Knowledge library

Guides and working files for weather damage claims, in one place.

• ACV vs RCV: The Adjuster's Depreciation Guide Defend and challenge ACV calculations: depreciation checklists for contents and structure, plus the holdback recovery package. Free PDF for adjusters.
• How to Evaluate Adjuster Fee Schedules and Offers Learn to read IA fee schedules, compare deployment offers, and negotiate with confidence. A free PDF guide for independent and public adjusters.
• Fighting Aerial Imagery Roof Claim Denials Roof claim denied from satellite photos? The capture date check, ground truth file, and rebuttal method that answers desktop denials. Free PDF guide.
• After a House Fire: First Steps, ALE, and Contents Lists A plain English guide for the first days after a house fire: temporary housing, additional living expenses, receipts, and your contents list.
• ALE Disputes: Daily Rates and Duration Defense Beat early ALE cutoffs with a habitability file, fair daily rate comps, a delay log, and a clean ledger. Free PDF guide for property adjusters.
• Before the Insurance Adjuster Arrives: 24 Hour Checklist The insurance adjuster is coming. Use this free 24 hour checklist to document damage, gather paperwork, and walk the inspection with confidence.
• BI Claim Documentation That Survives Desk Review A field guide for adjusters documenting business interruption claims: baseline financials, shutdown logs, and projections desk reviewers cannot cut.
• Surviving Carrier Reinspections on Closed Files Reinspection findings on closed files can cost assignments. Build defensible files and answer findings with evidence. Free PDF checklist inside.
• The CAT Workload System That Prevents Burnout A daily rhythm for CAT adjusters running heavy claim queues: morning triage, geographic batching, shutdown routines, and burnout circuit breakers.
• CAT Photo Documentation: A System for Adjusters A field-tested photo system for CAT adjusters: capture sequence, naming rules, and tying every photo to a line item. Free PDF checklist download.
• The Claim File Timeline Template for Adjusters A copyable claim timeline template for public and independent adjusters: entry format, logging rules, weekly review ritual, and folder structure. Free PDF.
• Insurance Claim Stuck Under Review? What to Do Next Claim gone silent? Learn why insurance claims stall, how to follow up in writing, and when to escalate. Free step by step guide for homeowners.
• The Client Communication Cadence for Adjusters Keep claim clients calm for months: a simple update cadence, the four-line update format, and scripts for hard conversations. Free PDF for adjusters.
• Closing the Estimate Gap: Line by Line Reconciliation A working method for reconciling a contractor estimate double your number: four buckets, measured answers, locked agreements, and a short dispute list.
• Code Upgrade Supplements: Prove What the Code Requires A field-tested method for verifying local code requirements, getting written confirmation, and writing code upgrade supplements that survive desk review.
• Collapse Claims: Rot, Hidden Decay, and Ensuing Loss Rot exclusion vs hidden decay collapse coverage: how adjusters build the file that reverses collapse claim denials. Free field checklist PDF.
• Contractor Estimate Red Flags: A One-Pass Checklist Spot double billing, padded quantities, and serial supplement abuse in contractor estimates with a one-pass red flag checklist built for adjusters.
• Contractor Fraud and AOB Red Flags for Adjusters Spot contractor fraud and AOB abuse before it taints your claim file. A red flag checklist and documentation guide for property adjusters. Free PDF.
• Coverage Disagreements: An Adjuster Escalation Guide What to do when a supervisor overrules your coverage call. A practical escalation and ethics guide for property adjusters, with a free PDF playbook.
• Should You File an Insurance Claim? The Deductible Math Repair cost vs deductible: a simple way to decide whether to file a home insurance claim or pay out of pocket. Free worksheet for homeowners.
• Defending the Drying Scope on Water Losses How to defend a water mitigation scope against flat equipment cuts: baseline readings, daily logs, equipment math, and a response letter that holds.
• Diminished Value Claims: When Owed, How to Prove When diminished value is owed, how to verify the claim, and the market evidence that beats formula offers. A practical guide for adjusters.
• Ethical PA Marketing: Referral Systems That Work Grow a public adjusting practice without chasing storms. Referral partners, a monthly rhythm, and a compliance checklist in one free PDF guide.
