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A public adjuster is an insurance claims adjuster who advocates for the policyholder in appraising and negotiating a claimant's insurance claim.〔United Policyholders, (Public Adjusters: The Inside Scoop )〕 Aside from attorneys and the broker of record, public adjusters licensed by state departments of insurance are the only type of claims adjuster that can legally represent the rights of an insured during an insurance claim process. A public adjuster will be most beneficial when it is clear that the insurer will pay the claim and the only issue is the proper identification and valuation of the loss. Most public adjusters charge a percentage of the settlement. Primarily they appraise the damage, prepare an estimate and other claim documentation, read the policy of insurance to determine coverages, and negotiate with the insurance company's claims handler.〔Mockenhaupt, B.D. (1998). (For public adjusters, disaster means business ).〕 There are three classes of insurance claims adjusters: staff adjusters (employed by an insurance company or self-insured entity), independent adjusters (independent contractors hired by the insurance company) and public adjusters (employed by the policyholder). "Company" or "independent" adjusters can only legally represent the rights of an insurance company.〔United Policyholders, (Making the best choice when hiring a public adjuster ), 2007〕 Outside the United States Adjusters are commonly called (or translated into English as) "insurance loss ''assessors''" (or simply "loss assessors") and staff adjusters or independent adjusters are called or translated as "insurance loss ''adjusters''" (or simply "loss adjusters").〔wikiHow - The How-to Manual That You Can Edit. (How to Prepare to File an Insurance Claim in the Event of Disaster. )〕 However, there is a clear distinction between a loss adjuster, who works on behalf of an insurance company, and a loss assessor who works on behalf of a policy holder. 〔Morgan Clark. (What is the difference between a loss adjuster and a loss assessor?. )〕 == Licensing and regulation == Currently, 44 states (and the District of Columbia) have in place some form of statutory and/or regulatory scheme which licenses public adjusters. The 5 states that do not are: Alabama,〔United Policyholders, (FAQs about property damage insurance claims in AL ), 2010〕 Alaska, Arkansas, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.〔Internal National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters (NAPIA) Memo from NAPIA Counsel Brian Goodman, 2009〕 In addition, it is important to note that on October 14, 2005, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) adopted the Public Adjuster Licensing Model Act (MDL-228), which governs the qualifications and procedures for the licensing of public adjusters.〔NAIC Website (NAIC Model Descriptions Index )〕 It defines a public adjuster as "any person who, for compensation or any other thing of value, acts on behalf of an insured", specifies the duties of and restrictions on public adjusters, including regulations for the following: examination, bond or letter of credit, continuing education, public adjuster fees, contracts, record retention, and standards of conduct. In addition, the model act states that public adjusters may only act or aid on the benefit of the insured in first-party claims.〔NAIC Public Adjuster Licensing Model Act, 2005〕 Holding a license in one state only permits the licensed to practice in that state. Although the regulations vary from state to state, the model act states that a non-resident can obtain a license in another state if their home state allows non-residents to apply for a license on the same basis.〔 This reciprocity agreement means that in many cases one can apply for a license in another state without having to pass that state's examination or pre-licensing education requirements.〔State Departments of Insurance〕 Generally, public adjusters only work with insurance claims related to property damages and the business losses that they trigger such as business income, builders' risk, mechanical and electrical breakdown, extra expense and expediting expense, and leasehold interest.〔NAPIA Website (NAPIA Homepage )〕 Although it is uncommon for public adjusters to handle health insurance claims, in some states such as Florida they are legally authorized to handle claims in all lines of insurance except life and annuities.〔Florida Insurance Code (Section 626.869- Insurance Field Representatives And Operations - License, adjusters. )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「public adjuster」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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