Australasian Institute of Chartered Loss Adjusters (AICLA) President Ian McWalter has called on his members to get creative to meet competition from alternative service providers.

He says many loss adjusters face “continually shrinking” markets and the increased competition from builders and claims management providers.

“Like any business, it’s down to entrepreneurship,” he told insuranceNEWS.com.au. “I don’t see loss adjusting as under threat, but it does face competition.

“In the old days loss adjusters competed with other loss adjusters, whereas now it might be a solicitor or claims management provider.”

He says many claims and procurement managers “don’t understand the value of what we do because we have not told them in terms they understand”.

Mr McWalter, a director of loss adjusting firm Technical Assessing, says lawyers now dominate the liability field while builders enjoy a large share of material damage claims.

“Claims coming our way are down and we are coming to rely on storms and other natural catastrophes as our bread and butter,” he said. “We all have to go and bang the drum and start telling insurers what we can do.”