The job was not for an insurance company, but for a general contractor.  The position was a sales position, however the company really only wanted adjusters for the sales positions.  Since there were no good hurricane this year, they did not have a problem finding adjusters.  The contractor would hand us leads, we would call on the lead, look at the damage on the roof and any other hail storm damage on the property and then help the homeowner through the insurance claim process (out titles were Claims Specialists).

I know the title of the post is “Re-Education Complete, Now Get Some Experience”, and this is where the experience comes in.  In doing this process over 70 times in 7 weeks, and meeting with insurance company adjusters on the property, I got good at becoming an adjuster.   I learned, on the job, what to do, when to do it and what to say t0 the insured.  Of course I was always looking for more damage and would state my case to the adjusters as to why the whole roof needed replacing, but it was great practice and the answers I got back were all educational too.

When I got back I went to the same group of people who said to take the opportunity and gain some experience.  Now they wanted to know what it was like.  What kind of damage did you see, how bad was it, how many roofs did you see.  The questions just kept flowing.  I realized I had gained some experience that many of these adjusters of 10+ years had not had yet. It was a good positive boost for Karl.

So all was good, yes I did learn a lot.  The experience also did lead to me getting on several catastrophe lists and some local adjusting firms daily rosters, some thing that I could not have done without the experience I gained in Denver.   So the moral of this story is, even though you may have worked for 20+ years, but now changed careers, you are starting at the bottom.  You can move up quickly, but you will need to gain experience as well as prove to yourself and others you can do the job.   Sometimes that means a little change in tactics from what you may be used to.   Above all else, continue to network!

It was explained to me that I am really in “insurance recovery”.  This simply means I am helping people get their due course (indemnification) from their insurance company.  As an adjuster that means gutters, shutters, fence repair should also be added to the claim as well as the hail damaged roof.  It is not surprising how many people are afraid to put a claim in and how many don’t know what the process is.  If you have questions, ask away.   It is also not surprising how many bad contractors there are out there that pray on these people.  I do actually feel good about what I am doing and honestly know I am helping them in ways other contractors won’t and the insurance companies just aren’t.

So what is the process you ask?  Well first off, if you see your neighbors getting new roofs, your roof is most likely damaged too.   No, you cannot see it from the ground and even if you are on the roof, unless you know what you are looking at you won’t see the damage either.  Make sure you have someone who is trainined to spot hail damage inspect your roof.

Depending on the type of roof you have (T-Lock, 3-Tab, Laminate, etc) the number of strikes per square will be different.  Typically it is at least 8 strikes per square (10′ x 10′), per slope to get a roof written.  If its written your insurance company will replace it with “Like, Kind and Quality”.  Simply that means if you had a 3 TAB 20 year roof, that’s what they replace it with.  No upgrades unless building codes require it and you have an upgrade clause in your policy.

The process is simple, call your insurance company and open a claim.  The adjuster should call you within 48 hours and give you his name and contact info, your claim number and date/time when he is going to inspect the property.  It is in your best interest to have a contractor there at the same time as the adjuster!  It will allow them to reach a scope of loss quickly.  The adjuster will typically go back to his office and write that scope of loss which will be a line item estimate of repair.  Now here is what most people REALLY need to know, that estimate should be everything needed to repair the damage.  The contractor should not need ANY extra money from you (except your deductible).  Believe me, insurance companies know exactly how much it costs to do any repair on your house and what reasonable profit is for the contractor.

One of the most confusing things about he claim process is how payments are issued.  You will typically receive 2 checks.  The first will be what is called the ACV (Actual Cash Value) check which is the Total Replacement Cost – (Depreciation and Deductible).  To put it another way, if your new roof is going to cost $5000 and its through 50% of its life and your deductible is $1000, then your ACV check is going to be issued for $1500.   The second check is called the Recoverable Depreciation and its where you get the remainder of the depreciation they held in the 1st check., in this case, $2500.  So you got 2 checks ($1500 + $2500 = $4000) and you wrote the Deductible check for $1000.  Clear as mud?  This is the insurance companies way of making sure you do the job and don’t just pocket the money, it also leaves the estimate open in case the contractor finds additional damage that could not be seen when the adjuster was on site.

Things to do when you file a claim.

1) Please, please please organize yourself!  Keep copies of EVERYTHING they send you.  I cannot tell you now many people hand be a pile of paper and ask us to use our insurance decoder ring to make sense of it.

2) Research the contractor.  They should be at least “A” rated from the BBB.  The contractor should be working for you in your best interest.  Local contractors who have been in business for a while are typically the better ones.

3) The contractor may be able to make some allowances for your deductible, generally in the form of a sign in front of your house and referrals.  No matter what that deductible will need to be paid.  Its part of your contact with the insurance company.

4) Fraud is a bad thing, so don’t do it.  If you are paid for a claim, get the work done.

5) You are allowed to do the repairs yourself.  Just be sure to document the repair and let the insurance company know when you complete them.

6) Talk to your agent when the repairs are complete.  Sometimes they will update your policy and maybe even reduce your premiums.  After all, you got a new roof that should last 20+ years.

