| Author |
Message |
Don Politte
Registered User
Username: Donp
Post Number: 6
Registered: 1-2001
| | Posted on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 4:41 pm: | |
Does any one have any thing good to say about this program? Just found out that Crawford is going to require we use it in the future. |
Chuck Deaton
Member
Username: Chuckdeaton
Post Number: 32
Registered: 3-2002
| | Posted on Saturday, June 29, 2002 - 11:32 pm: | |
It is important to note that no adjuster is supposed to be a contractor. Therefore no adjuster is writing a bid. Adjusters write estimates. Contractors write bids. Adjusters can use any source for pricing. It follows that if a correct estimate is written then a correct pricing scource was used. If a correct material scource is used and the correct labor rate and hours used then the following estimate is defensible to any carrier and acceptable to any carrier. Home Depot is a good scource for material prices and Paul I. Thomas is a good source for labor times. Local unions are a good scource for estimated labor rates.
No two estimates are the same and no two bids are the same. Nor should they be.
A quick and efficient way to write an estimate is to use one of the nationally known estimating packages. Ones commonly used by the insurance industry are MSB,Xactimate, Simsol, Powerclaim, but there are others that produce an acceptable estimate. Bids are usually based on the instant contractor's proprietary method. |
Linda Asberry
Moderator
Username: Linda
Post Number: 37
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Saturday, June 29, 2002 - 6:39 pm: | |
Well, I wouldn't bash Xactimate too much for the price lists. Remember the large carriers have their own pricing specialists and the pricing specialists feed the $$ amount to Xactware for the carrier's proprietary price lists. |
Kelley Roberson
Registered User
Username: Kelley
Post Number: 23
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Saturday, June 29, 2002 - 11:40 am: | |
Xactimate has a good salesman...& gimmic! It seems many of the carriers are going to be using XACTIMATE this year.. why ? It is because of the money they[carrier] can save. You ask how the carrier can save money by selecting which estimating program an adjuster uses. Take a long hard look at the Xactimate amounts Insureds are being ask to settle for. So many of the data base prices are unreal. Carriers hope that people will settle for what is offered, in the long run saving the carrier big dollars. This is not right, this is not fair, it is something the State Insurance Boards should possiably address. Carriers do not care if they make the adjusters life a living hail. We are only honestly "independent" when we are not working, the minute we sign on to do claims we really do become an employee because they dictate what program we use, how they want claims put together, chaep busincess cards with their logo on & our names handwritten on ( as if that looks professional), & basically what hours we "must" work, how we answer the phone & what we can or can not wear... ( White tennis shoes must create a health hazzord). |
Ghostbuster
Registered User
Username: Ghostbuster
Post Number: 296
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 18, 2002 - 8:41 pm: | |
Clayton...it is not surprising that the 'IT' boys and girls are in our stinky lil corner of the world. After all, power goes where the money flows. For the past 30+ years, horrendous sums of corporate cash has been flushed thru the data processing departments.
I can't help but recalling the sales pitch of the blue suited IBM salemen way back when. The angle was, 'Sure these things are expensive, but think of all the money you will save by not having to hire more fallible clerks and secretaries. And, no one will be laid off, you just won't have to hire their replacements.'
Now, the pigeons have come home to roost here in Claimsville. At the carriers, the already over wrought and under loved adjuster gets to do his job and the clerks and secretaries, too. As an added bonus, sexual harrassment suits are down in the claims department because the adjuster has only him/herself to leer at and chase around the desk. |
Jim Flynt
Registered User
Username: Jimflynt
Post Number: 353
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 18, 2002 - 5:05 pm: | |
Clayton I think you have just added a few more reasons why your prognosis for the death of cat adjusting within less than a year is correct.
I suppose you, Ghost and I better start polishing off our resumes. |
Clayton Carr
Member
Username: Clayton
Post Number: 64
Registered: 11-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 18, 2002 - 12:42 pm: | |
Gentlemen, notwithstanding Linda's accolades to our Ghost, you are jabbing at a defenceless rung on the hierarchal ladder of the claims world.