• EUO Prep Guide: Examination Under Oath Checklist A practical EUO prep guide for public adjusters: document production, client preparation, day-of rules, and follow-up. Download the free PDF checklist.
• Field Adjuster to Public Adjuster: A 90 Day Plan Move from carrier side to public adjusting with a licensing checklist, fee agreement essentials, and a first 90 days plan. Free PDF for adjusters.
• Beating Desk Reviewer Cuts: An Adjuster Playbook Why clean estimates still get cut, and the step by step escalation path that reverses desk review cuts. Free PDF playbook for property adjusters.
• First CAT Deployment: A Survival System That Works A field-tested system for your first CAT deployment: triage buckets, geographic routing, photo discipline, and the nightly close. Free PDF for adjusters.
• Your First Property Claim: A Plain English Walkthrough First insurance claim? This plain English walkthrough covers reporting, inspection, estimates, checks, and repairs. Free printable PDF for homeowners.
• Functional vs Cosmetic Hail Damage: A Field Framework Beat cosmetic-only hail denials: a field framework for proving functional damage on shingles and metal roofs, with photo and test protocols. Free PDF.
• Hurricane Season Prep Checklist for Adjusters Get deployment ready before the first named storm: licensing, gear, admin, digital prep, and a first 48 hours plan. Free PDF checklist for adjusters.
• Claim Deadlines: Build a Verified State Map Learn every claim deadline type, the trigger, duration, and source model, and how adjusters build a verified deadline map for every state they work.
• When Your Client Hires an Attorney: PA Guide An attorney just joined your claim. How roles, notes, fees, and evidence change for public adjusters, plus a free PDF playbook.
• Invoking Appraisal: A Step by Step Guide for Adjusters A step by step appraisal playbook for property adjusters: the dispute record, the demand letter, timelines, and what to do when the carrier stalls. Free PDF.
• Landlord and Tenant Claims: An Adjuster's Guide Two policies, one loss. Who pays, who pursues, and where the adjuster stops on rental claims. Free PDF guide for public and independent adjusters.
• Large Loss Scopes: Line Items That Hold Up How adjusters write large loss estimates that survive review: scope structure, the four question line item test, photo mapping, and bid documentation.
• The Late Supplement Test: Accept or Fight in 5 Questions Five questions that separate legitimate hidden damage supplements from scope creep, with checklists for documenting whichever call you make.
• The Perfect Claim Intake: LOR and First Week The complete public adjuster intake package: LOR contents, fee agreement hygiene, policy requests, and a day-by-day first week checklist. Free PDF.
• Winning Matching Disputes on Property Claims Line of sight, discontinued materials, and the documentation that turns a patch offer into full replacement. Free PDF guide for property adjusters.
• Mold Claims: Tie Mold to the Covered Event Mold denied as maintenance? Build the causation chain from covered water loss to growth: mapping, sampling, mitigation records. Free adjuster PDF.
• Two-Party Insurance Checks: Getting Funds Released The loss draft playbook for adjusters: packet checklists, disbursement schedules, and escalation steps when the mortgage company holds claim funds.
• The Multi-Claim Control Board for Adjusters Never miss a deadline across 30 open claims. A spreadsheet control board with phases, buffer dates, and a review rhythm. Free PDF for adjusters.
• The O&P Playbook for Property Adjusters When overhead and profit applies, how to document coordination, and how to answer the usual carrier pushbacks. Free PDF playbook for adjusters.
• PA Fee Agreements: Clauses That Hold Up A clause-by-clause checklist for public adjuster fee agreements: fee rules, cancellation windows, signing hygiene, and the mistakes that void contracts.
• The PA Licensing Roadmap: Exams, Bonds, and E&O A step-by-step roadmap to your public adjuster license: exam prep, surety bonds, E&O, and how to verify your state's rules. Free PDF checklist.
• Reading Your Settlement: ACV and Depreciation Explained Why is the insurance check smaller than the repair quote? ACV, depreciation, and deductibles explained in plain English, with a free settlement guide PDF.