7) Walk your property with the adjuster and look for collateral damage.  This would include screens, shutters, lawn furniture, fences, siding, gutters, etc. You can get paid for these as well on the claim.

You have the right to choose your contractor of choice.  That contractor should be able to do the work for the money allotted by the claim.  This is the total replacement cost.  If you want to get multiple estimates and find one cheaper, understand it does not save you any money.  If the repair comes in under the money allotted by the insurance company, you don’t get that difference.  The insurance only releases the depreciation up to the repair bill.

Above all, work with your contractor and adjuster.  Keep track of any supplements the contractor is asking from the insurance company.  If the contractor asks you for more money, call the adjuster make sure the insurance company is not paying for that and they are aware of the change in the scope of loss.  There really should be no surprises financially.

One of the keys to me passing the test, I believe, was the study group we formed in class.  We were getting together about once a week when the class started and the week before the exam we meet several times.   Although each of us learns differently, we all had a different perspective on the subject and would rationalize with each other on the different topics and interpretations of the material.  This proved to be invaluable and for those who may need to take a test as an adult a highly recommended way to learn and comprehend the material.

There is a huge difference between learning how to answer a question and comprehending the material and understanding the answer.  In test taking, you will no doubt score lower, but in the real world you will be able to come up with the answers for questions never asked.  As I  am coming to understand more and more, this is a key skill required when claims adjusting.

So if you are faced with a test here is what I found works.

1. Read the course material  yourself.  Think about what is presented and why it is important.
2. Start a study group.  Meet at a neutral place.  We did a bookstore / coffee shop.
3. When taking the test, read each questions and answer it as simply as possible.  Don’t read anything into it!
4. Take your time.  Read and re-read both the question and all the possible answers.
5. Get a good nights sleep before hand.  No partying!
6. Eat a good breakfast.
7. Watch out for those negative questions. The ones with words like “not”, “except” and “until”.
8. Don’t spend too much time on any one question.  If you are going to guess, skip the question and see if another question will answer this one.
9. Eliminate the responses you know are wrong.
10. Don’t leave any questions blank.  Even the blind squirrel gets a nut.
11. Try to answer some of the questions as “TRUE” or “FALSE” even if they are multiple choice by reading each answer and thinking of that is true of false.

Good Luck!

Many people in the 30+ age group have problems understanding the basics and common functions most Windows and Mac based software have.  For instance, the <CTRL>C will copy and <CTRL>V will paste.  Shortcuts like these can be the difference between having OK computer skills or a good and efficient user.

Being an efficient user of computer software not only reduces your stress levels, but also helps you get tasks done quickly.  Sine time is money and time is precious good computer skills can make you precious money.

A simple recommendation is to ‘play with purpose’.  This if you are going to be doing on-line sketches and narratives, Facebooking is not going hone your computer skills.  Rather you need to get some software like what you tring to learn, install it and make a project for yourself.  The project needs to have bite sized attainable goals.

For instance, I am back in school to become a insurance claims adjuster and we have been using a peice of software called Xactimate to do estimations and damage scoping.  I have a trial version of the software installed on my laptop and created a project in my own house, simulated damage.  I took the photos, wrote the scope sheet on paper, did my hand sketches then went to the software and started putting ALL the pieces in.  Then I watched some training videos and went back and re-did the input to the software, this time using some of the short cuts I had learned.  After doing this several times, I reduced the time it took me to complete a claim by over 50%!

This same process can be done for any piece of software you are going to use all the time.  Word, Excel, PowerPoint, email, etc.  The trick is to look for keyboard short cuts and the best order to do tasks in so you don’t need to go  back and repeat any prior work.

If you are still having issues, then software like the Video Professior’s like of training DVD’s can really help.  Don’t discount your public library either for good resources and public training sessions.

I have noticed some higher levels of frustration in the classroom dynamics between some of the other students and the instructor.  It brings something my father told me a long time ago.  A teacher cannot teach anyone, they can only explain things in a way that people who want to learn can understand.  Its not that anyone in the class doesn’t want to learn, however a student needs to open their minds up to learning from all available sources AND practice what they are leaning.  Its the reinforcement component of self study and study groups that will build confidence in what you are retaining and ‘stitch’ it together in your own head.

During the last week we have had multiple people assisting those who were struggling with the software.  Yours truly even was asked by the instructor to do one of the exercises for the class.  I know what he was doing when he asked, having someone else go though the process and explaining it in their own words.  We all could see progress and we all learn something.

Today we had a good breakthrough, some of those who were very frustrated with the software completed a case in the software with no real external assistance.  Even better they did it in good time too.  This really boosted the confidence in both their ability and that of the instructor.  It really became a win-win for everyone.

For those going back to school here is what I have learned so far about the process:

1. Actively participate in class.  Ask relevant questions and say the answer back in your own words.
2. Listen to your fellow students. They can help you understand more and you may be able to help them learn more.
3. Get a study group going.  Even if its only for two hours a week, you will be amazed how much you can re-enforce in that short period of time.  We are meeting at a Starbucks/book store.

Hind site is 20/20.  I am doing things differently than high school and college.  The experience is different and I know I am getting more out of it because of the way I am approaching it.

