Add an Education component to your Insurance proposals
How well does your client understand all of the key terms in their insurance program? There is no doubt that this varies from customer to customer. One approach that many agents use to educate their...
View ArticleDo the insurance proposals from your carriers contain “conditions”?
Chances are they probably do. At least a significant number of the proposals contain some type of conditions / warranties / stipulations….they are very common. Compliance with these conditions is...
View ArticleYour insurance agency proposals – actually a key element in E&O loss prevention
There is no doubt that your insurance agency proposals can heavily determine whether you secure the account. What many may not realize is that they can also be a significant part of your E&O loss...
View ArticleAttn: Insurance Producers – are you documenting the customer’s final decision ?
There is no doubt that the proposal can be a key document in the sales process. Not only should it address how the various coverages will perform and what level of service will be provided but it is...
View ArticleYour insurance agency proposals – do they include these things?
Ask virtually any insurance producer the purpose of a client proposal and you will undoubtedly hear that “the goal is to sell the account”. While it is hard to really argue that point, the insurance...
View ArticleA potpouri of E&O tips for Insurance Agencies
Offer options When providing proposals for your customers, it is recommended that you provide a series of limit options for the customer to consider with a statement noting that higher limits may be...
View ArticleBe sure to bring closure to open quotes
In the life of an independent agent, there is typically a lot of quote activity, on both a personal lines and commercial lines basis. A solid E&O best practices that has been promoted for many...
View ArticleHow do you differentiate multiple proposals on the same line of business?
The other day, I was having dialogue with the claims manager of one of the leading E&O carriers regarding what trends they are currently experiencing. During the discussion, she mentioned an area...
View ArticleCustomer Accountability – a great E&O goal !
“Why is it always our fault when a customer has a loss that is not covered? They knew that they didn’t have that coverage”. It seems that in virtually every conversation that I have with agencies, this...
View ArticleE&O Insights: Why It’s Important to Review E&S Proposals
This is an excerpt from an Insurance Journal article that I authored in the July 21, 2014 edition. “Hard market or soft, having an active relationship with at least a couple of excess and surplus lines...
View ArticleE&O Insights: ‘Just Duplicate What I Have’
This is an excerpt from an Insurance Journal article that I authored in the August 18, 2014 edition. “From a producer’s perspective, the words in the headline are dangerous when spoken by a customer or...
View ArticleAre you listing exclusions on your proposals?
It is not uncommon for agencies to list exclusions on the proposals that they provide to customers. Essentially, this is designed to impress upon the customer / prospect that there are various...
View ArticleHow are you confirming coverages that have been declined ?
While it would be nice if your clients bought every coverage you proposed, unfortunately that is not the reality. So whether the client is brand new or one that you have had for a number of years,...
View ArticleIs your agency a better E&O risk today compared to a year ago?
When answering this question, regardless of your position within the agency, it is crucial to be honest because there are many factors into determining this. Some key issues include:...
View ArticleE&O Insights: When Should You Offer an Umbrella?
This is an excerpt from an Insurance Journal article that I authored in the June 15, 2015 edition. “If one were to ask an agency how many of its personal and commercial accounts have an umbrella, most...
View ArticleDon’t let E&O loss prevention scare you!
Mention E&O loss prevention to folks in the insurance industry and many of them will probably comment “that is scary stuff”. In fact, if you were to interview insurance agency owners coming out of...
View ArticleCould you be guilty of “over promising?”
There is no doubt the insurance agency world is highly competitive with agencies always looking to position themselves in a more favorable light. For this reason, some agencies tend to stretch the...
View Article“My friend would never sue me”
Hopefully you really don’t believe this statement. As noted by the following actual E&O claim, friends do sue friends and they can win these suits. A doctor working for a non-profit group was sent...
View ArticleBinders on your E&S business
When binding a piece of E&S business, most agencies would probably generate a binder and send it on to the client. Technically, there is a problem with this. The problem is that in the vast...
View ArticleWant to sell more insurance while reducing your E&O exposure?
This sounds like as close to a true “win-win” scenario as one could get. Ironically, the more focused an agency is on minimizing their E&O exposure, the more insurance they will sell. Here is an...
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