Insurance claims handler to loss adjuster
An insurance claims handler already meets 56% of what the loss adjuster role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
48.7/ 100
1 How much of what a loss adjuster is expected to do is already part of an insurance claims handler’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the loss adjuster role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A loss adjuster role treats 14 of its required skills as things an insurance claims handler already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- actuarial science
- analyse claim files
- assess coverage possibilities
- claims procedures
- estimate damage
- handle incoming insurance claims
What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 18 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A loss adjuster role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an insurance claims handler background worth leading with.
- already held assess coverage possibilities information skills
- already held interview insurance claimants communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held classify insurance claims information skills
- already held handle incoming insurance claims communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held manage claim files information skills
- already held analyse claim files information skills
All 18 carried skills, including the 14 the loss adjuster role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn initiate claim file required
- still to learn check for damaged items required
- still to learn compile appraisal reports required
- still to learn document evidence required
- optional, not held collect property financial information optional
- optional, not held conduct financial audits optional
- optional, not held determine cause of damage optional
- optional, not held identify damage to buildings optional
- optional, not held investigate occupational injuries optional
- optional, not held obtain financial information optional
- optional, not held prepare financial auditing reports optional
- still to learn propose settlements required
- still to learn negotiate settlements required
- still to learn present evidence required
- optional, not held advise on insurance policies optional
- optional, not held assess customer credibility optional
- optional, not held create cooperation modalities optional
- optional, not held listen to the stories of the disputants optional
- optional, not held manage contract disputes optional
- optional, not held provide information on properties optional
- optional, not held create a financial plan optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a loss adjuster role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 propose settlements practise this
- 02 initiate claim file practise this
- 03 negotiate settlements practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 18 skills that carry over
- already held actuarial science knowledge
- already held analyse claim files skill
- already held assess coverage possibilities skill
- already held claims procedures knowledge
- already held estimate damage skill
- already held handle incoming insurance claims skill
- already held insurance law knowledge
- already held interview insurance claimants skill
- already held manage claim files skill
- already held manage claims process skill
- already held organise a damage assessment skill
- already held principles of insurance knowledge
- already held review insurance process skill
- already held types of insurance knowledge
- already held analyse financial risk skill
- already held classify insurance claims skill
- already held ensure cross-department cooperation skill
- already held fraud detection knowledge
14 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on insurance policies optional
- optional, not held assess customer credibility optional
- optional, not held collect property financial information optional
- optional, not held conduct financial audits optional
- optional, not held create a financial plan optional
- optional, not held create cooperation modalities optional
- optional, not held determine cause of damage optional
- optional, not held identify damage to buildings optional
- optional, not held investigate occupational injuries optional
- optional, not held listen to the stories of the disputants optional
- optional, not held manage contract disputes optional
- optional, not held obtain financial information optional
- optional, not held prepare financial auditing reports optional
- optional, not held provide information on properties optional
14 held skills the loss adjuster role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply statistical analysis techniques skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role calculate compensation payments skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with beneficiaries skill
- not needed by the target role decide on insurance applications skill
- not needed by the target role handle customer complaints skill
- not needed by the target role handle financial disputes skill
- not needed by the target role handle financial transactions skill
- not needed by the target role insurance market knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain records of financial transactions skill
- not needed by the target role provide financial product information skill
- not needed by the target role statistics knowledge
- not needed by the target role synthesise financial information skill
- not needed by the target role trace financial transactions skill
Other moves recorded from insurance claims handler
Common questions about this move
Can an insurance claims handler become a loss adjuster?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An insurance claims handler already covers 56% of what a loss adjuster is expected to do: 18 skills carry over, 14 of which the loss adjuster role treats as required.
What skills does an insurance claims handler need to become a loss adjuster?
7 required skills are missing, plus 14 optional ones. They fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is propose settlements.
How hard is the move from insurance claims handler to loss adjuster?
Its learning distance is 48.7 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.