Working with a Public Adjuster Two Years After CZU Fire Luke Bailey asked 2 years ago
Working with a Public Adjuster Two Years After CZU Fire

Hello,

I received a cold call from a public adjuster at California Disaster Advocates seeking to represent the remainder of my State Farm claim. Could I face financial or legal risk by signing a contract with them?

I received most of my Dwelling coverage, and State Farm forwarded 30% of my Personal Property coverage in the months following the fire. The public adjuster would take 33% of any newly-acquired money. The contract states they would not be entitled to any money I already received. The adjuster said there’s no risk on my end since they wouldn’t make any money if State Farm doesn’t pay anything additional.

As an analogy, I feel concerned that, by signing a contract, the public adjuster and State Farm could have a proxy war through my claim, putting me at financial or legal risk. Could that happen, or am I making that up?

Could this be a scam or do I have nothing to lose?

Thank you so much.

Best,

Luke

1 Answers
Answer for Working with a Public Adjuster Two Years After CZU Fire United Policyholders Staff answered 2 years ago
0 Vote Up Vote Down

Hi Luke,

That fee amount is what is often asked by a public adjuster who is coming in to try to get more money than the insurance company thinks is owed to date. You should look up the adjusters on the California Department of Insurance license checkup, and ask for references from prior clients to determine if this adjuster is the right one for you.

You can learn our advice about hiring a public adjuster in our publications Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Public Adjuster, Making the Best Choice When Hiring a Public Adjuster, and Public Adjusters – The Inside Scoop.

You can protect yourself against risk by doing your homework and checking the reputation of any professional before signing a contract.