Posted By host on 6/3/2013 1:46:45 PM
Question received from a visitor via support@catadjuster.org;
I have been trying to get into the CAT adjuster industry for a while. My concern was to pay for all the training and then come home and no work.Is it at all possible to go OJT with all these storms then get license later?
Getting the license is the easy part, and does not involve "all the training". It simply involves taking the time to learn (40 hours in most states) about what is expected of you as an agent (most states have test focuses more on agents than adjusters). If you know someone, and they are willing to let you run the rooftops, pull tape and essentially do all the grunt work, you would get a little training in the field side, and likely very little on the administrative side, as during a catastrophe, adjusters simply do not have the time to hold someone's hand through the claims production process. They would literally have to stop and explain what they were doing every time they took a new action, and you would end up costing them quite a bit of money simply by virtue of being there. If you are not even motivated enough to license up, much less try to learn someone about the job prior to jumping into it, you will likely end up like every other wannabe catastrophe adjuster that so many of us have had to clean up after: broke and slinging shingle or hamburgers inside of two months.
Do yourself and, more importantly, the people whose lives you will affect to a great degree, a huge favor and take the time to learn about what exactly you are supposed to do as a catastrophe adjuster. If I lost my house (or a good portion of it.. or even a shingle for that matter), the worst thing that could happen after that would be to have some random guy who was "getting OJT" and would (possibly) "get license later" show up to save the day (and maybe help me get a hotel, clothes and food).
For reference, when I decided to become an insurance adjuster, I ran with someone nice enough to show me the ropes handling daily claims for 6 months, free of charge. The first few moths, I probably should have paid him (I slowed him down to an astonishing degree), and the last few, he probably should have paid me, since I was actually of benefit. It evened out, and I still thank the guy whenever the opportunity arises (and it does frequently, since he works for me periodically now). When I ran my first CAT, I was more prepared than a lot of adjusters I know, and it still blew my mind. I cannot imagine how difficult it would have been for me personally, much less for the insured's whose houses were blown away, had I not taken the time to learn.