A first-party property adjuster’s job involves verifying coverage, determining the scope of the loss, calculating the cost of repairing the covered damage(s), and paying the policyholder. That's the idea anyway; however, a look at experience, current litigation, and select claims-handling procedures indicates otherwise. In fact, it can lead one to believe that the process and necessity of accurately determining the full scope of loss is a lost art, or at least an overlooked one.

The claims adjuster owes a duty to the insured to give at least as much consideration to the interests of the insured as to those of the insurance carrier. The adjuster is the expert, or at least has experience in handling hundreds more claims than the average insured. This claims professionals either is or should be much more conversant with the nature, type and location of damages often associated with a particular cause of loss. To accurately calculate the benefits owed, the insurer must properly and fully investigate the nature and extent of the damage(s) to establish a full scope of loss. The full scope of loss would include a determination of all damage resulting from the covered cause of loss, as noted below.

A scope or scope sheet is a list of the areas damaged, which includes the type of damage, a description of the proposed type of repairs, and a measurement of those areas.¹