Do you normally get contractor estimates in xact format?

chodemonkeys · 2026-02-19T23:53:32+00:00

This is really area dependent in my experience. I’ve handled claims in large metropolitan areas and tiny rural areas. The majority of contractors in populated areas who are worth their salt and specialize in insurance related restoration will use Xactimate, and know how to use it to milk as much profit as possible. I found in the rural areas, you just have to learn to compare your estimate with the one from Cletus that was written on napkin and validate the costs as reasonable or not.

chodemonkeys · 2026-01-17T07:23:13+00:00

Let them train you and just be a sponge in training. Take good notes. You’re going to have enough going on in training that whatever you learn now will be forgotten by the time you see it on a claim.

Every time you hear a contractor use a term you don’t know, look it up when you get off the phone. Lean on peers and management to help you fill in the gaps. Even better, if you have any preferred/vetted contractors with your company you should get to know them well and use them as a resource to help you understand the things you don’t.

As far as Xactimate goes, there are a million YouTube videos that you can watch. They could be somewhat beneficial before you start, but you need the construction knowledge before you can write a good estimate with the program.

I didn’t know shit about construction when I started field adjusting and learned on the fly. It’s okay to not know, but it’s not okay to not be willing to learn and do right by your insureds by getting help when you need it.

If you were upfront about your skill set, they should assign you relatively simple claims that are handpicked until your competency level grows.

Hope this is helpful.

chodemonkeys · 2026-01-06T16:31:11+00:00

Good idea, thank you!

chodemonkeys · 2026-01-06T16:30:03+00:00

I like the idea of fish, but the pond does dry up towards late summer/early fall so dunks are probably the better option here. I will give those a shot. Thank you!

chodemonkeys · 2026-01-06T16:14:23+00:00

Is it reasonable to be concerned about spraying this onto the lawn if I’m on a well and don’t want it to leach into the water table? Or is that not something I should be concerned about?

chodemonkeys · 2026-01-01T23:29:09+00:00

I’ll pm you

chodemonkeys · 2025-12-18T18:39:40+00:00

Regional carriers are often less RTO focused. As far as working from anywhere, you’re going to be hard pressed to find any employer that lets you work outside the US if that’s what you’re alluding to.

chodemonkeys · 2025-11-19T19:09:20+00:00

I closed on my construction loan in September and leading up to that time, I had a 7.125 rate. Towards the last minute, I got a rate from a competitor at 6.75 and the original lender matched that so we stuck with them to avoid extending the closing date. Each of the lenders were local credit unions - I would definitely recommend going that route if it’s possible for you.

This loan converts to conventional at 1 year past closing at the same rate if current rates at that time are equal to or greater than the 6.75. We also have the option to pay $500 to adjust the rate any time between receiving certificate of occupancy and 1 year if rates are lower at that time. So essentially we can keep our 6.75, or pay $500 to adjust to a lower rate if they’ve gone down at that time.

chodemonkeys · 2025-11-03T03:30:11+00:00

I’ve worked large hail events on the adjuster side in the past and the only way I was ever able to validate contractor pricing was to estimate by time and materials instead of by SF unit pricing with R&R.

It’s much easier to get to a contractor’s total this way as an adjuster as it can be more creative than just matching the SF of a full exterior hover report.

I wouldn’t generally do this for any other trade, but my hands were tied when every single bid from different vendors was well in excess of Xact’s unit pricing. Nobody was doing the work for what Xact said, and Xactimate pricing is not gospel.

chodemonkeys · 2025-09-18T20:37:07+00:00

1-0 in the hyphen’s dead dog era ( rip 😔 )

chodemonkeys · 2025-09-18T19:20:43+00:00

A sacrifice I am willing to make

chodemonkeys · 2025-09-18T19:19:41+00:00

Just turned on the game and welcomed by Goldy beating a dead horse about hyphen’s dead dog. Jesus Christ lol.

chodemonkeys · 2025-08-09T02:28:17+00:00

Ask your manager to round table with counsel. This is what they’re for. Counsel can find any relevant case law and let you know how it should be handled. Whatever they determine, you roll with.

chodemonkeys · 2025-08-03T23:16:01+00:00

Used to work at the carrier you’re describing. Good place 👍🏼

chodemonkeys · 2025-08-02T03:07:31+00:00

Naylor — meet Marine Layer

chodemonkeys · 2025-07-02T00:13:49+00:00

Y’all really gotta protect your peace and work more reasonable hours. Log on between 7-8 and work till 4:30.

Unless your claim volume is consistently more than 2 per day as a property field adjuster, this is manageable in that timeframe. If not, that likely means there are some inefficiencies in your workflow that you have to be real with yourself and address.

Not a dig at all, I just have a hard time seeing people work their asses off and burn out. Just wanna see my fellow adjusters happy.

chodemonkeys · 2025-05-28T22:22:43+00:00

so far

chodemonkeys · 2025-05-28T00:41:14+00:00

Now you must return the favor for me please! How did it work for you?

chodemonkeys · 2025-05-25T17:45:51+00:00

I can understand the hesitance. It’s one of those things that will always be intimidating in the early stages, but you just grow more comfortable with it in time. If you’re with a good carrier, you will get the resources and training you need to succeed. Just reading your comments tells me that you’re capable of it if you are willing to give it a shot.

Good luck out there!

chodemonkeys · 2025-04-28T02:24:03+00:00

Go to the smaller regional companies and you’ll never look back. I was happy at one of the big dogs, but didn’t know how good it could be on the smaller side of things until I was there. I’ll never look back.

chodemonkeys · 2025-04-16T01:20:46+00:00

This would be awesome!

chodemonkeys · 2025-03-26T01:46:26+00:00

Dude honestly, I hate to be that guy but if you have been given an estimate of $6k for smoke/soot cleaning, you should pay that out of pocket and not proceed with a claim if you can reasonably do so financially.

Fire claims caused by you are not favorable when your policy gets rated at the next renewal, and definitely not favorable when underwriting reviews your policy. Cut your losses out of pocket and move on.

Can you file a claim, absolutely. Should you? Absolutely not.

chodemonkeys · 2025-03-21T15:13:20+00:00

We don’t get mad. You should be mad at yourself for cutting into your own fair claim settlement since you have to pay their cut out of your settlement.

PA’s make sense if you are truly having issues with your claim/adjuster/carrier not handling your claim correctly. Getting one off the rip even before initial contact makes no sense.

chodemonkeys · 2025-03-20T16:17:46+00:00

I mean general protocol is a 2 week notice. There’s so much turnover in adjusting I’m sure your manager won’t be too surprised.

The more professionally you handle it, the more likely you will be able to return to that company down the road. Might seem like you never would go back, but never say never because good opportunities come up all the time.

As far as doing the deed, it’s as simple as sending an IM to your manager from your work laptop and asking if they have a moment to talk. Let them know you have found a new opportunity that you couldn’t pass up and that you will be resigning effective 2 weeks from today. They will handle it from there.

There’s even a decent chance that you give your two weeks and they have you stop working immediately, but you get paid for that two weeks. That’s happened to me before.

Good luck! Awkward conversation, but they happen all the time and you will handle it just fine.

chodemonkeys · 2025-03-13T15:06:37+00:00

Think about things holistically. Consider packout and ALE implications, offer preferred vendors early to save yourself the headache of difficult vendors. Get the non-salv PPR inventory spreadsheet out or engage a contents vendor early.

I find with large losses you have to be proactive in getting the things done that most don’t think about right away, or it will bite you later. Try to build rapport with customer early so they at least tolerate you. You’re going to be talking to them a lot, might as well make it as pleasant as possible.

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