Naturally when we don't have something in our experience and our education, we don't have a likelihood that we would feel comfortable assuming that role. So unless we've actually been an adjuster, unless we've been in that situation, we don't know what it is to be an adjuster. We hear about it. We know there are people who work for insurance companies that are considered adjusters. Most states have regulations that spell out that an adjuster must represent either the insurance company, or the policyholder, not both..can't represent both. So you are either licensed one way or the other. But what it really means when you are an adjuster is you are a negotiator. You are a person who is representing a party and you're trying to evaluate, you're trying to negotiate, you're trying to settle any differences, any problems that you may have between the two sides. That's what it's all about. So, in reality we are all adjusters. If you can negotiate and can have an understanding of what you are entitled to, and you can put forth that idea, then you are an adjuster. That's all an adjuster is, there is no secret description.

Adjusting options: you have an option to have the insurance adjuster representing the company handle your claim. You have the option of having an adjuster representing just the public..because those adjusters do exist, they're few and far between, but they do exist. And the third option is you can adjust the claim yourself. This means much more than just telling the company that you had a loss. This actually means calculating what you are entitled to, putting it forward, so they understand that you have some knowledge of what you are entitled to, asking..actually asking for that amount, negotiating your differences, knowing what to do when you get to an impasse. That's what it means to actually take on that role yourself. "Drive or be Driven" is just the idea that you either are going to control that business transaction, because that is what it is at that point--once you have a claim, it is a business transaction--you're either going to control putting it forward, or you're going to want to be taken care of and see how it comes out at the other end. The biggest problem though is once you surrender authority it's difficult to recuperate. It is very difficult at the other end to undo this. It is important at the very outset to decide how you are going to handle the matter.

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