Public Adjuster Client Intake Guide

Step 1 — The first conversation

Most policyholders calling a public adjuster have never done it before. The first conversation has two jobs: learn enough to know whether you can help, and tell them plainly what you do and do not do.

• Name, property address, and direct contact details for the policyholder — the person named on the policy, not only the person who called
• Carrier, policy number if they have it, and whether a claim has already been reported
• Date of loss and what happened, in their words, recorded as they said it
• Whether the carrier has already inspected, issued a payment, or issued a written position
• Whether repairs or mitigation have started, and who is doing them
• Whether anyone else is already involved — a contractor, an attorney, another public adjuster
• What you told them about your role, and that they understood it

Step 2 — The signed contract and what to record

Do not do substantive work before the engagement is signed. Whatever your contract form and the rules where you practice require of it, the file should record the following about the engagement itself.

• The signed contract, in full, with the date signed and who signed it
• That the signer is the policyholder or has authority to bind them
• The scope of the engagement — the whole claim, or a defined part of it
• The fee basis as stated in the contract, recorded exactly as written
• Any cancellation right the contract gives the policyholder, and the date it runs from
• Any disclosure the contract or your license required you to make, and that it was made
• The letter of representation sent to the carrier, with the date sent

Step 3 — Policy and declarations

You cannot present a claim against a policy you have not read. Get the complete policy at intake, and get it from the carrier if the policyholder does not have it.

• The declarations page in force on the date of loss
• The full policy form and every endorsement, not a summary
• Deductibles, sublimits, and any coverage the declarations show as added or excluded
• The written request to the carrier for a certified copy, if the policyholder's copy is incomplete, with the date requested
• Any prior claims on the property that the policyholder knows about

Step 4 — Loss documentation

Document the loss before conditions change. Repairs, weather, and time all erase evidence, and a photograph taken at intake is worth more than a description written later.

• Your own inspection, photographed systematically: overview, elevations, roof by section, interior by room, undamaged areas for baseline
• Measurements, diagrams, and instrument readings sufficient to support a scope
• Contents documentation where contents are claimed — inventory, photographs, receipts and records the policyholder can produce
• Mitigation and emergency repair invoices, and photographs taken before that work if any exist
• Everything the carrier has already produced: their estimate, their inspection report, their photographs, and any payment issued
• Additional living expense or business interruption records, where those coverages are in play
• Every document associated with the claim file at capture, not filed later from a phone or a mailbox

Step 5 — Communication cadence with the carrier

Once you represent the policyholder, the carrier's communication should come through you, and the record of it should be on the file rather than in your inbox. Set the cadence deliberately and keep it.

• Every message to and from the carrier stored on the claim file, with attachments
• Every telephone conversation noted the same day: who, what was said, what was agreed
• Requests to the carrier dated when sent, with a follow-up date set at the time of sending
• The carrier's stated positions captured verbatim, with the date and the person who stated them
• A standing update to the policyholder on a set schedule, so they never learn the status by asking
• The carrier's requests to the policyholder — recorded statement, examination, proof of loss — logged with their due dates the day they arrive

Step 6 — The appraisal demand path

When the disagreement is about the amount of the loss and not about coverage, the policy's appraisal provision may be the route. Whether to invoke it is a decision for the policyholder on your advice, and it belongs on the file as a decision.

• The policy's appraisal provision read and its requirements noted — who may demand, how, and any timing it sets
• The specific items in dispute listed before the demand, separated into scope, quantity, and price
• The policyholder's informed decision to demand appraisal, recorded
• The written demand as sent, with the date and method of delivery
• Appointment of the policyholder's appraiser, and the carrier's appointment when received
• From here the file follows the appraisal workflow: exchange, umpire if needed, award

Step 7 — Settlement and the two-party payment

At settlement the carrier pays the policyholder, and you are paid under your contract. Both have to be traceable on the file, separately.

• The settlement figure and how it was reached — agreed scope, appraisal award, or otherwise — with the supporting document
• Each payment issued by the carrier, with date, amount, coverage it applies to, and payees named on it
• Any mortgagee or other party named on a payment, and what was needed to negotiate it
• Your invoice to the policyholder calculated exactly as the contract states, and the date it was paid
• Recoverable depreciation or supplement items still open after the initial payment, tracked as their own tasks
• The closing letter to the policyholder stating what was paid, what remains open, and that the engagement is concluded

Scope note

Public adjusting is licensed and regulated, and the rules on contracts, fees, solicitation, and conduct differ by jurisdiction. This guide describes how to keep the record; it does not describe what the rules require of you. Read your contract and the rules where you practice, and where they say something different from this page, they control.