Complete insurance claims services and education.

1. So you’re handling your own insurance claim? Really?

2. The number of reasons this is a bad idea for all involved is too great to address in one sitting, so I’ll focus on the would-be client/pseudo-expert.  I’ll even number them for simplicity. 1) If it were easy (and safe) enough for laymen to do, there wouldn’t be specialty trades.  We have electricians, plumbers, CPAs and doctors because their trades are sufficiently complicated to be regulated and licensed by cities, states and the Fed.  Yes, there are simple things that we can all do for ourselves.  Beyond the simple things, we are all better off leaving it to the real professionals. 2) Advice given freely doesn’t equal a specifically tailored solution. When someone asks me a “general” question about insurance claims or Xactimate estimates, I give an equally general answer.  My advice does not speak to the person’s individual situation, policy language or claim circumstances. And, as I’ve learned from my dad’s experience, if someone does ask me to speak about their specific circumstance, I (usually) ask them to sign a service contract. Which leads to…

3. 3) Action taken on free advice, which ends poorly, provides the recipient with ZERO recourse on the one who gave the advice. Liability policies, Errors & Ommissions policies, malpractice and contractor bonds are all things that exist to protect clients from mistakes that people make.  That is why some trades like lawyers have strict policies against providing ANY consultation or specific advice without compensation or retainer. 4) The world is full of smarter, more experienced people This brings me to the heart of the matter.  If you believe that you are smarter than me, why are you asking me for advice and information?  If you believe that you can do my job better than me, if only you can get a couple “pointers”, then why are you doing something else for a living?  What really gets me is those people who think they can outsmart industries and companies that have been around for HUNDREDS of years.  

4. Do you really think that the IRS hasn’t already figured out the “trick” you’re about to try?  What makes you think that your insurance company doesn’t know that people are constantly looking for a way to take advantage of their property claim?  The reality is that most trades have more potential pitfalls than jackpots.  Professionals make their livings by knowing the rules and playing by them day after day.  Getting rich quick just doesn’t happen (very often).   For every story about finding the tax loophole or insurance claim trick that landed someone thousands of dollars, there are hundreds of people that found out the hard way that messing around with trillion-dollar industries is a bad idea.  I make my living the hard way: going to work every day and fighting for my clients.  The fact that there are so few companies like mine out there is a testament to how difficult my industry is.  Truth is, the insurance claims industry is downright hostile to new players with new ideas about how things can be done. 

5. I continue to do my work because I believe that I DO have a better way, and I want to change my industry.  Yet my approach is measured, in a “better mousetrap” kind of way, NOT in a “card up my sleeve” way.  So, to all of you out there who fight the good fight every day in their chosen profession, who put the best of themselves into everything they do because it’s the right thing to do, I say, “Carry on men (and women)!”  We are the light (or something like that). For those of you with a problem that needs solving, find a quality professional to help you out.  Ask people you trust for referrals, and take the advice of friends. And to everyone looking for a shortcut via free advice, be warned. You WILL get what you pay for.   Visit us: www.claimsdelegates.com