For some people, what they do is a point of pride. For others it’s a closely guarded secret. But whatever you do, your job tends to define you. Whether you are a builder, doctor, lawyer, mechanic, astronaut, butler, or dictator, in this society you are your job. And while some jobs are lauded and some are laughed at, some are just plain strange…

7. Canine Semen Bank

You must please this dog for profit.

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The global banking system seems to be constantly on the brink of collapse. Any bank, no matter how prestigious or powerful, can be subject to financial ruin should the ‘fates of finance’ deem it so.  It makes a refreshing change to find a bank that has no problems keeping its accounts full.

The end product.

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The Canine Semen Bank of Columbia is the most famous animal sperm depositary in the world and owes its success to its specificity. No cat, kangaroo or cougar deposits are allowed. This bank is 100% devoted to man’s best friend only. The facility is staffed by 2 fully qualified veterinarians who are experts in the retrieval and storage of dog semen. It does beg the question: after a pooch has made a deposit, does it gain interest?

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6. Submarine Cleaners

You can see your face in that propeller.

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They say a great salesman can sell ice to an Eskimo. So it must have been an extraordinary salesman who convinced the navy that a ship that spends all its time under water requires cleaning.  But an essential part of submarine maintenance is ensuring the ship’s hull is barnacle and blemish free.

This ship could do with a buffing.

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Proper propeller polishing can increase a ship’s efficiency and produce an energy saving of between 10-20%. The cleaners themselves prefer to be referred to as ‘Ship Maintenance Engineers’, which is perfectly understandable as ‘cleaning’ a ship can involve welding, ultrasonic scanning and even photographing, all of which takes place beneath the ocean’s treacherous waves.

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5. Sausage Museum

Now in a cup!

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Working in any museum could be considered quite a strange job. On an average day you may be occupied with anything, from preserving a mummified corpse to taking a group of toddlers on a tour. Yet one of the strangest museums on the planet must be Germany’s ‘Currywurst Museum’.

The Currywurst hungers only for love.

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Situated in Berlin, this museum is dedicated solely to Germany’s favourite fast-food dish. Currywurst consists of hot pork sausage cut into slices and seasoned with ‘curry ketchup’, a mix of tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and curry powder. Although relatively unknown outside its native Germany, it is estimated over 800 million servings of Currywurst are sold every year.

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4. Fortune Cookie Factory

Product of Donald Lau.

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With over 3 billion fortune cookies produced worldwide every year it’s not surprising to find they have Fortune Cookie Factories. Donald Lau, vice-president of Wonton Inc, is the largest producer of fortune cookies in the world. He also has one of the more unusual roles in the building, as it is he who is in charge of writing the fortunes.

Where fortunes are made!

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With over 4 million cookies produced in their Brooklyn factory daily, if each cookie required a unique fortune that would be a mammoth task. Luckily for Mr Lau that isn’t the case and instead he simply recycles fortunes he has previously written in his decades as a fortune cookie writer.

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3. Smell Laboratory

Smell science

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Every day the average person breathes 23,040 times. And with every inhalation we open ourselves to the world of scent. Smell, the often overlooked sense, has the power to disgust and delight in equal measure. Most people manipulate the power of smell to some extent.

Not so mysterious for these scientists.

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From the perfume you wear to mask your natural body odor, to the smell of fresh bread pumped round large supermarkets, synthetic scents have to be produced somewhere. This is the job of the smell laboratory. And although olfactory experimentation is a well established and lucrative field, it must raise a few eyebrows when you tell people what you do.

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2. Corpse Farm

Some farmers grow grain, other farmers raise cattle, some even hire out their land so that drunken teenagers can sample their first drugs at unhygienic music festivals. And then there are those who run corpse farms. A corpse farm is better known as a forensic anthropology facility and is a place where cadavers are placed across the land in various states of decay to assist student scientists and doctors in their studies.

Some of the things you learn at the University of Tennessee.

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The first corpse farm was started by the University of Tennessee in 1981 and began with just one corpse. Today the farm has over 40 corpses at any time in a variety of scenarios and states of decay. This increase in the number of bodies used on the farm has allowed forensic scientists greater advancements in their field. But if you do own a corpse farm it’s probably best to not go bragging about how many bodies you have.

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1. Oyster Garden

The next generation of oyster gardeners.

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The delicacy we know as the oyster belongs to the family of molluscs, Ostreidae. These sub-tidal snacks can be eaten both cooked and raw and are rumored to be a natural aphrodisiac. But how do these tasty treats get from the ocean to your plate? Well, the sea can be an unsanitary place, so after being harvested from the sea, the oysters are taken to an ‘oyster garden’, where they are cleaned.

