PurPassionCity

Claims Handler / Claims Adjuster (Desk-Based)

The pull to make things work

Resolution · Broken → Functional

The shape of the work

Pace
  • A hard push you keep up for a long stretch
  • Short, intense, and the stakes are right now
What your week looks likeMonday-to-Friday, roughly 9-to-5
How much you move around at workScreen and chair, almost all day
Whether you can work from anywhereMostly remote, but you show up sometimes
How quickly you receive feedback on your workA few weeks before the picture clears
What you're actually working withNumbers, measurements, records — things you read on a screen / Other humans, face-to-face — talking, teaching, treating, leading

Behaviours this work is made of

Core
  • Committing to a course of action when the right answer is uncertain and delay has a cost.
  • Determining the quality, value, or merit of something through informed assessment.
  • Deep attention to someone's experience.
Also present
  • Making something complex graspable.
  • Following evidence toward hidden truth.
  • Reaching agreement across differing interests.
  • Deciding what matters most, in what order.

In words

A claims handler is the person at the insurer who deals with a customer after something has gone wrong: a car accident, a burst pipe, a theft, a stolen phone or a cancelled trip. The handler checks that the policy covers the event, gathers what is needed to prove the loss, decides what the policy owes, and arranges payment or repair. The primary gradient is Resolution, because the measure of the job is whether the customer's problem is put right fairly and in reasonable time. Judgement is what the handler uses on each decision, and Care matters because the customer is often stressed or has lost something important.

Called a claims adjuster, claims examiner or claims representative in the US and Canada, where "adjuster" covers desk-based work like this as well as site visits, and a claims handler in the UK and Ireland. It differs from the Claims / Loss Adjuster role in this field: the handler usually works from a desk and processes a high volume of standard claims, and calls in a loss adjuster, surveyor or engineer when a loss is large or complicated. Insurers increasingly settle simple claims with software that reads photos and forms, which leaves human handlers more of the disputed and emotional cases.

There's a guide here if you want one

Kitsune can talk through anything on this page — whether it might suit you, what to do next, questions this page doesn't answer. Everything here is yours to read either way.

The handler sits between two interests: the customer wants a fair payment quickly and the insurer wants to pay exactly what the policy covers. Saying no, or paying less than the customer hoped, is part of the job, and doing it clearly and kindly is a skill that takes practice. A small share of claims are exaggerated or fraudulent, so handlers learn to check details without treating honest customers as suspects. Workload comes in waves, and weeks after a storm can be long and intense. The job is also one of the better ways to learn how insurance really works.

Most insurers hire claims handlers with a school-leaving qualification or degree, good written and spoken communication and basic numeracy, and train new staff for several weeks on policies, systems and regulation. Customer service, administration or call-centre experience is a common route in. Professional exams in insurance exist in many countries and help with promotion, and some regions require handlers or adjusters to hold a licence, which varies by country and state. People move up to senior handler, team leader or technical claims roles, specialise in injury, property or commercial claims, train as loss adjusters, or move into underwriting, fraud investigation or compliance.

Before you go