The economic slowdown has many concerned about job security. This is also happening in the insurance claims business. Bob Hartwig, President of the Insurance Information Institute, gave a speech at the Property Insurance Loss Research Bureau Annual Claims Conference explaining that there has been a sharp decline in the amount of claims positions, as indicated in a published story by Claims Magazine, Claim Adjusters Hit Hardest by P&C Employment Drop:
Hartwig said that since the middle of 2008, employment in the P&C insurance industry has hit a record low as a result of the economic downturn. As a whole, he said that employment in the P&C industry was down almost five percent since the recession began, nearly matching the 6.1 percent decrease in employment in the overall U.S. economy.
For claim professionals, however, the news was grimmer, as statistics show the adjusting profession is taking the biggest hit.
"We have seen a very, very sharp drop in the claim adjusting area, the sharpest drop of all P&C positions in percent terms, around 14 percent since the recession began," said Hartwig. "I do not know precisely what the driver of this is at this point, but the number of people employed in the claim adjuster position today is roughly where it was in 1995."
So, what can you do if you are in the claims industry and want to stay there? I am asked career advice from a number of adjusters, regardless if they are company, independent, catastrophe or public insurance adjusters. Except for experience and reputation, the single most important and easiest thing any claims adjuster can do is prove dedication and passion to this noble business through education. The claims insurance industry "calling card" that everybody recognizes is the CPCU designation. If you enjoy what you do as an adjuster, I strongly suggest you watch this video and then sign up for the courses needed to become a CPCU:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=4JZMJd_YJsA%26hl%3Den_US%26fs%3D1%26rel%3D0%26color1%3D0x2b405b%26color2%3D0x6b8ab6