Hard at work in the oyster fields.

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In the ‘oyster garden’, the oysters are spread around a shallow barge or float. The floats are constructed to allow clean water to flow over the oysters removing any impurities that they may have picked up from the ocean. After being cleaned in the garden the oysters are then shipped to the shop, store or restaurant where the consumer can then purchase them, worry-free.

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That finished our round up of the strangest work places in the world, we’re by no means omnipotent (that privilege is reserved for the likes of Zeus and Odin), so if you or someone you know have a zanier workplace than the ones above please let us know.

British homes are at an increased risk of burglary over Christmas time. Despite properties being filled with festive food and decorations, it doesn’t deter thieves from breaking in when the family are out at Christmas parties.

Brand new, expensive presents offer rich pickings for robbers and according to findings by More Than, British households spend an extra £11 billion Christmas goods in December.

The statistics reveal that Brits are 13% more likely to be burgled in the season than any other month in the year which means insurance claims will be rife. Forget Santa Christmas shimmying down the chimney; it is pesky intruders you need to contend with.

There are some practical tips homeowners can take to secure the home during the holiday and as specialists in burglary, Salmon Assessors urges households to make sure all the goods are safe from prying burglars’ eyes.

- Avoid a seasonal catastrophe by putting electronics and presents out of sight and not visible from any windows when not in use; and close the curtains when you go to bed.

- If you are leaving the home empty for a night to go to a Christmas party, or if you are going away for the festive period, invest in a timer lamp so it looks like someone is home.

- Make sure all windows and doors are closed and locked securely.

- If you do have a safe, lock all valuable items away like jewellery, mobile phones and cash.

- After you have unwrapped your presents don’t put the packaging out for recycling straight away. If a criminal can see a branded box sticking out of the bin they will know a new laptop or TV has just been bought and it is practically inviting them into your home.

Try to follow these guidelines and have a safe Merry Christmas!

But rest assured if someone does break into your home, our professional insurance claims loss adjusters will formulate and negotiate the claim as sensitively as possible. We will deal with all of the repairs that may be needed to the home and we will help you substantiate everything that has been stolen.

There are many glitches that a Brit can come across when getting insurance claims paid and the biggest thing is not having the help of a loss assessor.

Loss adjusters may inform people of their independence and impartiality however they have been instructed by the insurers to act on their behalf. They are employed by the insurance company to act in their best financial interest, not the claimant, so without the assistance of a loss assessor you could be left standing out in the cold.

Claiming an insurance pay-out can be complicated and troublesome as it is without expert help so ease yourself of all the strain and time-constraints and contact a professional loss assessor right from the commencement of the claim.

Salmon Assessors operates 365 days a year, 24/7, so if you are worried that your building’s insurance claim isn’t going to be approved, if you have found that the insurance company has thrown your claim out, let the specialist loss assessors work for you.

The firm’s vast wealth of experience has enabled it to establish a respected and trusted name in the industry. Let them do all the hard work for you and carry out the huge amount of labour and effort that goes into pursuing a claim; meaning you can just sit back and wait for them to negotiate and successfully win your claim.

Salmon Assessors fight to ensure that you get every last penny that you deserve and they act for claims all over the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. The experts achieve phenomenal results and they simply do not know the meaning of giving up. They are the company that other loss adjusters often turn to when they need advice; so contact the friendly team today on 020 8346 6060- they are only interested in protecting and helping you.

Media Contact Details

• Name: Salmon Assessors
• Company Name: Salmon Assessors
• Telephone Number: 020 8346 6060
• Email: info@insuranceclaims.co.uk

Recent heavy rain in Scotland caused the river banks to burst, resulting in roads being closed and train and bus services being cancelled.

The flood water brought parts of Scotland into chaos with some people being rescued from their cars and others being stuck in their homes because of the rising water. But forecasters are warning that the heavy rain could prompt more flooding.

If you have experienced water damage to your home or business property, you need to call Salmon Assessors immediately to start processing your flood insurance claims.

The west of Scotland, central belt and border areas suffered between 20mm and 47mm of rain fall in a 24 hour period. Tyndrum, in Stirlingshire, was the wettest place with 47mm of rain whilst Glasgow had 38mm. Although the skies have cleared, drivers are being cautioned to drive carefully because of high winds and the first few days after a flood are vital to making a successful water damage claim.

The Met Office has issued severe weather warnings for heavy rain in the Highlands, Strathclyde, Central, Tayside, Fife and the Lothian and Borders areas.