Jack, it would be my opinion that your volley at "O.F." CM's is misguided relative to the software issue you speak of.
Unfortunately, CM's - "O.F." or otherwise do not have the luxury or priveledge of choosing their carrier's estimating software, anymore than they can mandate Administration to purchase a certain phone system, a specific type of workstation, or any other hardware.
The CM's pleasure of having choice in the "tools" used is often limited to the color of the writing pads (my preference was yellow), type of pens and pencils (but excluding Cross refills), and sometimes the color of the company car.
It is the I.T. (Information Technology)people who carry the power in what technology is used, and it was always a frustrating and too often enough a loosing battle with these people as they held the ear of similarily educated "white shirts" in the Ivory Tower of Power. You could not explain to them sufficiently enough that something as mundane as the "games" that came with a desktop computer were wasteful and unwanted. They did not walk the floor or aisles noticing people idling the time away; but were quick to profess that it provided valuable keyboard practice.
As to "old", I have to support Ghost's claim of the declining age in general of CM's. Certainly those that I am exposed to are all under 40 years of age, and as I have said in other posts they are generally now of the Financial Services ilk; where sadly more and more of them came from and are travelling through the claims world on a voyage through their career back to a higher folding in FS.
More sadly, I as well, have seen evidence of their flatuence training, which I think is gained and nurtured (aka held) early in their I.T. career building mode; to be later passed on others during their previously mentioned voyage.
It is one thing to watch and wonder why they are at quarterly reserve meetings, but quite another spectacle to listen to their blowing in the wind come along mid month of the 6th and 12th month, as they attempt to cloud the CM as to why there should be massive unjustified movements in reserves for the "good" - even if it mean bad - for the company.
Mark's reference to illegitimancy is also sadly not too unfounded. Again, it supports my principal that I.T. people should not travel through the claims world on their journey elsewhere. His assertion that we - Independent Contractors - are prostitutes is of course very accurate. I can respectfully speak of very honorable pimps who have purveyed files to me, and of course have had to speak out on lowly pimps who failed to pay for my services rendered.
So here we are, what has changed in a century or two? Our position / role in our profession is supplied and paid in a time tested mode. To me the change lies in the growing illegitimancy of the no longer "big daddy" carrier CM, and their growing trend of tiring with the old tricks. |
D Wong Whey
Registered User
Username: Dwongwhey
Post Number: 153
Registered: 10-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 18, 2002 - 7:01 am: | |
Aw Mark stop mincing words and tell us how you really feel. |
mark salmon
Registered User
Username: Olderthendirt
Post Number: 197
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 18, 2002 - 1:16 am: | |
Yeah whats wrong with being old! Get it straight all claims managers are bast***s and all adjusters are whores! |
Linda Asberry
Moderator
Username: Linda
Post Number: 30
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Monday, June 17, 2002 - 8:58 pm: | |
Hats off to the Ghost! Take a bow! |
Ghostbuster
Registered User
Username: Ghostbuster
Post Number: 295
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Monday, June 17, 2002 - 8:34 pm: | |
Please...may we exercise a modicum of decorum in our ever so humble playhouse.
Mr Cash, your epithet, 'old F___ "Claim managers", is offensive and inaccurate. Please refrain from the use of such language.
I am, of course, referring to the word 'old'. In the past few years the claim managers are quickly growing much younger. It is part of their job description, however, to be F___s. They go to school to specifically learn this life skill.
In the future, please be judicious in your verbage choice. We thank you. |
JackCash
Registered User
Username: Jackcash
Post Number: 5
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Monday, June 17, 2002 - 7:00 pm: | |
Any software program that requires you to attend classes to understand, is in fact garbage.
It is the worst program I have ever seen and they charge $ 10.00 per call to support it. It is a rip-off and Exactimate has been nothing but recycled dog poop for donkeys years.
It`s time the old f__t "claims managers" put this dinosaur out of its misery....and move on.
(Message edited by linda on June 17, 2002) |
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