Combining daily claims with CAT claims can significantly boost your income

Claims adjusters and 2020

This year has proven to be one of the toughest since the last decade as coronavirus has halted operations across various industries. From commerce to FMCG to medical workers, everyone has been drastically affected because of the virus, and claims adjusters are no alien to these difficulties.

While the presence of coronavirus doesn’t put a stop to the number of claims IAs have to deal with, it certainly adds to the risk that they face when they head out in the field. This report explains how a carrier like Crawford and Co. has implemented extra measures to keep adjusters away from the risk of getting infected with the virus.

Most IA firms have devised or are at least focusing their efforts towards building remote adjusting strategies or virtual inspection tools that help minimize physical contact with policyholders while making sure the claims are being closed.

While these new-age claims management practices might help sustain the business for IA firms, what’s in it for claims adjusters and their potential to earn more income? It is obvious that the large-scale impact of coronavirus has also affected the income opportunities for adjusters. What are some steps claims adjusters can take in order to not just survive this pandemic but find meaningful ways to boost their income?

The claims adjusting world:

Before we begin talking about income levels, we need to understand the different types of adjusters that are present in the industry. You have your regular desk adjusters who are working under a particular firm or carrier and have a steady income. On average, staff or desk adjusters have a pay scale ranging from $35,000-$60000 depending on your location and years of experience.

On the other hand, we have independent claims adjusters that either work daily claims or function as CAT adjusters. If you are an independent adjuster, you might be working for a variety of IA firms on a retainer basis and making your money through the number of claims assigned to you.

Lastly, there are public adjusters that cater to worker’s comp claims and are operating on a whole different level altogether. These adjusters are usually hired by policyholders when they suspect foul play on the carrier’s part.

The way to earn more money:

As a new claims adjuster entering the industry, you have the opportunity to deal with all kinds of claims and what most new adjusters don’t realize is that diversifying your portfolio as an independent adjuster is an extremely crucial step if you are looking for more income and more claims heading your way.

Diversifying your portfolio basically means having the ability to work on a variety of claims and not be pigeon-holed into doing only auto claims or only property claims. As an independent adjuster, you should have the ability to work on as many different kinds of claims as possible.

The best way to diversify your portfolio is to have a combination of daily claims and CAT claims. Working with these two sets of claims can help you seize big opportunities during hurricane season and also help generate a steady income for the rest of the year from daily claims. CAT claims usually comprise of flood, tornado, hail, and hurricane damage and you might have to travel interstate in order to reach the loss sites to inspect damages. Therefore, your earning potential from CAT claims is dependent upon the hurricane season for a particular year.

For CAT assignments, IAs are usually deployed to different parts of the country and unlike daily claims, there isn’t a premeditated time within which you have to close the claim. Being through and through with a CAT claim and maintaining the highest standard in terms of time and quality of inspection will help you earn more income.

However, long term deployment in CAT claims comes only when you are experienced and have a large number of claims under your gamut. Therefore, the way to get more deployments is to first work on your daily claims and build a portfolio that showcases your ability to handle multiple claims efficiently. Regular practice with daily claims will not only help you earn steady income throughout the year but will also help you prepare for the CAT deployments that will eventually come your way.

A successful adjusting career is all about being able to efficiently manage a complex roster and take on varied inspection assignments. We hope that from this explanation you are able to understand the importance of balancing the different kinds of claims that can come your way.