Forums

Great post Leland, do you know of an catastrophe adjusters school that can teach people skills and cram 5 years into 3 days ? I don`t.

Posted By Buford Gonzales on 13 Oct 2011 10:15 AM
This is a follow up to a previous comment I made here last year.

I've used Geo and Eagle this year. These were both wrong. They don't take in the variables for different pitch and often cannot see through foliage. I've been sent out, for a very small fee I might add, to re measure roofs and correct others estimates all year long. The roofers swear by Eagle, then admit to being paid for twice the squares on several roofs. Good adjusters are hard to beat if you want to save money on a claim. Just saying.

Great post Buford!

I wrote about this last year in regards to sat tech(EagleView/GeoEstimator) and I also touched on pictometry (a college kid duct taped to the bottom of a Cessna with a polaroid camera). I asked others if they see this emerging tech as friend or foe and the results were evenly split. I see the Sat tech as a great thing (Eagleview/GeoEstimator) provided it is utilized as a tool to enhance a good adjuster's estimate as opposed to using the tech in lu of said adjuster.

In the hands of a skilled adjuster, this will be a useful tool in situations where the roof of ANY risk is unstable,steep,high or otherwise not safe.

EagleView is now integrated with newer versions of XM8 and I have been told (I have no first hand knowledge) that the roof specs can be dropped into an adjusters estimate almost effortlessly. I am not sure who, but I believe that carrier X requires a sat tech roof report on any estimate where there is roof damage(in addition to a BOTG adjuster's estimate)

Many folks think this tech can replace the need of a BOTG adjuster entirely. I once thought that but as of now I don't.

First of all, this emerging tech isn't infallible and has and currently has a high % of inaccurate results. As this tech is refined, I am sure the results will be spot on however, this tech cannot tell you how many layers of roofing they are looking at, in instances of hail would be hard to pinpoint damage (unless obvious of course).

As far as taking the place of a BOTG adjuster entirely, I think the carrier position would like to see that at some point as first and foremost they are a for profit enterprize and any way to cut costs is desired. In today's litigious society, a carrier does not want to have the liability that goes along with adjusters climbing ladders and accidents at height and if they can eliminate that risk entirely they would be all for it.

They will still need adjusters for( interior damageIE...hurricane/tornado/flood).With sat tech and preferred contractor's, they could possibly eliminate the BOTG adjuster on hail claims (my bread and butter)

Will this happen? I don't think so, for atleast a few more years. I think we will see a reduction of our fee schedules if said adjuster no longer has to climb and measure each roof. But that would greatly increase the speed of estimate burdens and allow an adjuster to handle twice as many claims.

If they DID do this TOO soon, they will have big problems. I for one think there would be a mass migration of IA's turning into attorney consultants and god forbid.......a public adjuster. The amount of money left on a roof would be a PA's wet dream.

Anyways here is to hoping that is still far off on the horizon!

What do you guys think? 

Posted By stormcrow on 14 Oct 2011 10:14 AM
If the industry truely believes they can do everything with technology and no field adjusters it will end up as a PAs and lawyers dream. In spite of the fact that many young people live by text TWITer and facebook, there is a place for human contact. Especially when going through the stress of an insurance claim (this assumes adjusters have not forgotting empathy in their desire to make millions). Does anyone remember articles about a program that could take camera pictures and measure rooms and siding. We will continue to change but we still need the field grunts (or will long enough for me to retire). Meanwhile back to my long over due break and getting ready for some Texas food and fishing.

Posted By Randall Crow on 18 Oct 2011 07:58 AM
The same moves are being applied to my friends in the Court Reporting industry California is trying to replace them with voice to text computer programs. If you take the human element out of Court Rooms and Insurance claims pretty soon you find yourself in a courtroom with cameras and computers and no lawyers judges or juries.

..............................................

Wow, I never thought about that but "you are right !!" With Dragon type programs (I am sure the court reporter programs are way more complex then our home versions), I am guessing that will happen at some point. I don't think tomorrow because the tech is still being tweaked, but ouch for court reporters. Can a computer ask a defendant plaintiff prosecutor, defense attorney, civil attorney to repeat something that it did not hear(as many F&B court reporters do)?

It appears that adjusters, court reporters, Pilots, factory workers, heck just about all of us at some point will become obsolete.

Whilst not related to this discussion, the following seems to be a precursor to what is in store for our children and the type of world they will inherit: My 9 year old little girl is in a school district in SoCal that is no longer teaching handwriting curriculum(IE... Cursive). I am guessing that the hand written letter will fall by the wayside sometime VERY soon.

Robby Robinson