With reference to George Benson's letter (2 September, Insurance Times) I have been a one-man band loss assessor since 1990, having previously served my apprenticeship for five years with a three-man band.
I am at present president of the Institute of Public Loss Assessors (IPLA) and do not possess any recognised professional qualifications. As has been stated many times before, my qualifications are my experience.
Passing exams or reading a text book cannot prepare you for dealing face-to-face with clients or insurance company representatives.
Benson suggests that maybe the assessing world has changed dramatically over the past three years. I would counter this by saying that it is the adjusting world that has changed, there now being few 'old fashioned' adjusters.
The service centres and laptop 'working from home' adjusters seem to be the insurance companies' preferred method for dealing with the vast majority of claims.
FSA regulation for loss assessors will hopefully bring an end to the lack of qualification debate. The IPLA, while not possessing hundreds of members, comprises a select band of professionals who are very proud of the manner in which our business is conducted.
Regulation will make us stronger, as opposed to the adjusting profession, which is not being directly regulated by the FSA.
Douglas Greenston
DPG Loss Assessors
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