What is a Public Adjuster? – The vast majority of people have never heard of a Public Adjuster, and don’t even know that their crucial role in the insurance industry exists. You have likely heard of an insurance adjuster that inspects and adjusts claims for the insurance company, but what is a Public Insurance Adjuster?

What is a Public Adjuster?

First off, thanks for reading this blog article on the topic of understanding the public adjusting industry. In this blog article, we will answer the question – ”What is a Public Adjuster?” Many times in small and larger communities around the country this is a popular question families ask us. We wanted to take a moment and address it now.

A public adjuster is a state-licensed insurance professional that specializes in managing every aspect of an insurance claim on the behalf of the policyholder (claimant, or insured). Public insurance adjusters provide services for negotiating or “adjusting” insurance claims. Public adjusters are a type of claim adjusters that are individually licensed and hired by the insurance policyholder. They represent the general “public” and “adjust” claims to effect settlements.

Most people are aware of insurance adjusters or claims adjusters that work for the insurance company to investigate, inspect, appraise and adjust insurance claims, in order to determine the amount of compensation the insurance company is liable to pay.

A public adjuster performs many of these same functions but is hired by the policyholder, to advocate for the policyholder, during the process of appraising and negotiating a claim. A public insurance adjuster is someone who is hired to represent the financial interests of the person or entity who is insured by the policy.

A public adjuster works for you – not your insurance company. Public adjusters use their experience and expertise in the insurance industry to ensure a claim is properly handled and achieves a fair outcome, while also working to successfully maximize the compensation. All in efforts to help those in need to truly recover after a loss. Need our help now – call us at (844) 792-8911

What is a Public Adjuster? By SWATJOB.com

There are 45 of the United States, and the District of Colombia, that regulate and require licensing of Public Insurance Adjusters These 45 states and D.C. have either created their own regulations and licensing requirements or adopted some form of the Public Adjuster Licensing Model Act by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).

In this act, the NAIC defines a public adjuster as anybody who, for some form of compensation and on behalf of the insured, acts or aids in the negotiation, or effecting the settlement, of first-party claims covered by an insurance contract.

NAIC also defines anyone who advertises for employment as a public adjuster, solicits business, or represents themselves as a public adjuster. NAIC also identifies anyone who, for some form of compensation and working on behalf of another public adjuster, deals with adjusting losses, advising an insured, or the investigation, of first-party claims of an insurance contract.

Public adjusters, abbreviated PA’s, are also commonly referred to as private adjusters, public claims adjusters, private claims adjusters, public loss adjusters, private loss adjusters, and public insurance adjusters.

What Are Public Insurance Adjuster’s Duties?

A public adjuster acts as a representative of you, the policyholder. The public insurance adjuster‘s objective is to navigate every stage of the claim process and advocate for the best interests of the insured.

The adjuster advises, manages, and assists with filing a claim to your insurance company to attain the best possible outcome for the claimant. This means you can focus on other, more important tasks instead of dealing with the stress of insurance negotiations in the days and weeks following an accident.

There are many different duties that public adjusters perform for the policyholder:

• Determine Coverage: Assess and examine the insurance policy in question to ascertain what compensation is applicable to the claim.
• Inspect: investigate, record and validate the damages done to the property and any extra expenses
• Evidence: Record, document and substantiate the claims as a representative of the policyholder
• Estimate: Evaluate any losses to the policyholder’s home, business, or personal property and the monetary amount needed to cover all damages
• Negotiate: Present the evidence, discuss and settle on a settlement payout amount with the insurance company

If a disparity is found in the settlement, the public adjuster can reopen, renegotiate, or provide guidance on the next best course to achieve a fair and favorable settlement for the insured.

It should be remembered that a public adjuster is an insurance professional that has no affiliation or responsibility to the insurance company, only the insured, and therefore the policyholder pays for the public adjusters’ services.

Most public insurance adjusters are paid a percentage of the total final settlement paid to the insured party, and in almost every state this must be communicated upfront and detailed in the form of a signed contract between a policyholder and the public insurance adjuster.

It is most advised to hire a public adjuster if you are dealing with claims of over 10,000 dollars, or if you feel unsure about what your insurance policy covers in regards to your claim. While it is not always necessary to hire a public adjuster, doing so will make the insurance process a lot less stressful for you as a policyholder. Need our help now – call us at (844) 792-8911

Is a public adjuster right for you?

The first step is to decide if you need a public insurance adjuster. If you decide to hire your own adjuster, your adjuster will go through your insurance policy meticulously and look at the damage done to your property.

The adjuster will then assess the situation to determine the costs needed for repairs or replacements caused by the accident or disaster. At this point, your adjuster will enter the negotiation process with the insurance company in order to maximize the settlement offer for your claim.

Public adjusters come in all different levels of expertise and experience. It is important to hire someone who is an expert in the particular category that your insurance claim falls under. There are public adjusters that specialize in floods and water damage, a public adjuster that is experienced with fire and smoke damage, public adjusters for a tornado, wind damage, and/or storm damages, public adjusters with expertise in hail and roof damage claims.

Some well-experienced public insurance adjusters have extensive experience in many or all categories of disaster and loss claims. By hiring someone with extensive proficiency and experience in the particular field that your claims fall under, you will be more likely to get the best payout for your insurance claim. Need our help now – call us at (844) 792-8911

Final Thoughts on this questions – What is a Pubic Adjuster? by S.W.A.T. – A Public Adjusting Firm

A public adjuster is an independent insurance professional that a policyholder may hire to help settle an insurance claim on his or her behalf.

Your insurance company provides an adjuster at no charge to you, while a public adjuster has no relationship with your insurance company, and charges a fee of up to 20 percent of the insurance settlement for his or her services. Note that while a public adjuster can assist with the claims process, he or she cannot get you more money than you are entitled to under your insurance policy.

If you’re thinking of hiring a public adjuster:

1. Check the references and qualifications of any public adjuster. Ask for recommendations from family and associates. Make sure the adjuster is licensed in the state where your loss has occurred, and call the Better Business Bureau and/or your state insurance department to check up on his or her record.
2. Avoid any public adjuster who pressures you and, as always, read your contract carefully to make sure you understand it all before you sign.
3. Know the facts after a major disaster. Your state’s insurance department may set the percentage that public adjusters are permitted charge. Be wary of public adjusters who go from door-to-door after a catastrophe.

Alittle bit about S.W.A.T. – A Public Adjusting Firm

Public adjusting solutions are possible with S.W.A.T., we work for you. We hope you have learned a little bit from this blog article and if you liked it – we have many more like this one to share with you. Remember to follow us on Facebook!

A little bit about us, we can work with people in support of any claim adjusting issues through our custom insurance claims consulting approach. This can be achieved through a blend of any of the aforementioned product offerings, as well as through outsourcing, data analysis, and the development of customized solutions focused on gaining a greater understanding of the program
issues and the overall program cost reduction potential. We know this sounds confusing but when it comes to getting the outcome that you desire from the insurance company – we work on many different strategies to get it done.

Our team also can focus on medical treatment and medical costs, helping a small business owner develop strategies, address cost drivers, and integrate solutions into its workers’ compensation while the small business is closed due to flooding issues. So reach out to us today via our contact page to get started.