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T H U R S D A Y , A P R I L 2 3 , 2 0 0 9 Industry News
Legislative Conference & Convention
Where Will You Be April 29-May 1?
Next week, more than 1,000 independent agents and brokers will be in Washington, D.C. speaking with legislators on issues important to your livelihood, the insurance industry, small businesses and consumers. Will you be there? The Big "I" makes it easy for agents to speak with one voice. After a thorough issues briefing meeting, attendees will be armed with talking points on the following issues to take directly to their representatives in Congress:
• Insurance regulation – Where will you and your agency be regulated – at the state level, federal level or both?
• Agent licensing reform – Educate Congress on why producer licensing needs to be more efficient.
• Natural catastrophes – Advocate for renewal of the National Flood Insurance Program and natural disaster proposals.
• Health insurance – Make sure agents remain vital in delivering health insurance to small businesses and individuals.
• Taxes – Fight potential federal tax increases that could harm Big “I” small business owners.
Now is a crucial time for the independent agency system as the nation’s leaders work to mend the economy and the financial services sector. Attend the Big "I" Legislative Conference & Convention and protect your industry and its future.
Also on the agenda: • Network with current and future leaders of the independent agency system.
• Discover new products and services to simplify your business and improve your product offerings in the exhibit hall.
• Understand the state of the economy and its impact on the industry at the general session.
• Uncover technical answers from Big “I” Virtual University experts.
Don’t miss out. Registration will be available on site April 29 from 7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.; April 30 from 6:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. and May 1 from 7:30 a.m. – 3 p.m.
IIABA News
Big “I” to Host Free Webinar on E-mail Security
The Big “I” Agents Council for Technology (ACT) recently announced that it will be hosting a free webinar entitled “Protecting Independent Agent Clients with Secure E-mail Using TLS (Transport Layer Security)” on May 13 from 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. EST. “Regular unsecured e-mail is like sending an open postcard through the mail,” says Jeff Yates, ACT executive director. “It is not an appropriate tool where confidential consumer information may be included, such as when sending commercial lines applications.” “ACT recommends independent agents and carriers implement TLS e-mail encryption wherever possible to protect the sensitive client information being sent between carriers and clients,” Yates adds. “Taking such steps positions the agency well with regard to the various federal and state privacy, security and data breach laws.” TLS is available on most up-to-date in-house e-mail servers (such as Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes). It is not currently available on hosted e-mail such as Hotmail, Gmail or Yahoo. Once implemented by the agency’s technology professional, TLS is transparent to the user and the only cost is for the security certificate. It provides a better agent workflow than proprietary e-mail solutions imposed by the carrier. Many carriers are already enabled with TLS. Yates will serve as moderator for the hour-long webinar, and panelists will include Jim Rogers, director of distribution at The Hartford, and Tim Woodcock, president of Courtesy Computers. The first 30 minutes of the webinar are designed for agency business leaders to explain the risks of unsecured e-mail and how TLS works. The second half will be a more technical discussion regarding implementation of TLS on Microsoft Exchange servers. To register for the webinar, click here.
ACT has produced the article “Protect Your Clients with Secure E-mail using TLS,” as well as agents’ frequently asked questions about TLS, which can be found at www.independentagent.com/act at the “Agency Security/Customer Privacy” link.
IIABA News
Big “I” Staff Member Featured on Webinar Panel
Madelyn Flannagan, Big “I” vice president of education and research, will be a featured speaker in the upcoming webinar “Agency Finance and Valuation 2009: What’s My Agency Worth?” The hour-long webinar, presented by Best’s Review magazine, will be held May 13 at 2 p.m. EST. Flannagan will be joined by other experts on agency selling, buying and succession, including Tim Cunningham, principal at OPTIS Partners, Skip Hagerty of Philo Smith & Co. and Robert Pettinicchi, executive vice president and chief lending officer at InsurBanc.