Salmon Assessors have dealt with thousands of claims over the past 25 years and no other firm is more qualified to help you through such a disaster.

So if your house has been affected by the Scotland floods get in touch today. The insurance company will send loss adjusters to visit you so that they can report back with their findings. But we also need to take notes of the initial findings in case the water damage claim is refused.

So call us now and we’ll send out our truly professional and thoughtful loss assessors to help you in your flood claim.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has revealed its priorities on car insurance and fraudulent claims are one of them.

The UK financial services trade association has outlined its five urgencies and young drivers’ safety coincides with tackling the rising costs of whiplash, compensation reform, fraud and uninsured driving.

Otto Thoresen, ABI’s Director General, said at the ABI Motor Conference: “As a nation of car users with some of the busiest roads in the world, insurers are committed to providing the best possible deal for motorists.

“One of the key ways to achieve this has to be improving the safety of our young drivers, who continue to make up a disproportionate number of road casualties. Five years ago we called for measures, such as a minimum learning period, to tackle this tragic waste of life, yet every day 18 young people die or are seriously injured on our roads.”

He also expressed the other significances for motor insurers and fake insurance claims. It is reported that on average every minute one person makes a whiplash claim.

Thoresen claims that Britain must seek better diagnosis of genuine claims and make it harder to make a fraudulent claim for neck injuries. He added: “The long overdue reforms to our dysfunctional compensation system will benefit genuine claimants, deter fraud and, crucially, reduce the excessive legal costs in paying out personal injury claims.”

ABI hope to fight against fraud with initiatives including a dedicated police insurance unit and an insurance fraud register.

Here at Salmon Assessors, we are best known for achieving phenomenal results where other loss adjusters and loss assessors fail. We fight your corner until we get you the highest possible settlement, so if your claim is genuine we will never give up.

The number of people falsely claiming on their pet insurance policies has rocketed, according to the Association of British Insurers.

Findings from a new survey show that many owners are going to the extreme of deliberately harming their pets for insurance claims money and that the sum of pet insurance fraud pay-outs detected last year amounted to almost £2million.

The organisation has revealed that there was £1,929,900 worth of fraudulent animal compensation claims in 2010 and that the number of fake requests has almost quadrupled in the last year from £420,000 in 2009 – making it the fastest growing area of insurance claims.

Industry experts are concerned that the injuries to the furry friends are similar to ‘cash for crash’ scams which involves cars being purposely smashed for compensation. And with over 2.3 million cats and dogs being insured last year, the number of cases that could possibly occur is startling.

The study found that some owners are injuring their pets in ‘fake accidents’ to cover up previous conditions that were not covered by their policy, and that some owners have even killed their domestic animals to claim an early death insurance pay-out. Animals are going mysteriously missing in order for owners to claim that the pet is lost or stolen and the report concludes that some pets may never have existed in the first place.

Insurers are concerned that some vets may be involved in the sick cons and are deliberately putting healthy pets down for quick bucks. For all claims in excess of £1,000, an insurance company will appoint their own loss adjusters who will investigate the claim to see whether your insurers have grounds for turning it down.

Whether you are claiming for pet insurance, flood, fire or burglary, get in touch with the expert insurance claim advice and service firm today and speak to the friendly loss assessors at Salmon Assessors.

The arrival of the storms and gales and the onset of the freezing pipes season always cause a surge in insurance claims, but a survey out this week suggests the average policyholder is dishonestly inflating claims by at least 25%.

The survey, conducted by the Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters, coincides with a New Year clampdown on fraud by insurance companies, which started to investigate claims on a random basis.

But the Consumers’ Association is urging honest householders not to be intimidated by loss adjusters who try to knock down claims by saying they are “underinsured” or there is unsatisfactory evident – no receipts, for example.

In the past, insurance claims adjusters only used to be routinely employed by insurance companies for claims above £1,000.  Now the threshold is about £300.  In theory, they independently negotiate claims and have the power to raise the amount.  In practice, they are employed to reduce the insurance company’s losses.

Jeffrey Salmon, a leading ‘Loss Assessor’ who battles with insurance companies on behalf of policyholders, says people should always challenge Insurers and the loss adjuster they appoint.  “For some reason, people treat them with the same respect as the Inland Revenue.   They shouldn’t”.

He urges policyholders to be as assertive as they would with, say, a department store over faulty merchandise.  “Take flood claims.  Adjusters tend to quote the cheapest equivalent for replacement furnishings or they deduct ridiculous amounts for wear and tear.”

Original receipts are now crucial when making a claim, though more insurance companies are insisting on evidence of re-purchase or building work invoices rather than estimates.

