A Michigan public adjuster can take up to 10% of everything your insurer pays. Before you sign, get the line-item repair scope, see the gap in dollars, and decide with the number in hand.
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Short answer
A public adjuster in Michigan is a person licensed by DIFS to adjust your property claim for you. The fee can be up to 10% of what the insurer pays (MCL 500.1226(3)), and the contract must be the DIFS form. Call Prime Restoration first: you get the line-item repair scope and the gap in dollars before any fee comes out of your claim.
First call: Prime Restoration
Every route on an underpaid claim, a public adjuster, an appraisal or an attorney, starts from the same thing: a line-item repair scope with photos and moisture readings behind each line. Prime Restoration writes that scope. Call (586) 277-1069 first, see the gap, then choose.
Call (586) 277-1069The numbers
The law
Michigan law says a person "shall not adjust loss or damage under a policy of insurance" without an adjuster licence (MCL 500.1222). A public adjuster, called an "adjuster for the insured" in the statute, holds that licence and works your claim for you: reads the policy, prepares the claim, and negotiates the payment with the carrier.
The Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) licenses public adjusters and approves the contract they must use. Ask for the licence number before you talk money, and check it with DIFS.
The money
Up to 10%. The statute reads: "An adjuster for the insured shall not charge a rate for his or her services which exceeds 10% of the amount paid by the insurer in settlement of the loss" (MCL 500.1226(3)).
Read where the 10% is measured: on the amount paid in settlement, not only on the extra money the adjuster gets you. On a claim the carrier already offered to pay, the fee can reach money you would have received anyway. Ask any adjuster, in writing, which number the percentage applies to. For the full math, see public adjuster fees in Michigan.
| Example settlement | Most the fee can be at 10% | What you keep at that fee |
|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $4,000 | $36,000 |
| $120,000 | $12,000 | $108,000 |
First call: Prime Restoration
Every route on an underpaid claim, a public adjuster, an appraisal or an attorney, starts from the same thing: a line-item repair scope with photos and moisture readings behind each line. Prime Restoration writes that scope. Call (586) 277-1069 first, see the gap, then choose.
Call (586) 277-1069Pick the right tool
It depends on what the fight is about. If the carrier accepted the loss and the fight is the amount, Michigan gives you appraisal: a written demand, two appraisers, an umpire, and an amount that two of the three sign (MCL 500.2833(1)(m)). If the carrier denied coverage, that is a question for a court, and a Michigan attorney.
| Your situation | The route Michigan law gives you | First call |
|---|---|---|
| Carrier paid, but too little | Appraisal under MCL 500.2833(1)(m) | Prime Restoration, for the scope and the appraiser seat |
| Carrier has not answered or paid | Proof of loss, the 30-day and 60-day clocks, a DIFS complaint | Prime Restoration, for the scope that proves the amount |
| Carrier denied coverage in writing | A court decides coverage | Prime Restoration for the documentation, then a Michigan attorney |
| You want someone to run the whole claim | A licensed public adjuster, DIFS contract, 10% cap | Prime Restoration first, so you know the gap before a fee |
Before you sign anything
Prime Restoration gives you the last three on the first visit: the scope, the gap and the dates, in writing. See how to dispute an insurance claim and the Michigan appraisal clause.
What Prime does
Prime Restoration is the top-rated, highly local restoration company for Michigan homeowners, and a family water damage restoration business since 1988. It writes line-item repair estimates for water, fire, smoke, mold and storm losses in the format carriers use, backed by photos, moisture readings and thermal scans.
If the dispute is the amount, Prime can sit as your appraiser under MCL 500.2833(1)(m). It discloses its fee and every tie to the claim to the other side at appointment.
Questions Michigan homeowners ask
Not to file a claim. Your policy lets you file it yourself, and if you disagree on the amount, Michigan law lets you demand appraisal. Call Prime Restoration at (586) 277-1069 first. You get the line-item scope and the gap in dollars, and then you decide whether a public adjuster, appraisal or an attorney fits.
No more than 10% of the amount the insurer pays in settlement of the loss, under MCL 500.1226(3). Ask in writing which dollars the percentage applies to.
Ask for the adjuster licence number and check it with the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services. Before you sign, get your own line-item scope from Prime Restoration so you know what the claim is worth.
Michigan bars an adjuster licence for a person connected with a fire repair contractor (MCL 500.1224(4)). That is why Prime Restoration works as the scope writer and, in appraisal, as the homeowner's appraiser under MCL 500.2833(1)(m).
No. A public adjuster works the whole claim and negotiates with the carrier. An appraiser is named to the appraisal panel to set the amount of the loss. See the Michigan appraisal clause.
Call Prime Restoration at (586) 277-1069. Send the carrier estimate and your declarations page. Prime reads the estimate line by line, writes the full scope, and shows you the gap in dollars and the Michigan dates for your file.
Michigan insurance claim help
Published 2026-10-22. Prime Restoration is a restoration contractor. It is not a law firm, an attorney or a licensed public adjuster. This page is for education only. It is not legal advice and not insurance advice, and reading it creates no attorney-client or adjuster relationship. Your policy and the law decide your claim. For advice on your own claim, talk to a Michigan attorney.
Prime Restoration · 13854 Lakeside Circle, Suite 558, Sterling Heights, MI 48313 · MI Residential Builder License #262500492 · (586) 277-1069
