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Last Post 01/14/2009 10:20 AM by  Tim Wieneke
First IA experience - Loved it!!!!
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Tim Wieneke
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10/19/2008 4:03 PM
    Ok, so I'm here finishing up my first batch of IA work and I have to say I absolutely love this business!  I can't thank the guys on this forum enough - 3 years ago when I decided to get into this business, everyone here encouraged me to go staff first then IA.  I did staff for almost 2 years with Farmers and was able to hit this first assignment running.  I even did well enough to take on a few claims from another one of the IAs to keep him from getting overwhelmed on volume.
     
    So now this begs the question - how to keep it going?  I'd love to keep doing the outside work, but it also looks like I may have some claim examining ops to keep me working.  I'm still a relative newbie, being only on my third year of this but I have to know from the mroe experienced guys.  Did you basically take anything and everything to keep working?  I set up some rental property and have a handyman business back home to keep me fed when I'm not on the road doing claims but frankly I'd like to keep this up.  Let's say I take the claim examining gigs - does that help me get more future outside adjusting work?  Appreciate it and the forum.
     
    Tim
    Tags: Getting Started
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    okclarryd
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    Posts:954


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    10/19/2008 10:57 PM
    If you have been offered inside work by your employer after the field work slowed down, you're sure enough doin' something right.

    IMHO, you should take it and solidify your relationship with the firm. Pave all the bridges you can while you have the opportunity.

    Just remember, one "Oh Crap", wipes out that whole clipboard full of "Attaboy"s.
    Larry D Hardin
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    LarryW
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    Posts:114


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    10/19/2008 11:48 PM
    You just finished your first batch of IA work. And now they want to make you an examiner? Aparantly I am so out of touch with the current state of affairs in this business: I have no concept of a proper response. But then, I guess I am just a beginner too.
    No one is absolutely worthless, at the very least you can serve as a bad example.
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    Jud G.
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    10/20/2008 10:14 AM
    Examining gigs don't hurt, but help since you see a lot more diverse and out of the ordinary claims that stretch your ability to interpret odd coverage scenarios.  Just don't ever underestimate the power of a good attitude, or a bad one for that matter. 
    The lessons I learned by examining was that it helped me learn what examiners hate and love.  A good attitude is one of those.  For example, a good attitude will bump your reporting to another level by becoming someone who seeks to put solutions in there instead of forcing the examiner to come up with one.
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    Tim Wieneke
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    10/20/2008 4:41 PM
    Well - wasn't exactly my first batch of CAT work, just first batch of IA. I had the 2 years staff training behind me when I hit it. Got a couple more leads for inside adjusting that seems to be paying a bit more. May go that route.
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    okclarryd
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    10/20/2008 10:14 PM
    Larry, you and I have been beginners for a long time.

    Wouldn't have it any other way
    Larry D Hardin
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    Medulus
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    10/21/2008 9:41 AM
    Tim,

    My advice, if you want to do this full time, is to take the examining opportunities, branch assist, daily work...whatever it takes to keep you working. Some years it was all branch assist (like 2000 and 2001). I even worked the whole year of 2004 - even before the hurricanes struck - on branch assist to keep it going. A friend of mine gave me this advice and it was very good advice: "It's ten times easier to get an assignment when you're already on the road than when you are at home looking for work."

    And now for a shameless plug: You could read my article on this very website at

    www.catadjuster.org/Channels/Articl...ssist.aspx
    Steve Ebner CPCU AIC AMIM

    "With great power comes great responsibility." (Stanley Martin Lieber, Amazing Fantasy # 15 August 1962)
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    Tom Toll
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    10/22/2008 12:15 PM
    Tim, as Steve has said, stay visible to the industry, taking any all modes of assignments. I, like Steve, have worked a multitude of different assignments, adjusting, examiner, and anything else that netted a profit and kept me in the loop. You must stay visible.
    Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
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    Tim Wieneke
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    Posts:92


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    01/14/2009 10:20 AM
    Well, the examining gigs dried up right when I finished the batch of outside work (I'm guessing everyone finished about the same time as me....lol.) No more CAT which was ok - I had a few good paying rehab projects waiting for me. Just finished those and I did just get put on a roster for daily work. I'm definitely going to chase down some of that. I learned one thing about transitioning from staff to IA. As staff it's "Oh great...more claims", as IA it's "Great! More claims!". It seems you really have to drop that employee mindset and get aggressive to get any kind of work. Thanks again guys.

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