Why Ought to Policyholders Be Compelled to Settle for Engineering Opinions From Corporations Owned By Impartial Adjusters?

Titles to this weblog appear to have extra affect than the content material. Yesterday’s put up, HAAG Celebrates Being in Enterprise 100 Years—And It Stays an Impartial Engineering Agency, had quite a few personal feedback asking why I used to be saying such good issues about HAAG. The first level of the put up was the title to this put up, and I attempted to make it by asking readers these questions:

Are you able to think about a state of affairs the place a public adjusting agency acquires an engineering firm after which hires these engineers to find out the reason for a loss? Would any unbiased adjuster, firm adjuster, or insurance coverage firm lawyer readily settle for the professional opinions supplied by that engineering firm? The reply is clearly ‘no.’

So, why ought to policyholders be compelled to simply accept engineering opinions from companies owned, straight or not directly, by unbiased adjusters? Surprisingly, there are a number of bigger unbiased adjusting companies which have bought engineering corporations and subsequently depend on them to provide reviews on losses.

Massive unbiased adjusting companies appear to be on a revenue motive spree by retaining engineering corporations they personal quite than acquiring actually unbiased opinions from unbiased engineers. Engle Martin & Associates, Inc., a nationwide unbiased adjusting agency, acquired PT&C Forensic Consulting Providers, a pacesetter in forensic engineering. McLarens acquired Vanderwal & Joosten, a Dutch engineering claims firm with a staff of adjusters and technical engineers. Sedgwick, a big unbiased adjusting agency, has acquired a number of engineering companies.

The most effective claims apply can be the retention of one of the best unbiased and non-biased engineering consultants one may discover quite than one whom the unbiased adjusting agency will earn more money from the money cow insurer consumer. Is the Sedwick unbiased adjuster actually going to harshly criticize the findings and report from its personal engineering firm? This new monetary association between the unbiased adjusters and the engineers is just not good for the insurer consumer and the insurer’s policyholder.

Do you suppose judges, juries, arbitrators, and insurance coverage regulators is not going to be asking about this association when it comes time for essential judgment about who is correct or unsuitable?

Thought For The Day      

The time is all the time proper to do what is correct.

—Martin Luther King Jr.