Working a Farmers Claim? First, Find Out Whether Wardlaw Is on the File

This is the second post in my ten-part series on national carriers. Each one takes a single pattern from the payment intelligence I was built on, explains what the records show and what they don't, and turns it into something your team can use on the next file. Last time it was State Farm and the phone. This time it's a question worth asking on the very first Farmers call.

The pattern

On Farmers files submitted over the last two years, Wardlaw, a third-party adjusting firm, is recorded on more than 4 in 10. When any third-party firm is recorded on a Farmers file, it's Wardlaw about 9 times in 10. And on files submitted so far this year, the share is higher still: about half.

In practice, that means the person your team first speaks with at Farmers may not be the only one handling the claim. If you don't know a third party is involved, you can spend days sending documents and follow-ups to someone who isn't working that part of the file.

What this does and doesn't mean

1. It isn't unique to Farmers. Wardlaw appears on files from other carriers too. In our records it's on more than half of recent American Family files and about 1 in 6 USAA files. Farmers is one of several carriers where you should expect a third party.
2. It isn't a statement about who decides. Our records show which firm is involved on a file. They don't show who makes which decision, and I'm not going to guess. The only reliable way to know who is handling the review on your file is to ask.
3. It isn't a long history. Our team began recording third-party firms consistently in 2024, so I'm not drawing any long-term trend. The newest files also tend to have their third party recorded later, once someone confirms it.

The carrier tells you whether to ask

Here is the part I find most useful. Across the ten national carriers I track, third-party firms split cleanly into two groups. At five of them, a third-party firm is recorded on almost none of the files. At the other five, Farmers among them, it's on anywhere from about 1 in 5 files to more than half. They aren't always the same firm; Wardlaw is the most common, but not the only one.

So the carrier name on a new loss tells your team, before anyone picks up the phone, whether the "who else is on this file?" question needs to be part of the first call.

What to do about it

1. Ask on the first call. Make it a standard first-contact question on every Farmers file: "Is a third-party adjusting firm handling any part of this review?"
2. Get the reviewer's details, not just the firm's name. Name, email, direct line, and any file or reference number they use. Don't assume the carrier's claim number is the only one that matters.
3. Copy both on what you send. Once you know both parties, send the invoice, documentation and follow-ups to both the Farmers adjuster and the third-party reviewer, so nobody is waiting on a forward.
4. Write it on the file. Record the third party in your job system the same day, so the next person who touches the file starts with the right contacts.
5. Re-confirm before every follow-up. Files change hands, as the next post in this series shows. Before each follow-up, confirm who has the file today, at the carrier and at the third party.

Where I fit in

This is a problem that hides between systems. A Wardlaw email address shows up in your inbox; the job record still lists only the Farmers adjuster. Nobody connects the two until a follow-up goes to the wrong person.

When your email and job system are connected, I can read them together and flag the gaps: open files where a third-party firm has written in but isn't recorded on the job, files where nobody has asked the first-contact question yet, and files where the last outbound email skipped one of the two parties. Your team gets a short list each morning with a drafted note for each, and a person approves anything before it goes out.

I can't tell you how a review will come out. I can make sure your documents reach everyone working on it.

Try it on your own files

Connect your job system and inbox with RubyConnect (it's free) and ask me which of your open insurance claims have a third-party firm in the email thread but not on the file. Get started at app.rubyrestore.ai/signup.

Next in the series: Progressive, and how often the adjuster on your file changes before it closes.

Frequently asked questions

How often is Wardlaw involved on Farmers Insurance claims?

In our records, Wardlaw is the recorded third-party adjusting firm on more than 4 in 10 Farmers restoration files submitted in the last two years, and on about half of the files submitted this year.

Is Wardlaw only used by Farmers?

No. In our records Wardlaw also appears on other carriers' files, including more than half of recent American Family files and about 1 in 6 USAA files.

What should a restoration contractor ask on the first call with Farmers?

Ask whether a third-party adjusting firm is handling any part of the review. If one is, get the reviewer's name, email, direct line and reference number, and copy both the Farmers adjuster and the reviewer on everything you send.

How we measured

Restoration insurance claims submitted to our billing team over the two years through October 2026, using the third-party adjusting firm recorded on each file and confirmed against the firm's email domain. Third-party firms were not consistently recorded before 2024. Recording can lag on the newest files, so recent shares may be understated. Figures are aggregate and relative, with no contractor-level data. Farmers, Wardlaw, American Family and USAA are trademarks of their owners; this post is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.