Agent advocate, Deborah Neyland, has a true passion for helping others. Based out of Crawford’s Allen, Texas office, she aids in training new agents and consistently exceeds expectations for policyholders. Deb delights in nurturing others and her selfless personality stems from her childhood roots of growing up in a missionary family. She believes her purpose is to serve others and appreciates having the opportunity to fulfill that mission through adjusting.
Before adjusting, Deb owned an interior design business for over 30 years which provided her with a unique understanding of what a home needs during the restoration process. There are similarities between the two professions, but she sees a deeper impact through adjusting because she is empowered to turn her client’s dreams into reality.
In 2004, Deb joined the industry by recommendation from a family member. Given her interior design expertise, she quickly picked up on the job. For much of her career, she committed herself to one of the largest carriers in the United States, and was introduced to Crawford through the annual CAT conference. There, she learned about the company’s history and RESTORE purpose. She has attended the event for over ten years and built lasting relationships with Crawford employees despite being employed elsewhere. Once the carrier partnered with Crawford, she decided to join the CAT family.
“I love the warmth you feel at the Crawford CAT conference,” Deb said.
“There is a personal interest in the way they handle claims and adjusters. You feel like you are part of a family and. your input matters”
As an agent advocate, Deb regularly takes phone calls from policyholders and acts as a liaison between the adjuster and the customer. Her excellent customer service skills ensure that the policyholder feels supported. She breaks down the step-by-step claim process, provides details of the individual’s policy and communicates the projected timeline for each action until resolution. She is dedicated to her work, consistently checking the status of each claim and pushing it along until conclusion.
“There’s nothing like that glowing feeling of helping others,” she said.
Deb enjoys working with policyholders and knowing that she made a difference in their experience. “It’s free to be kind and patient,” Deb explains, “and the reward is a loyal customer base”. Deb prides herself on representing the customer in a professional, efficient manner. She understands the entire process from inspection to restoration, and is amazed by how gracious policyholders are for her help.
Over the years, Deb has developed meaningful relationships with her colleagues through deployments. One Thanksgiving, she was away from her family traveling for work and decided to make the most of it by hosting a dinner with all the other adjusters on the same deployment. During this non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner, surrounded by her Crawford family, Deb perfected her famous hot rolls recipe with assistance from everyone in the room. She is thankful for the people she has met through her career and encourages new adjusters to find that same collective community.
“On every deployment I’ve met wonderful people that have not only made a difference in my personal life, but also in my professional life as an adjuster,” she said.
In the future, Deb believes that technology will change the way adjusters process claims and that more people will inspect and resolve claims virtually. She misses being in an office surrounded by coworkers and says there is nothing like sharing a smile across the office or listening to playful office banter. She is temporarily remote because of COVID-19 and hopes to be back in the office soon..
“If you learn from everything you do, you will be enriched,” she said. “Take advantage of every opportunity.”
Deb is a grandmother of nine and a wife of 47 years. She is a three-time cancer survivor and celebrates 15 years in remission. Her experience with cancer encouraged her to focus on the positive aspects of life and to live each day hopefully and kindly. She enjoys cooking, playing the piano and crafting with her grandchildren. She is thankful her career led her to the Crawford CAT family.
