How much does an Insurance Adjuster make?

Thanks for stopping by, welcome to Adjuster's.

The first thing folks want to know is: Where's the money? 

How much does an Insurance Adjuster make?

That's a great question.

Below is a question I received via email. I changed the names to protect the innocent and provided my reply in italics.

At the end is a place for you to add your comments or questions, so don't be shy and let us know what you think.

Glad you're here.

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Hi Doug, 

Thanks for the book. It gave me a lot of insight into the adjuster biz.  I was wondering how much to charge?  What does a vendor typically pay (mileage, hotel rooms, etc.) or is that all out of your pocket? 

You mentioned that during your 6 weeks of Sandy that you were paid $400 per day.  6 x 7 =42 days x $400 = $16800….then minus expenses? 

Love,

Where's the money

Dear Where's the money, 

Thanks for your email. 

The carrier and vender negotiate a fee schedule. You will be paid according to the size of your claim as determined on that schedule. The bigger the claim the more you bill...and the more you get paid. It sounds backwards than the way most folks think but it is the only way to keep adjuster's doing their job and looking to find damage and not get lazy and miss a lot of stuff. 

 For example if you write a claim for some minor wind damage and it is under $1,500 and on your fee schedule (billing sheet) it reads 0-1500 = 200. Then you bill for that claim $200. 

NOW - what you bill is not what you get paid. You get a percentage of what you bill. Usually the adjuster's 'take' is 60% of billing. So in this example you would be paid 60% of $200.

So, to answer your question: you don't charge--they tell you what they pay. 

It depends on what type of storm you are working but on average if you take the total number of claims and multiply times 200 that'll be you pay at the end of the storm because it seems they average out to around 200-250 per claim. If you work a hail storm it may be higher because claims are usually higher, you may average 3-400 per claim on these. 

Secondly, most adjusters are have-ladder-will-travel 1099 employees (self-employed independent contractors). Thus, all of your expenses are your own. 

NOTE: There are staff adjusters who are employees of the carrier and they make a regular salary (30-50k yr.) and have a normal job--but who wants a normal job?

On most fee schedules there is an allowance to bill for miles if you exceed a certain number of miles for a particular claim. It usually pays around .50 - 1.00 per mile over 50-75 miles round trip. 

Yes, 400 per day X how many days = total pay. All expenses are my own (and deductible)

Hope this helps,

God bless 

Adjust well and be safe
Doug Spurling

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Remember, if you have any questions or just want to shoot the breeze, send me an e-mail or leave a comment.