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Last Post 04/01/2010 10:31 PM by  Texaskid
Want to be a cat adjuster
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Noahtreat
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08/31/2009 12:00 AM

    I want to be a cat adjuster, but have very few leads on how to get started.  I have a background in new home construction.  I have a  general contractors lic. for the state of Arkansas.  We all know how the construction business is doing right now.  I feel like I could spend lots of time and money on training and classes but those things don't compare to expirence.  What is the best way to get in the field and get my feet wet? 

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    JT
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    08/31/2009 1:07 AM
    If you are just now wanting to get into the biz ,,if you are expecting to go to work and start making a living at it this year dont quit your day job,,,,as a newbie it ll take a major hurricane or two to get you deployed to a storm ,,,,and since all your training and licensing wont be done in time for the end of hurricane season,you got a year ahead of you,,,all the insurance certification classes you will need inorder to do claims for insurance companies are gonna be few and far between till first of the year ,,,,The Adjuster School in Houston is a great start,,,Good Luck,,,Ill help if you have anymore questions,,,,,,JT
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    Marcus
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    08/31/2009 7:52 AM

    From what I have seen, having a gig on the side would help until you get hooked up with a firm (or firms).  This is a very competitve industry and many people with experience and connections will be called up way before many eager new people unless an 04, Katrina or an Ike trype storm hits.  If chance has it that you work a nice Hurricane, save as much money as you can.  Don't buy the new bass boat, harley, ect.  Be prepared to have many months of down time or working temp jobs,ect.  If you have a business on the side, that would be ideal-something you can get away from for short to medium stints.    If your wife, ect. can accompany you, your marriage will likely not be engaged in an uphill battle... Network and learn as much as you can my friend....

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    Ol' Ghost
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    08/31/2009 8:49 AM

    Oh, Goodie! Yet another rainbow chaser. Okay, here is the secret path to joining we select few at the big pot-o-gold at rainbows end. Ya might oughta want to writes this down with this here crayon on the inside flap of a Cheerio box.

    1. Stomp wildly thru the minefield of thrown away money at the all the 2-bit instant adjuster training schools. It's fun to watch all your folding money blowed-up into confetti and then be bestowed a fancy certificate.
    2. Dance blindly amongst the quicksand pools of empty promise vendors with worn down fingers from constantly revising your resume that boasts of determination and committment to excellence.
    3. Gaze in wide wonder at the unending succesion of days, weeks, and months filled with bright sunshine, light breezes, and infinitly calm weather.

    By ridgidly following this secret path, only then will your dreams come to fruition.

    Or, you can do what everyone else does and get a stockboy job down at the Adult Megaplex store. It won't be much in the way of monetary riches, but there are a few fringe benefits. And, on your first day you'll get to mop down the 'Clean & Jerk' booths. Doesn't that sound like a whole lot of fun?

    Ol' Ghost



     

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    Tom Toll
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    08/31/2009 11:00 AM

    Ditto. If you live in Arkansas the way to get your feet wet is go to a rice field barefooted and stand in the water. Be sure and watch out for water mocassins though, they are similar to some of the people you might work for, very dangerous.

    All kidding aside, this is a tough field to just enter with no background. Try getting on with a staff company like most of the ol timers did, then regress into cat adjusting. It pays really good, at times. You must be prepared to tell you family however, why there is no money in the bank.

    Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
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    Leland
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    08/31/2009 12:48 PM
    If you follow Tom Toll's advice above in can absolutely guarantee that you will outstanding in your field.

    In all seriousness another way into the industry is to work in insurance restoration construction first. At least you will have some income and you can learn Xactimate. You won't learn policy interpretation etc. but it's better than being on a roster and not getting called.
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    Ray Hall
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    08/31/2009 4:55 PM

    The insurance restoration biz. is a good route to get into cat. or public adjusting. Public adjusting has been around a long time and they perform a service and get paid for it. Just like lawyers and catastrophe adjusters.

    Ehen you have been handed your head on a platter one or two times by a good PA, your respect level will be elevated a bit. You will be taken off a loss when the PA begins to eat your lunch and you should be. These guys know the game and were in your place 10-20 years ago.