TSB Insurance, for example, is moving towards a policy of replacing damaged items itself instead of paying out cash when a claim is settled.  Already, claims exceeding £100 for damaged carpets are passed to the retailer Carpet Land.

Companies are also putting up ‘excesses’ (sometimes to more than £200) to deter people from making small claims.

A spokesman for the Association of British Insurers said people with a valid claim had nothing to fear from the new crackdown but added, “Where there is evidence of fraud, companies are not hesitating to prosecute”.  Dishonest claimants may be put on a computer blacklist.

The recession has boosted fraud, but dishonest claims tend to rise in line with premium increases.  Householders have had to swallow swinging increases over the past two years – making household cover three times more expensive in some cases.  Yet fraud merely gives companies an excuse to push up premiums.

Here are a few of our favorite insurance claims jokes:

- Insurance brokers never retire, they just expire.

- Insurance brokers are premium lovers. 

- Insurance brokers do it with third parties 

- The farmer’s barn had burnt down and his wife called the insurance company and said, ‘That barn was insured for £180,000 so can I have my money’.  ‘It doesn’t work like that’ said the insurance company claims manager.  ‘What happens is that we assess the value of the barn and we will provide you with one on a like-for-like basis’.  The farmer’s wife thought about it and said, ‘Well, if that’s the case I’d like you to cancel the life insurance policy on my husband’

- A woman was in hospital when the doctor said to her, ‘I have some bad new for you.  Unfortunately you only have 3 months left to live’.  ‘Oh, that’s terrible news’ she said ‘Whatever can I do?’.  The doctor replied ‘You should marry an insurance broker’.  ‘Will that make me live longer?’ she asked.   ‘No’ replied the doctor ‘but it will seem longer’.

The insurance industry is not particularly well known for its humorous side although, we assure you, we in the claims industry do come across some ‘howlers’ when reading Claims Forms.  Below is a selection of our favourite ones that we have collected over the years from both our friends at insurance companies and by trawling through the internet.  They are all genuine so enjoy!

“As you are aware, my taxi has now been converted into a hearse and now I only transport dead persons.  So, obviously, my passengers are not at any risk, why are you making me pay a further insurance premium in case they are involved in a car accident?”

“I collided with a tree that was stationary.”

“I collided into a lamp post that was obscured by a human being”.

“My car slowed down but the traffic was much more stationary than I thought it was”.

“Because I am hard of hearing you’ll understand the reason that I didn’t see the cyclist”

“Someone who doesn’t know how to properly drive is going to borrow my car but before he does are you able to confirm that any damage is likely to be caused will be paid”

“I am stunned that you are refusing to pay me out for this accident simply because I wasn’t wearing my glasses.  I swear that the accident was no way my fault.  I simply didn’t see the cyclist when I ran him over”

Insurance is a necessity in the modern world where Mother Nature, poor drivers, thieves and accidents are just a handful of risks which can upturn your life and leave you and your finances vulnerable. Although it can seem like a needless expense, investing in insurance is the only way to prepare for the worst. With so many hazards at home, in the workplace and on the roads how do you know which types of insurance to choose? Below are 5 types of insurance which you should consider investing in.

1) Personal injury

We’ve all seen the adverts asking if we’ve been injured in an accident at work or in a public place but what would the consequences be if you actually did have an accident? You may not be able to work for a period of time and you may need to get help to look after your family or even yourself. Some of most common personal injury claims include road accidents, tripping, assault and accidents on holiday. Accidents can happen to anyone but if you work in a particularly dangerous environment, spend a lot of time behind the wheel or enjoy extreme sports, then you should consider investing in personal injury insurance.

2) Fire

All homes are at a risk from fire but the level of the risk will depend on what types of preventative measures you have in place. If you have a smoke alarm on every floor in your home and a fire extinguisher in the kitchen then your home is arguably less at risk. If the worst does happen then the aftermath of a fire can be extremely traumatic and even small fires can result in needing to spend money redecorating and replacing damaged furniture. It’s worth getting covered so that the aftermath of the fire is less of a financial burden and you can have the right help on hand.

3) Flooding

In 2006 the UK saw some of the worst floods on records with thousands of homes and businesses being wrecked by water across the country. This scale of devastation proves that it’s not just coastal or riverside properties which are at risk from floods and any low lying area could be affected. Arranging alternative accommodation, making repairs and replacing possessions is just the start of recovering from a flood and in some cases it take months for your home to become liveable again. Being insured can make the recovery process much smoother and also give you peace of mind if you are in a high risk area.