Career Path of a Claims Adjuster?

[tonysoprano24]

Hi, a little background first ...24 year old Finance Major..Graduated in 2009 so didn't really have any job prospects in finance...decided to work in the family business of cell phones for a year and a half and am finally ready to start a career in the field I majored in.

I applied to a few different positions in the banking industry and have an interview for an entry level Claims Adjuster for an insurance company.

I never gave insurance much thought because most of the positions I came across consisted of sales/financial advisers/planning but this position has definitely sparked my interest.

What is a typical career path for a Claims Adjuster? Are the prospects good for advancement? How long does one usually stay in a Claims Adjuster position before moving onto the next step?

Right now even though I mostly work for myself I'm working 70+ hours a week in retail and with Christmas season coming up I will be working 97+ hours a week. Ive been doing this for almost two years and am finally at the point of burning out.

I'm not 21 anymore and gonna be 25 soon so I am looking for "some" work/life balance.

I understand the nature of this particular position is stressful to begin with considering you're dealing with people who are dealing with property loss etc..

I am mostly wondering what kind of career/positions I can bounce into using this entry level position.

Thank you for reading the long post.

 

[apesako]

I understand your frustration but being 21 years old and possesing life health auto licenses plus my claims adjuster certificate, i will assure you adjusters do not go far as far career path. I do appraising for body shops from time to time, but if i were you try to get a job in insurance company, they pay (50-150) for each appraisal. However, getting into this business and actually knowing how to survive is tough because for this job your college degree has no impact. Let me know what you ended up doing

 

[Pauljstick]

In any company, the path to the top is through whoever makes the money vs those who are an expense or at best hold down losses. The sales guys work up to CEO, not the HR people. Starting out in sales is always the best bet.

 

[LollyLeger]

Career path:
Adjuster trainee
Adjuster
Adjuster specialist
Supervisor
Litigation specialist
Assistant VP claims
VP Claims

If looking for employment, contact me at [email protected]

 

[OhioInsurance55]

Honestly if your looking to get into that side of the insurance business, I would also look into Underwriting,

Career Path-Underwriter I, Underwriter II, Assistant Product Manager, Product Manager, Director, VP, etc
Obviously depending on skill/talent level you could go right from underwriter 1 to PM etc. My dad took this path and has been a VP level since his late 30's.

the SVP at his company is a former Claims guy, they def can make it big as well, but I just personally enjoy underwriting more.

This is for Commercial Transportation by the way.

Hope it helps

 

[tonysoprano24]

I know this is an old post but a bit of an update...I didn't end up getting the claims adjuster trainee position and I'm lucky that I have a good paying job right now that I can take my time in looking for a new one.

After the comments in this thread and a lot of other people telling me I think trying to find an Underwriter Trainee position would be a better move long term career wise.

I just applied to a couple of big companies for their training program...the pay is better than claims adjusters and the opportunity to move up is greater

What do you guys think of Underwriting vs Claims Adjuster?

I would still pursue Claims Adjuster jobs if I can't find an Underwriting position just to get my foot in the door of the industry.

 

[OhioInsurance55]

I know that CNA, Gemini and a few other companies have some Georgia presence if you are looking to stay in the area...

 

[tonysoprano24]

oh thanks! I'm actually living in maine right now and open to moving to anywhere in the country as I'm 24 and have started applying all over pretty much

concentrating on the new england area (especially the insurance capital)...but open to moving otu west or down south

I was just wondering if people still think claim adjuster position for an entry level college grad would be a black hole so to speak? or could I work my way up to something else after that

 

[Turz]

UW would be an easier path, but I've seen a lot of successful people come out of claims.

Find a good captive. I had a buddy who went thru Allstate's claim's program roughly ten years ago. While I think the company is going down, their claims training might still be good.

Good luck regardless what you do.

 

[FEX Quotes]

...What do you guys think of Underwriting vs Claims Adjuster?

I would still pursue Claims Adjuster jobs if I can't find an Underwriting position just to get my foot in the door of the industry.

Maybe a bit off topic, but I remember when I was a young agent in the early 1980's, they gave all insurance applicants a personality test where you were scored on a scale from 1 to 10.

If you scored low, it indicated you had no personality and had very paranoid and narcissistic tendendancies, so they made you an underwriter.

If you scored high, it suggested you posessed a very outgoing and gregarious personality with exceptional communication skills, so they made you an agent.

I scored a 10 and have regretted taking that test for nearly 30 years