• How to Rebut a Carrier Engineer Report Line by Line A line by line method for adjusters facing a carrier engineer report: scope gaps, orphan conclusions, rebuttal worksheet, and escalation paths. Free PDF.
• Recorded Statements: A Property Adjuster Guide When a recorded statement helps a property claim, when to slow down, and how to prep your client. A practical adjuster guide with a free PDF checklist.
• Reservation of Rights Letters: An Adjuster Guide What a reservation of rights letter really means, why carriers send them, and the written response that keeps a reserved claim moving. Free adjuster PDF.
• Reversing Wear and Tear Roof Denials The evidence file that reverses wear and tear roof denials: weather verification, photo protocol, causation, and rebuttal structure. Free adjuster PDF.
• Is a $4,000 Claim Worth Taking? The PA Math A break-even framework for solo public adjusters: five variables, two formulas, and a decision checklist for small claims. Free PDF worksheet.
• What Not to Post on Social Media During an Insurance Claim Insurers can review public posts. Get the do not post list for open claims, privacy tips, and safer ways to share updates. Free homeowner guide.
• Solar Detach and Reset: Estimate the Whole Job Why per-panel detach and reset pricing fails on solar roof claims, and a phase-by-phase checklist for building a defensible solar supplement.
• The Solo Adjuster Tech Stack: 5 Tools You Need Cut subscription creep. The five software categories a solo insurance adjuster actually needs, with a buying checklist for each. Free PDF guide.
• Multi-State Licensing Guide for CAT Adjusters How storm adjusters verify reciprocity and emergency authorizations before deploying, in any state. Free PDF with the full pre-season checklist.
• Subrogation Flags on Residential Claims A field checklist for spotting subrogation on residential claims: failed products, recent work, neighbor origin, and evidence preservation. Free PDF.
• Sudden vs Gradual Water Damage: Win the Causation Fight Fight gradual damage denials on water claims with a field-tested evidence checklist, timeline method, and rebuttal structure. Free PDF for adjusters.
• The Supplement Checklist: Line Items Carriers Miss The line items most often missing from property estimates, and the documentation habit that gets supplements paid. Free PDF checklist for adjusters.
• Theft Claims Without Receipts: Proving Contents How adjusters prove theft and contents claims without receipts: digital trails, photo evidence, one clean inventory, and valuation. Free PDF checklist.
• Total Loss Valuation Disputes: A Field Guide Audit the carrier's total loss valuation report: comparable checks, condition adjustments, counter evidence, and a demand package that moves the number.
• Beating the Vacancy Clause Denial: Adjuster Guide Vacant or unoccupied? The evidence timeline, policy checkpoints, and rebuttal structure adjusters use to reverse vacancy clause denials. Free PDF download.
• Proving Date of Loss with Weather Data When the carrier disputes the storm date, records win. The adjuster's process for weather verification and date of loss evidence. Free PDF guide.
• What a Public Adjuster Does and What It Costs What does a public adjuster actually do, when is hiring one worth it, and how do fees work? A plain English guide for homeowners with a free PDF download.
• When a PA Enters Your Claim: A Playbook for Both Sides A letter of representation does not have to mean war. First week checklists for carrier adjusters and PAs on the same claim. Free PDF playbook.
• Xactimate Habits of Senior Property Adjusters The Xactimate skills that separate senior adjusters from juniors: sketch discipline, line item notes, macros, and a pre-upload checklist. Free PDF.
• Orientation: the 8 phases of weather damage recovery How a claim moves from first site visit to settlement, and where the adjuster fits in at each of the eight phases.
• Reading hail damage on asphalt shingles Bruising, granule loss, and fracture patterns: what each one looks like on the roof, and how to document it so your claim review holds up.
• Photo documentation standards for claims Angles, lighting, and file naming that make a damage file reviewable the first time, with no second site visit.
• Scoping wind damage: a room by room method A repeatable walkthrough order so nothing gets missed between exterior and interior on a wind claim.
• Writing damage descriptions homeowners understand Plain language patterns that keep homeowners calm and claims moving, from first findings to bad news in writing.
• Reviewing a homeowner claim: a 20 minute method A fixed review order that catches missing documentation before it costs you a second site visit.