If history teaches lessons, anybody relying upon Xactimate claims estimating software should be fairly warned that the pricing will be woefully low compared to actual Hurricane Ian labor and material costs. Catastrophes result in increased demand for construction laborers and materials. Catastrophes add significant logistical costs to those providing reconstruction services.
Continue Reading Warning—Xactimate Pricing For Hurricane Ian Claims is Not Exact
Xactimate estimating is the prominent software used by most property insurance adjusters and restoration contractors. If you are in the field of property insurance estimation and use this software, is there any downside to being an expert using the software?
Continue Reading The Importance of Xactimate Certification with Andrew Behrens on Tuesday @ 2 With Chip Merlin
Friday at 2 With Chip Merlin will feature a special Halloween guest—the Wizard. The Wizard will answer the following question posed by a public adjuster regarding Xactimate roof pricing:
Continue Reading Xactimate Roofing Question, Hurricane Zeta and Wildfires Analyzed By The Wizard on Friday at 2 With Chip
Safety is first. But that is not the course of affairs when dealing with insurance company adjusters who usually say that they will not include the costs of legally required safe construction practices because their managers will not allow those costs.
Continue Reading Insurance Companies Should Be Accountable For Not Including Legally Required Costs Of Safe Construction
Insurance estimating expert Jeff Major gave one of the best speeches about Xactimate I have ever seen at the First Party Claims Conference West. I have seen Jeff give a number of presentations over the years, even teaching federal judges, magistrates, and mediators following Superstorm Sandy. But his warning about getting an insurance company’s “turkey dinner” Xactimate construction estimate is his latest masterpiece.
Continue Reading Explaining Xactimate Accuracy and the Need to Analyze Details Before Getting the Wrong Turkey Dinner From the Insurance Company Estimator
Overhead and Profit can generate a lot of debate when insurance company adjusters are looking to meet their adjustment severity goals and lower claims payments. But have you ever wondered how those same insurers instruct their sales people to calculate overhead and profit when they are calculating the premiums that they charge their customers for the same coverage?
Continue Reading Farmers Insurance Recognizes 25% Contractor Overhead and Profit!
I walk around at conventions and conferences trying to learn and pick up ideas I can use. At the first celebration of FAPIA’s 25th Anniversary two weeks ago, I stopped at the SIMSOL vendor booth. I asked a rather simple question: Why do you guys think you are better than Xactimate?
Continue Reading Is SIMSOL Better Than Xactimate?
Merlin Law Group filed a class action lawsuit in Federal Court today alleging that sales tax was not being paid to many Superstorm Sandy policyholders with flood insurance claims insured by Selective Insurance. Some must be wondering that if policyholders cannot trust insurance company engineering reports, why should they trust that the estimates of damage made by the insurance companies own estimators?
Continue Reading Sales Tax Missing From Sandy Claims Estimates Leads to Class Action Lawsuit
In my last post, I discussed how Xactimate’s pricing is going down while national building material prices are going up. One theory I advanced was that insurance companies are the largest customers of Xactimate and therefore Xactware is simply giving its customers what they want. This video does prove that:
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Continue Reading Xactimate Controlled by the Insurance Industry
A week ago, Robert Trautmann, my colleague in our New Jersey office, blogged about how Xactimate pricing for building materials has been steadily declining over the last several years. It was a great blog generating much comment from readers.
Continue Reading Repair Estimates Must Reflect Local Market Costs in California