Adjuster started as a kid

With the help of the Mark Kershaws of this world, the path can sometimes be quickly cleared to compensate the victims of various misfortunes and catastrophes.

Kershaw is an insurance adjuster. His official title is vice president of property services, general adjuster, at Wickizer & Clutter Inc. The company, located at 1901 E. Meadowmere, specializes in handling insurance claims.

Asked how long he has been involved with insurance adjusting, Kershaw replied that he "started out as a kid." His father was an independent insurance adjuster with his own business, Kershaw & Company, and as a teenager, the younger Kershaw helped out by doing all kinds of work, from carrying ladders to writing the insurance adjustments himself. Either full- or part-time, he now has been doing the job for about 20 years.

College and different work kept Kershaw from staying with his father's firm. For example, he once directed quality control in an Iowa bakery. It was three years after that when he returned to Springfield to help his father in the family business. Then, last year, Kershaw & Company merged with Wickizer & Clutter Inc.

Doing it all

Kershaw finds business a lot easier since the merger. "There are so many things involved with running a small company by yourself," he said. "You have to do it all accounts receivable, marketing, handling customer problems. After the merger, support people take care of some of those areas and I can focus on what I do best, which is handle insurance claims."

Besides the early on-the-job training in claims adjustment, Kershaw has taken courses through the Insurance Institute of America and holds the IIA's associate in claims designation.

His main focus is on property claims, but as he put it, "you kind of become jack-of-all-trades and master of none. I work mostly property claims dealing with homes and businesses. We also handle auto claims from repairs to injuries. The variety of things insured is so enormous everything people own practically has insurance on it and is subject to claims."

Kershaw listed some examples: "We've done everything from homes to cars to radio towers to farm equipment and boats you name it, we've probably had a claim on it at one time or another. I once had to look at a diesel train engine."

Biggest claim

The largest single claim he remembers was $1 million plus, he said, with the average being more in the $1,000 to $10,000 range. "There's really no limit (to coverage). I've handled claims where people have $40 million to $50 million coverage on their equipment."

Such amounts might suggest to most outsiders an accompanying increase in the pressure and stress on claims adjusters, but Kershaw said no, that often it's the people with the smallest claims who create the most pressure. In his experience, he said, larger claims are merely more likely to result in "more time and documentation," as well as enlisting expert services.

Big-dollar policies also raise the possibility of fraud. While Kershaw hasn't said he personally hasn't uncovered cases of insurance fraud for either large or small amounts that went all the way to prosecution, he has had cases where "people ended up withdrawing their claims."

Typical day

Kershaw described a typical day in the life of claims adjuster: "Today I had to drive to Branson to look at several roofs damaged in storms in April, and then this afternoon I've got to go to Joplin. There's a fire claim I've been working on and the guy submitted inventory sheets that I have to go over with him to determine the amount for the claim. I spend half my time in the field and half in the office doing paperwork and taking phone calls"

Kershaw said the seasons have more effect on his work than the economy. "We really haven't been affected greatly by the economy. Storms have a lot to do with our work. During the storm season we're very busy. If the weather is mild for a period of time, our business can slow down. That's normal in our industry," he said.

Kershaw sees Wickizer & Clutter Inc. as a growing and expanding company. The firm covers southwest and central Missouri and has an additional adjuster in Oklahoma. According to Kershaw, "The marketing plan is to service 11 states and to become a regional company."