Our corporate IT guys did a fantastic job of making our applications available to everyone no matter where they were.  Seriously, not all IT shops really care about the end user experience.  We used technologies from Citrix like ZenApp and ZenServer and an Access Gateway to allow all us remote consultants and managers to have access to the applications as if we were in the main office.  So my access to SAP, Project Accounting, spreadsheets and documents was all seamless.

The number one question I get from people is, “How do you do it?”  What they are really asking is how do  you exercise enough self control not to be doing other things.  The answer is really simple, you need to treat the office like you would a regular office and know that for ‘working hours’ you are working.  This may sound like a simple statement, but if you limit yourself to times for breaks, don’t surf (except for work related activities), don’t check personal email, etc, etc, etc, you would be amazed of two things.  One is how quick the day goes by the other is now much you can get done.

News Flash: The last paragraph took no less than 35 minutes to write.  This is the side effect of kids on summer vacation.  You have been warned!

On a side note, two best investments I made for the home office were Vonage for my phone service with a hands free headset for the phone.  With Vonage I have unlimited calling (and I used about 2500 minutes a month) for a low price AND I could have a local number in Upstate NY as well as local number for home.  So now people when they would call me back were dialing a local number to them but it rang in South Texas.   The other is the fastest Internet connection I could get.  If you are remote, there is no substitute for speed.

I would love to hear other peoples ideas on the home office and how to make it more effective.

Things are a little different for a 42 year old who is back in school.   As an apprenticeship program, we are taking a lot of field trips to job sites to learn the tricks of the trade.  We have taken several so far, but the first is memorable.  I got home that night and when my kids asked how my day at school was, I told them we took a field trip.  My daughter responded with a, “who did you sit next to on the bus?”.  Its an obvious question to an 8 year old who in her vast years of experience knows that who you sit next to on the bus is incredibly important.

I explained that we didn’t take a bus, which prompted a whole string of questions including the pointed question of “Well how did you get there?”.  Like the only way to transport for ‘school’ is on a bus.  We had a long discussion about what it means to go on a field trip and what we learned.  She did begin to understand that for me, daddy, they ride was not important, but rather the destination.  It still didn’t carry weight, but is interesting.

My point is, your kids perception of you going back to school is completely different than what we as adults have learned.  They see it still as a social activity with some learning in there, and not by choice.   As adults, we tend to see it the other way around, teach us and if I have time we will socialize and even then it is a learning/networking activity.

If you are back in school and have kids, talk to them about what you are doing in school. The homework assignments and reading you need to do.  This does help them by showing you are doing the same things they are, and they are important.  Learning is a process so getting your kids involved in your learning process will help re-enforce theirs.  At least that’s my view on it.

I’m guessing here, but most people out of college don’t ever consider becoming an insurance adjuster.  I know I didn’t.  But with life comes experience and that seems to be what this career is all about.  Most of the other people in my class are in their 30′s or better and come with those life experiences.  They have purchased insurance, and owned homes.  They have worked other jobs and know generally how to interact with people, especially when they have had something bad happen to them.  Keep in mind, you generally only get to see a insurance adjuster when you make a claim which means your house, property or you have been damaged.

My first 2 weeks of class have been incredibly interesting.  I have learned enough about insurance policies to be very dangerous.  I also know a lot of people need to talk to their insurance agent and re-evaluate their policies!  I have learned to take a more analytical look at structures and damage and dig deeper.  A concept re-enforced for me was to keep asking questions, sometimes the same question a different way to gain further understanding.

If there are two things that seem to be portable between all careers its your people skills and your understanding of technology.  For those over 40 like myself, the people skills are either there or not.  If not, then you need to seek some other type of training or counseling. However the technology skills are huge for any job/career.  Some advice, do some on-line tutorials basic computer skills if you need to.  It WILL help you out.

I am going to continue to chronicle my transition to a new career.  The next several posts will include some topics on how my kids are dealing with daddy going back to school.

So after my first day back to school, my 8 year old daughter asked what I did today.  My answer was surprising to her, “I learned about insurance policies, coverage and the claims process.”

“So did you have gym?”  She asked.

“No sweetheart.” I replied. “But they did let us outside for a break.”

“Hmm.  Did you make any friends? Who did you eat lunch with?”

The questions just kept coming and then my 10 year old son joined in. “So did you get any homework?” He asked

“Yes” I replied, “I have two chapters in my book I need to read.”

“Dad, you cannot play or watch TV until your homework is done.  Remember that’s the house rules”  he quickly shot back with.

So I sat down, read my chapters and proudly announced when I was done.  The two of them released me and said I could now do something else.

This can be a good opportunity for  anyone who whats to instill good learning habits with their kids.  The old saying, monkey see, monkey do will hold true.  In our house that is the rule, if you have homework, you do it before anything else.  No procrastination.  From now on, everyday I have ‘homework’ I do it as soon as I get home and they get to sign-off I did it.

If you are going back to school, get your kids involved in the process.  By them being involved it not only encourages me, but also lets them see, by example, that the learning process never stops and should be embraced.