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    margar1
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    08/31/2009 5:11 PM
    Public adjusters do vary in competence. I have worked with some very good ones over the years who were on top of their game. When a major cat hits the pa firms also look to load up on fresh bodies. I worked a loss with a pa during Wilma who kept referring to the baseboard as crown molding. After I finally corrected him and told him that it was not crown but 3 1/4 baseboard he was taken back. It further instituted his lack of knowledge when we moved to the exterior and he was trying to convince me that the 25 year 3 tab was actually 40 year dimensional. Any adjuster who is confused on the grade and type of shingle needs to go back and hit the books.
    Mark S Garland
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    ChuckDeaton
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    08/31/2009 6:54 PM
    Tom Toll and I are blood Arkansas, borne and bred, both of us will tell you that cat work in Arkansas is nearly zero.

    You would have better chance at being a greeter at Wal-Mart. Or the piano player at the House of the Rising Sun.

    "Prattling on and on about being an ass with experience doesn't make someone experienced. It just makes you an ass." Rod Buvens, Pilot grunt
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    TXAD
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    09/07/2009 7:02 PM

    WOW!  You guys are ruthless.  A bit scared of the competition, as usual.  I'm SO glad that I didn't listen to the "advice" given on this very board when I was getting started.  I probably would have given up before really giving it my honest effort.  That would have been a travesty.  Now, I just LOVE  adjusting.

     

    Some really great penmanship, I must say though.

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    JimGary
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    09/08/2009 12:03 PM
    Posted By TXAD on 07 Sep 2009 07:02 PM
      A bit scared of the competition, as usual.

     

    I really don't think these guys are scared of the competition. Most are well established with there respective employers and will work while most of us set home twiddling our thumbs. But what they do realize is that there are many that post here after hearing how easy the money flows in this field. Just take a three day, seven day, or two week course and expect a call. Yes that sometimes happens, and someone also wins the lotto from time to time. I have no hard stats, but I would bet that the roster #'s have not grown significantley in the years since I have been in this business, yet the classes are churning out adjusters by the hundreds every year. What does that suggest? Maybe this is not quite the pot of gold that many thought it was.  I have talked to many ex adjusters that started,  could not stand being away from home for 2,3,4 months at a time, could not pay the hotel bills and wait on the billing to catch up, could not handle the feast or famin nature of the business. A lot of these ex adjusters left a storm sight and left a pile of claims for those of us who stayed to clean up or totally rewrite.

    Just know if the sarcasm and fun poking humor on this sight stings a little, its nothing compared what you will face in the real world. You haven't lived till you get a good finger shaking, head bobbing, butt chewing from an old country gal who cannot understand why she not getting enough from her hail damage to buy a newer larger doublewide.

     

    JWG

    I know the voices aren't real, but sometimes they're right!
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    ChuckDeaton
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    09/09/2009 8:36 PM
    Truth be told, I want everybody to succeed, made a lot of money.

    That buddy of yours that told you that he is ever so successful, making large sums of money, just get on his or her coat tail, buy the same vehicle, the same equipment, ladder, tape, clip board, computer, air card, cell phone and do what he or she does.

    If he or she uses PowerClaim, buy it, if he or she drives a Ford Focus, get one, if he or she uses a folding carpenter rule, get one, go to the same schools, get the same licenses, send your resume to the same companies. Wear the same clothes, drink the same brand of beer and smoke the same stogies, dog that friend's footsteps.

    Keep a detailed diary, take some images, around Christmas time log back in and post, post your successes right here. We all want to hear about it. Help us all succeed, that is what this board is all about.

    "Prattling on and on about being an ass with experience doesn't make someone experienced. It just makes you an ass." Rod Buvens, Pilot grunt
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    ChuckDeaton
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    09/09/2009 8:40 PM
    "I ain't askeerd of nothin' but the ole devil an I ain't askeerd of him when I got my dawg with me."
    "Prattling on and on about being an ass with experience doesn't make someone experienced. It just makes you an ass." Rod Buvens, Pilot grunt
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    Texaskid
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    04/01/2010 10:31 PM
    I love this forum. You "old timers" and "veterans" are all entertaining and full of yourselves. Keep up the good work!
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