Claims adjusters investigate insurance claims by interviewing the claimant and witnesses, consulting police and hospital records, and inspecting property damage to determine the extent of the company's liability. In the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Australia, and South Africa the term Loss adjuster is used. Claims adjusters have the knowledge to complete the preparation of a property damage claim which, to an unrepresented homeowner, may be unfamiliar territory. The documents contain technical terms such as depreciation, replacement costs, and actual cash value, that may be unknown to the policyholder, and a trained claims adjuster can ensure a correct completion.

There are three classes of claims adjusters:

• staff adjusters (employed by an insurance company or self-insured entity),
• independent (independent contractors; not insurance company employees)
• public adjusters (employed by the policyholder).

It should be very clear that in the two first instances, the adjuster defends the rights of the insurer and works for a fair settlement for both parties.

Adjusters may handle "property claims" involving damage to buildings and structures, or "liability claims" involving personal injuries or third-person property damage from liability situations, such as motor vehicle accidents, slip and falls, dog bites, or alleged negligent behavior. Some adjusters handle both types of claims and are known as "Multi-Line" adjusters. Public adjusters work exclusively for the policyholder. This means there should be no inherent conflict of interest when it comes to advocating on the policyholders behalf to the insurance company.

An independent adjuster could be working for multiple insurance companies.

An adjuster will frequently verify that coverage applies through an insurance policy, investigate liability for the damages caused, and make restitution to the injured person based on their physical, emotional, or physical property damages.

Many homeowners reach a fair settlement with the staff or independent adjuster they are working with. In the event they are not, they can hire a public adjuster. Public adjusters claim that many homeowners do not collect all the money to which they are entitled due to a lack of familiarity with the claim process. The use of a public adjuster may mitigate this risk and could help put the policyholder on a more equal footing with the insurance companies, which increasingly use experts to support their side of a claim settlement. Public adjusters charge for their services, the standard rate is 10% of your claim settlement. For example, If you suffer a $250,000.00 fire loss, the public adjuster fee for assisting you would be $25,000.00 This $25,000.00 is taken out of your claim settlement. The objective of a claims adjuster should be to protect the insured against not only financial loss, but also the cost of recovering it.