I believe I have already talked about insurance companies asking folks to take pictures of the damage to their car and send it in so that they can create a so-called estimate. I thought that was the worst thing that they could come up with! Well, silly me! They proved me wrong.
Now, some companies will tell you that they are sending someone out to your house to take the pictures. These folks are not insurance adjusters or even employees of the company; instead they are independent contractors being paid by the job. Kind of like an Uber driver. Real insurance adjusters in Washington state must be licensed, fingerprinted, and bonded in order to work independently. Alternately, if they work as employees of an insurance company, they come under that company’s responsibility.
So, as a customer, why should you care?.
- Generally speaking, they have very little knowledge of what they are doing.
- If they are injured while on your property, they have no state industrial insurance, and you may be liable for their injuries.
- Who knows if the insurance company has even run a background check on these folks? they might be perfectly nice; on the other hand, they might be using this job to case houses or something worse.
I suggest that if an insurance company sends someone out and you have any doubts about them, ask for personal identification and some sort of proof of employment by the insurance company, or proof of personal liability insurance covering themselves. If they refuse, or can’t produce this, I would not let them proceed.
Thanks for listening. If you have any questions, give me a call.
Joe Polowski, Precious Metal Auto Body
