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What is a claims director and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

A claims director works for an insurance company and is in charge of the claims department, which processes customers' claims for coverage. The claims director sets the overall claims policies for the company, detailing procedures for approving coverage, appraising damage, and more. The claims director is also responsible for ensuring that the company is complying with any government regulations or amendments. Besides their role in setting company policy, claims directors spend a lot of time working with people. They supervise the work of claims adjusters and other workers in the department and build strategic business partnerships. They may handle especially complicated claims themselves.

Claims directors earn a solid average salary of $66,568 a year and are in prime position to climb further up the corporate ladder. However, they need to put in work before they can earn this position.

Most claims directors have at least five years experience working as managers, usually in the claims department. They usually have a bachelor's degree in business or a related field.

ScoreClaims DirectorUS Average
Salary
8.1

Avg. Salary $118,250

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level
9.3

Growth Rate -6%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity
4.6
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.50%

Asian 5.26%

Black or African American 10.69%

Hispanic or Latino 16.99%

Unknown 4.41%

White 62.16%

Gender

female 41.75%

male 58.25%

Age - 43
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43
Stress Level
9.3

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level
9.5

Complexity Level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance
3.7

Work Life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Claims Director career paths

Key steps to become a claims director

  1. Explore claims director education requirements

    Most common claims director degrees

    Bachelor's

    68.4 %

    Doctorate

    9.8 %

    Master's

    9.0 %
  2. Start to develop specific claims director skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Customer Service16.53%
    Litigation10.57%
    Oversight9.03%
    Coverage Issues6.12%
    Claims Handling4.82%
  3. Complete relevant claims director training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New claims directors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a claims director based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real claims director resumes.
  4. Research claims director duties and responsibilities

    • Create project team that comply with new Medicare reporting requirements achieving successful reporting to CMS.
    • Maintain relationships with attorneys and manage litigation strategy; ensure strong relationships with insureds, brokers and third party administrators.
    • Redesign processes and procedures for managing litigation through the implementation of an aggressive process for managing discovery and case typing.
    • General knowledge of CPT, ICD-9, HCPCS, DRG and Medicode (UCR), bundling and unbundling.
  5. Get claims director experience

    Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a claims director. The most common roles before becoming a claims director include claims manager, claims supervisor team lead and claims representative.
  6. Prepare your claims director resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your claims director resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a claims director resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose From 10+ Customizable Claims Director Resume templates

    Build a professional Claims Director resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Claims Director resume.
    Claims Director Resume
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    Claims Director Resume
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    Claims Director Resume
    Claims Director Resume
    Claims Director Resume
    Claims Director Resume
  7. Apply for claims director jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a claims director job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How Did You Land Your First Claims Director Job

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Average claims director salary

The average Claims Director salary in the United States is $118,250 per year or $57 per hour. Claims director salaries range between $73,000 and $190,000 per year.

Average Claims Director Salary
$118,250 Yearly
$56.85 hourly

What Am I Worth?

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How do claims directors rate their job?

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Claims Director reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Sep 2023
Cons

Can be long hours and stressful


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2021
Pros

Being able to control the decision making and managing the delivery of service so I can enhance the customer experience which is very important to ensure the Company remains successful. Also being able to liaise on injury claims and read case law to determine the applicable one

Cons

When customers are not satisfied even when you know you have delivered the best service you could have and have gone beyond the call of duty in delivering same. They appear to not understand the dynamics of the process even if explained to them


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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