Public Adjusters Always Needed to Negotiate Higher Insurance Payouts
As certain as death and taxes, property owners will file insurance claims. Damage may be hail-dinged shingles, frozen pipes or vandalism, or perhaps complete destruction from a hurricane, tornado, flood or wildfire. Never-ending claims are a key reason that Tiger Adjusters presents a recession-resistant franchise opportunity.
Here’s the Tiger Adjusters process: The owner of a residential or commercial property hires one of the franchise’s public adjusters. This can occur after an insurance company denies a claim or offers a disappointing settlement – or before a claim is ever filed. Working on behalf of the property owner (the policyholder), a Tiger adjuster first documents and evaluates the damage. Then the adjuster compiles a loss estimate report and submits it to the insurance company, further negotiating as necessary to obtain a higher payout to fully cover the damage or loss. Tiger Adjusters will even reopen old, settled claims, generally going back as far as one year after a payout.
Large Market in Any Economy
“Our services are in demand regardless of economic conditions,” says Ted Patestos, CEO/co-founder of Tiger Adjusters. “Property damage claims occur in both strong and weak markets. During economic downturns, policyholders are actually more likely to challenge insurance claim denials or underpayments and seek professional adjusters to maximize payouts. In tough economic times, insurance companies may tighten their claim approval processes, leading to more disputes and greater demand for Tiger Adjusters to negotiate fair settlements.”
The bread-and-butter market for Tiger Adjusters is homeowners, and it’s a rich one. The United States has about 146 million U.S. housing units, according to Sunrise Capital Group, and Bankrate.com states that 88%, or 128.48 million, are insured. Insurance Information Institute research indicates 5.45% of those policyholders filed damage claims in 2022 (the last year for which statistics are available). After number crunching, that means a total of more than 7 million damage claims are filed in an average year just for homes, not including commercial properties. Homeowners received insurance payouts averaging about $77,300 for fire and lightning claims, $11,700 for wind and hail, and $11,600 for water damage and freezing, Experian reports. Commercial properties incur the same types of damage as residential ones, plus owners can file claims for business interruption – and Tiger Adjusters can help them with all of those claims.
What Makes Tiger Adjusters a Recession-Resistant Franchise Opportunity?
So while Tiger Adjusters can mine a rich market even during a dismal economy, additional factors enhance its appeal as a recession-resistant franchise opportunity. For instance:
- Constant claims. Bad things happen all the time. Electrical wiring fails; winds fell trees; water flows into buildings; dryers catch fire; undetected leaks cause mold; lightning strikes. Property owners file insurance claims every day, 365 days a year. “The need for public adjusters isn’t occasional or seasonal. It’s constant,” Patestos says.
- Guaranteed advocacy. Property owners can’t lose when Tiger Adjusters go to bat for them, he says. Public adjusters typically work on a contingency basis, meaning they’re paid a percentage of the additional payout they negotiate with the insurance company. Under a contingency agreement, “our public adjusters get paid only if the client receives a higher payout because of their work,” Patestos says. Their fee generally ranges from 5% to 40%, and some states limit the maximum percentage. To see each state’s regulations, click here.
- Insurance shortfalls. Insurance companies can be stingy with settlements. Recently slammed by severe floods, hurricanes and tornadoes, insurance companies increasingly have undervalued claims to manage their bottom lines for stockholders. Last September, 60 Minutes reported that insurance companies drastically reduced their adjusters’ recommended payouts to Florida homeowners after Hurricane Ian. One adjuster told a CBS News reporter that the $488,000 assessment he submitted to an insurance company was changed to $13,000 and a $239,000 total was changed to $3,000. “A public adjuster, advocating for the policyholder, is trained to compile compelling evidence and use effective negotiating tactics to get clients the settlements they’re entitled to,” Patestos says.
- Essential expertise. Public adjusters are a need, not a want, after disasters of any size. When insurance companies squeeze policyholders by offering less than repair or replacement costs, he says “public adjusters should be every consumer’s first call.”
- Advanced tools. Tiger Adjusters have the training, licensing and technology (including aerial drones, moisture meters, laser measuring tools and MatterPort 3D scanners) to persuasively document property damage and submit it to insurance companies. Patestos points out that most clients lack the resources to raise their payouts as high as trained professionals can.
- Time saver. Public adjusters save time. To-do lists swamp owners as they deal with property damage – arranging temporary repairs, hiring an emergency restoration service, finding alternative accommodations, checking out contractors, supervising repairs and more. It’s stress upon stress. “When that low insurance offer arrives, they will happily off-load the hassle of negotiating with their insurance company for an equitable settlement,” the CEO/founder says.
- Franchise stability. Brand resilience is woven into the foundation of the franchise. “With a growing network of franchisees operating in multiple territories, Tiger Adjusters benefits from consistent royalty revenue to ensure financial stability even during recessions,” Patestos says.
To Learn More
Tiger Adjusters has a low start-up cost, and franchises may be owner-operated or semi-passive, running the business from home. For further details about this recession-resistant franchise opportunity, click here.
