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Posted By okclarryd on 31 Aug 2009 09:56 PM
It's kinda neat being on the same page with someone that you HAVE to come to an agreement with

 I got to hand it to you Larry.  More people will get more out of this thread from your single post than the rest of them combined- brief, bright and gone...

I have used Xactimate for 15 years and there is nothing slow about it and you can find almost any item you need to complete an estimate. I got into this thread at this time as I have gone to work for a roofing company during the down time and I can tell you Xactimate prices for roofing are 30% higher that the roofing company charges. The insureds are happy as there deductible can be absorbed.
One comparison I have not seen is which is the better estimating software between Power Claim and Simsol. Power Claim is $99.00 a month, Simsol is $100.00 a month and Xactimate costs me $125.00 a month. It is not worth switching for $25.00 a month to learn a new program when during a hurricane or major hail storm one file will just about take care of the difference for a year.
Still which is the better software between Power Claim and Simsol.

I like both, both can be learned by a peson who can use exactimate in 1/2 day. I use PowerClaim because Gale Hawkins has given me some good breaks on help train new adjusters. I like Simsol also and many local IA use it for their estimates. I have met the Simsol people and they are outstanding claims people and have a very good program. If a carrier insisted on Simsol for a volume of biz I would switch. My biz. is a lot of commercial- oil and gas-general liability work and and have learned to "manuscript very good looking reports in PowerClaim" Both will convert to PDF and hit the button and its gone. I have tried xmate and spent about $1,000. bucks, and never got my investmant back. I am just too old to learn the program.

This is a dirty little secret in my part of the world, the adjusters who use the big program the contractor like seem to have more vacation sites and spending money.

Unless you are padding the invoice for the insured's so that the insured may recover the deductible and then reducing your bill once the depreciation is recovered the insured should still be paying the deductible or at least a major portion.

I sure hope that the insurance companies that you work for are not reading your post as this goes to your integrity.

claims_ray all I can say is welcome to the real world of roofing. I did not know this went on until I went to work for this large roffing company. I reported this to the companies I handle claims for and Xactimate. Roofers charging Xactimate prices and charging the insured thier deductible are making a large profit on each roofing job. I suggest you go to work for a roofing company and use Xactimate for your estimates and I would like to know how many roofing contracts you get as the other roofing salespeople will undercut you at least 30%.
As an adjuster I believed insureds were paying their deductibles and the next time I hear a roofer tell me that Xactimate did not allow enough to replace the roof I will question their honesty.

I understand that this is the norm for unscrupulous roofing companies. I have sold roofs in the past where we did not eat the deductible or pad the bill to cover the deductible.
I have one question for you. Would you work for an insurance company or vendor that was having you pay less than what was owed or estimate the damage at a lower amount in an attempt to defraud the insured?  On top of this would you go onto a website and discuss it?

By the way that turned into two questions.

Ray Hall thank you for the information on Power Claim and Simsol. The estimates I see from independent adjusters are written with Power Claim and Power Claim pricing is closer to what local roofing firms charge. I cannot recall seeing an estimate written with Simsol and the only person I know that ever used Simsol is now a claims examiner with a small company and he was very please with it. Are there differences in the prices between Power Claim and Simsol?

I have worked five hurricanes and I am feeling like if I go on another it will be my last and my wife does not want me going on another after I was gone four months without being allowed to come home. If I do not go on another hurricane, I will drop Xactimate and choose from Power Claim or Simsol.

I have been using Xactimate for15 years and I try to take one Xactimate class a year usually on Sketch. Once I get out of class, if a carrier does not require Sketch I will lose much of what I learned over the next year. Xactimate classes are not cheap. When you believe you have learned everything about Xactimate there is to know - you find out you have not.

What take a cannon when a 22 rifle is all you need, but someone has the fix in. It has to be at the very top level of carrier who require this monster that is designed to be used by contractors who will replace adjusters, thats the real reason.

This is my story I worked 300 roof claims for State Farm in the spring of 1989 for a State Farm Area manager that knew a good bud of mine, who got me on direct.I was closing 6-10 per day in Garland and Richardson by hand writing a one page non carbon form furnished by State Farm with a place to drawn the roof fiagram and figs on the roof in the top right corner (free) as was the poloroid camera and film. This was running down and Houston got hit and a local IA called me to come back and work SF
flood for the rest of the duration of several thousand flood losses.

After the first day with the 40-50 page flood estimates and revisions, I met a Pilot Flood Manager that all that Pilot adjusters were using with his help. It cost $250.00 I bought it learned it in one day and purchased 4 part tractor page paper and turned out good looking 10 page estimates, threw away my old TI adding machine
tape and reviesed the heck out of flood claims on building, contents, stock and what have you. I worked until hurricane Hugo in the fall and then worked on HUGO wind and flood for the next 11 months. (the last 5 months was from home and long distance phone , fax and the us mail. This was the good old days.
I do remember the xmate estimates used by the contractors in those days also goog public adjusters. It is the SAME AS TODAY, why don,t they use a modern FONT?