As of today, major carrier would REQUIRE satellite measurements report on ALL roofs over 9/12 or with more than 12 planes.

What was your experience with Geoestimator, Eagleview and such?

Hmm. guess some of my post sound like a catastrophe "pundit" since 2003.

I remember the old days when flood adjusters billed T & E files 40 hours in 24. NFIP got wise and went to fee billing and got faster closed files and better work, with reinspections.

If Orem comes up with time unit cost to clean a heavy smoked coffee maker, they may put out a time converted to $ to estimate, but not closed tornado struck dwelling. Aaah good gracious. Working for wages with all these measurable units in the software and 2.5 or 3.0 hrs roof claims will be the norm.

Talked to a bud who will be a test sq. inspector on 2 story steep, but use the sat. image to measure. I saw a program on the learning channel they can take a close up and see hail hits, and his job will be replaced, this will wound the roof thumps profit center.

Posted By Ray Hall on 21 Jan 2010 09:14 PM

If Orem comes up with time unit cost to clean a heavy smoked coffee maker, they may put out a time converted to $ to estimate, but not closed tornado struck dwelling. Aaah good gracious. Working for wages with all these measurable units in the software and 2.5 or 3.0 hrs roof claims will be the norm.

What can we say Ray? 2.5 hrs for a 30 sq 5/12 L shaped gable roof. Carrier pays $70/hr to include estimate, photos, milage and satalite photo @ $50. $175 total bill and the appraiser gets 60% of that. Used to be the 30 sq roof was $5,000.00 and the fee was $300 and 60% went to the appraiser and no satalite shot.

It's getting this way and will continue to do so with better satalite imagery and availability. This along with the fact there are way more firms out there than are needed fighting over the same piece of pie and are willing to basically do the work for nothing to generate some income.

 

Rocke its called progress for the carrier as fee,s are being cut. I think 5-6 closed per day would come close to 2.5 hrs each and be about a 14-16 hr day. If you had a helper and worked double shift at Brake Check about the same gross per year.

The top 10% always do well and work as much as they want, thats not a new discovery.

Talked to a very good adjuster today and I was shocked. He said xactimate was too complex to close many losses in Denver, as the gutters were made out of steel, Gal. steel, aluminum and vinyl, sometimes all on the same house. How do you make a macro for this house and other like it.

Doesn't sound like a good candidate for a macro, but it doesn't seem terribly difficult either. Just get the measurements of each material and enter them as separate line items. One should use macros when they are appropriate and when they aren't, then don't. Of course, if they were allowed to use Simsol, they would be writing those reports up in half the time anyway, and if they couldn't use a macro they wouldn't be slowed down all that much.

Haven't plugged Simsol in about a year, so I thought I would stir up the pot a bit.  Disclaimer:  I have no shareholder or stakeholder interest in Simsol other thanit is simply a simpler, more comprehensive program for adjusters who handle not only buildings, but also contents and time element claims.

Amen to that. I use to use Simson and now have to use Xact. My opinon, Xact is a POS.

I have fooled around with symblity and like it.

Good management and smart also.

Here are my two cents for what its worth.  The business is evolving.  Change is nothing to worry about if you embrace it.  For so long adjusters just turned and burned, now carriers are concerned with customer service, because that has alot to do with customer retention.   So take care of the insured and embrace the change because those who do these two things can have a long profitable career. 

I may take more time per file then some, but I am still out scoping everyday.

Dnjsdad

Boonabee, this is not something new to insurance carriers. When I started in 1957 we would go out and find where the hail started and stopped. We would pull all the daily reports(copy of the policy in the district office) by ZIP code. When several storm troopers got into town we would give the most complex (big $) to the best adjuster in the hardest zip code. And so forth. We would also pull the fringe and send the nephew or son of the old timer out to "check these roofs"  If DFW was hailed out tonight. At daylight in the morning 20 very good adjusters could check the whole metro area by dark and set the reserves and call the Pilots, Ebrels and so forth and they show is up and ggoing by Saturday.

Now the bad news use old files and the tech. that is available and have these 20 call 5 of their best  thats 120 people who never get on a roof, but settle thousands of claims 7 days a week. Thats the job you neetd to get lined up for.