When hiring public adjusters to represent you in a homeowner’s insurance claim, you may be concerned about how to pay them. Public claims adjusters certainly do get compensated for their work, but the way they get paid varies. Public adjuster companies are independent businesses and have no affiliation with insurance companies. Because of that, the fee structure is entirely up to the agency providing the public adjuster services.
Who Pays Public Adjusters?
Ultimately, the homeowner pays the fees for the public adjuster services. However, that money doesn’t come out of the homeowner’s pocket. In the vast majority of cases, you don’t have to worry about paying your public adjuster upfront. Their fees come out of the claim payout that you get from your insurance company.
When Do Public Adjusters Get Paid?
The public adjuster receives payment after the homeowner receives the final offer from the insurance company. It’s important to note here that a public adjuster will never force you to accept a final offer just so they can get paid faster. The goal of the public adjuster is always to get you the highest and most fair claim payout as possible. If this means waiting and negotiating for a better offer, then the public adjuster will do that for the homeowner. If you get a final claims payout offer from the insurance company that’s far too low, you can ask your public adjuster to push the insurance company for a higher settlement amount.
It’s only after you receive the final settlement amount that the public adjuster gets paid. They will receive their payment at that time. Before that, you don’t pay the public adjuster a single penny, in the vast majority of cases.
This is a very convenient way for homeowners to receive dedicated and quality services from a public adjuster to ensure they receive fair and just insurance compensation. Otherwise, many homeowners might shy away from hiring a public adjuster. That’s why the majority of public adjusters only take a lump sum or percentage of the final payout; very rarely any upfront fees.
How Do Public Adjusters Get Paid?
Fee structures vary among public adjusters. Before hiring a public adjuster, be sure to discuss the fee structure. This will help to clarify the final costs after you’ve received your settlement from the insurance company. Remember that no matter which fee structure the public adjuster uses, in the vast majority of cases, the homeowner doesn’t need to pay the public adjuster until the final settlement check is received from the insurance company. Here are three ways that public adjusters charge their rates:
Hourly Fee Structure
In some rare cases, a public adjuster may charge by the hour. This fee structure may be used if the public adjuster foresees an exceptionally complex case. In either case, the public adjuster should be able to give you an estimate of how many hours they expect to bill for.
Flat Fee Structure
A flat fee structure is one where, no matter how many hours the public adjuster works for you, there will be a set fee for all their services. This is the easiest fee structure to understand since there are no variables involved.
Contingency-Based Fee Structure
Most public adjusters work with a contingency-based fee structure. This means that they get a percentage of the final settlement amount. Percentage amounts typically range between 5% to 20%, but no higher than that.
As you can see, homeowners don’t have to worry about paying public adjusters upfront. If you have a homeowner’s insurance claim, there’s no reason not to get a public adjuster on your side. Contact us today for more information.