it after an insurance adjuster obtains all relevant information about it and puts together a report for them. The insurance adjuster will determine the exact amount to be paid by the company if the examiner determines that it is necessary. After that, the insurance adjuster makes the claimant an offer of compensation; if the claimant declines, they will cooperate with the company's attorneys to counter the client's contestation.

How to become an insurance adjuster

Here are the typical steps you'll need to take to become an insurance adjuster:

• Obtain your high school diploma: To work as an insurance adjuster, you must hold a high school diploma or a GED. If you are not a high school graduate, you can take an online course to obtain a GED or a high school diploma. Attending classes at an adult high school is another option.

• Obtain an associate's or bachelor's degree: While a degree is not required to work as an insurance adjuster, having one will provide you with essential knowledge and may improve your chances of landing a job. When selecting a program, take into account those that offer courses in business and finance. A bachelor's degree in insurance and risk management is a better choice. This degree covers accounting, insurance ethics, legal issues, risk assessment, and personal property liability issues.

• Finish the insurance license course and test: To work as an insurance adjuster, you might need to obtain a license in the state in which you wish to operate. You can check The National Insurance Producer Registry to learn the specific requirements for the state.

You must obtain a license in your home state if your state mandates that you get one to work as an insurance adjuster. This could entail passing an exam, completing an approved insurance adjustment course, getting a surety bond, and supplying character references. Many of these steps can be finished online, frequently in less than a week. In other states, though, getting a license requires filling out the necessary paperwork and paying a charge.

• Keep your license current: Each state has different requirements for keeping your license current. Renewing your license may require you to prove your continued education, which you can do by obtaining continued education credits through live or online education sessions. Furthermore, you can receive continuing education (CE) credits by writing articles, delivering talks about the insurance claims sector, or attending training sessions offered by your employer.

• Become certified: You may also pursue professional certification to improve your career prospects. For example, The Institute offers the Senior Professional Public Adjuster (SPPA) certification to public insurance adjusters. Insurance adjusters who hold this designation will be equipped with the technical know-how necessary to manage claims efficiently. Claim Principles and Practices, Property and Liability Insurance Principles, Property Claim Practices, and Property Coverages are the four sections of the course, along with an ethics module.