Homes, cars and businesses took hits when Hurricane Dolly gushed ashore recently, bringing flooding rains and whipping winds. Then, the phone calls to insurers began.

MELANIE BURFORD/DMN

David Peeler, president of J.T. Parker and Associates, says insurance claims adjusters need good people skills: 'You've got to have a recognition that you're dealing with people who are in a traumatized situation.'

The typical first contact was a claims adjuster, who's one of the insurance industry's experts charged with not only guiding an often-stressed consumer through the insurance process but also with evaluating the monetary loss.

"You've got to have a recognition that you're dealing with people who are in a traumatized situation," said David Peeler, president of J.T. Parker and Associates, which is based in Dallas. "You're not going to be dealing with people who are at their best."

The career is challenging and diverse. The armies of adjusters employed by insurers such as Travelers or Allstate make up the bulk of the jobs. Independent adjusters, often mom-and-pop operations or businesses such as Mr. Peeler's 22-adjuster company, take another portion. Finally, many larger corporations employ their own adjusters to manage noncatastrophic damage claims.

No matter the sector, Mr. Peeler, with nearly 35 years of experience in the field, believes successful adjusters have the same essential traits.

"Anyone can sit down and read and evaluate an insurance policy," he said. "I think the true secret is developing the people skills that allow the person who has the claim to relax, and have a comfort level as you step in and get everything resolved in a timely fashion."

For the major insurance companies, which can face hundreds of claims after a storm such as Dolly, attention to the customer becomes a fundamental part of the business proposition.

"We view the claims adjuster position as our first contact with our customer," said Ken Pond, vice president of the Travelers insurance claims center in Dallas. "It's the service that we provide that can make a difference to our customer."

For the Travelers office, the busy season extends far beyond the likely months of a hurricane strike. The office's 485 professionals have responsibility for North Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana.

Winter brings snow and ice, particularly in Oklahoma. Spring arrives with tornadoes and thunderstorms. Summer raises the risk of hurricane damage.

And in the few slow months, adjusters in Texas might travel to assist in other areas of the country facing property loss, Mr. Pond said. "It's never dull."

When recruiting adjusters, Travelers seeks people with at least a two-year college degree, but no specific college major is considered to be better than another, Mr. Pond said.

Experience is also valued. Someone with an auto body background might work in the company's automotive division, for example, and professionals with nursing experience often specialize in worker compensation claims.

Travelers, as with most larger insurers, divides and classifies responsibilities, delineating claims such as workers' compensation, property and auto. Company-provided training allows the option of learning multiple specialties or crossing from one specialty area to another, Mr. Pond said.

Lonnie Cristan focuses on auto claims for Allstate. Working from the company's Irving office, he manages 125 adjusters, with about half working in the field where they meet face-to-face with policyholders.

Adjusters must manage every phase of an auto claim, working with the customer who has a damaged vehicle, determining the extent of damage, estimating the cost to fix the damage – a computerized system provides the hard numbers – and overseeing any repairs.

The pool of qualified talent, traditionally recruited from workers in the auto body repair industry, is diminishing as fewer students select that career choice. "A lot of body shops are working with technical schools to bring people into that profession, but it's hard right now," Mr. Cristan said.

The possibility of a long career in insurance exists, whether one enters directly from college or after working in a different field. Mr. Cristan said he manages one worker with nearly 40 years of experience.

Entry-level salaries in his division typically begin at about $36,000 and climb to as much as $60,000 for experienced workers, he says.

"It's a great opportunity to learn a business where you're helping people at a time they need assistance," he said. "If you're a good communicator with a passion for customer service, this is the industry for you to move into."

For job seekers, two trends should be taken into consideration. Many insurance agencies increasingly rely on temporary employees, allowing the insurer to quickly add staff when coping with a flood of claims, said Mr. Peeler, a former president of the National Association of Independent Insurance Adjusters.

However, a temporary job can often lead to full-time employment for high performers, he said.

Also, many large companies find it more cost-efficient to insure for only catastrophic loss, opting to pay lesser claims directly. For example, a driver for a trucking company loses control of a rig, damaging parked cars. One of the trucking company's own adjusters would evaluate the damage and work to reach agreement with the cars' owners.

With so many possible career paths, qualified appraisers have options. "If you're good at what you do, and you apply yourself to it, I think there's always going to be a place for you to work," Mr. Peeler said.

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