When most people think of catastrophe (cat) adjusters, they may envision claims professionals dealing with first-party natural or weather-related events. But the universe of potential catastrophic claims is far broader than that and is growing, especially third-party and man-made catastrophe events.

These catastrophe events can range from environmental disasters and massive transportation events to technology and financial crises. In all of these situations, time is of the essence. In delivering responsive service during a crisis, the cat adjuster represents the essence of the promise made to policyholders by their respective insurance carriers, and in fact, is to the insured the embodiment of the policyholder's insurance company during that troubling time.

Regardless of the type of disaster involved, the goal of everyone involved in the process should be “getting back to normal” by demonstrating certain skills and behaviors. Claims' Christina Bramlet consulted Sean Upton, senior vice president of environmental claims at Aspen Insurance about core competencies of the cat adjuster. His answers are outlined below.

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