The presentations and discussions during the webinar will cover: • The current climate for insurance agency mergers and acquisitions, including trends in pricing, terms and financing.
• Developing economic, regulatory and taxation issues that could affect agency M&A activity.
• How transactions are proceeding, including what types of agencies are considered more or less desirable.
• How agency principals can better position themselves to take advantage of tomorrow’s M&A environment. Attendees can submit questions and feedback. Highlights from the webinar will be reported in later editions of Best’s Review. Registration for the webinar is free, but limited to 1,000 attendees. To register, click here.
Trusted Choice®
Florida Agency Awarded Trusted Choice® Agency of the Month
Jack Rice Insurance in Largo, Fla. has been named the Trusted Choice® Agency of the Month. “The knowledgeable and professional team at Jack Rice Insurance exemplifies the Trusted Choice® Pledge of Performance,” says Robert Rusbuldt, Big "I" president & CEO. “We are proud to announce that they are the Trusted Choice® Agency of the Month.” The Jack Rice Insurance agency was one of the first agencies to join Trusted Choice® in its inaugural year. The agency has experienced continued growth since 1985 and provides its clients with a variety of personal, business and employee benefit insurance products. "By ‘living the Trusted Choice® brand,’ we do our utmost to meet our client's insurance needs and pride ourselves in placing the client's needs ahead of our own,” says Cindy Webster, Jack Rice Insurance president and CEO. “We're consistently improving our systems and procedures to better serve our clients. It is important to our agency that our clients have confidence in our integrity.” The Trusted Choice® Agency of the Month program recognizes those Trusted Choice® agencies that are going above and beyond in living the tenets of the Trusted Choice® Pledge of Performance and in communicating the benefits of their services to consumers. Trusted Choice® agencies agree to adhere to a written pledge that states they will work with their customers to identify the insurance and financial services that are right for them, their families or their business and use their access to multiple companies to deliver those products. It also states that they will help guide consumers through the claims process and help them solve problems related to their coverage or account, among other things. For more information, visit www.TrustedChoice.com.
Big “I” Markets
Bond Market Access Now Available
Big “I” members now have access to a wide range of surety and performance/payment bonds through Big “I” Markets, including: bid, contractor, license & permit, court, fidelity and other commercial & miscellaneous bonds. Goldleaf Surety Services, the Big “I” market provider, is a member of the Minnesota association. Goldleaf Surety Services is a high-skill, high-service national surety broker specializing in surety bonds. They currently provide prompt, professional support to more than 900 insurance agencies around the country that need help placing bonds for their clients. Goldleaf currently works with more than two dozen surety companies, all of which are rated “Excellent” (or better) by A.M. Best, and all of which are “T-Listed” (approved by the U.S. Department of the Treasury) for bonding federal contracts. Ranging from standard to specialized surety markets, Goldleaf has an extraordinarily wide range of capacity by size and trade. Goldleaf also maintains licenses in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands, so they are able to provide the convenience of one, stable surety file for clients with multi-state surety needs. “We actually help retail agents sell the business and direct counsel their clients on surety bonds,” says Geoff Hathaway, Goldleaf Surety’s CEO and general counsel. “We recognize that many agents are not experts on bonding. We are, so if an agent has a prospect but does not feel confident in gathering the right information and marketing the account, the agent can have us talk directly to the prospect, get the right forms and underwriting information right from the beginning, get the bond placed and then send the agent a referral commission on all bonds we place for that account going forward.” Goldleaf Surety Services targets all performance bonds and almost every other type of surety and fidelity bond that may be needed by clients. The company has great market capacity for bid bonds and performance/payment bonds on all types of contract obligations, including: construction trades – all sizes, subcontractors and artisan contractors, environmental work (including asbestos abatement), subdivision and site improvement work; service contractors, software, IT and technology-related industries and specialty manufacturers. Goldleaf also has extensive experience with and can handle all forms of license & permit bonds, court bonds, fidelity bonds and other commercial & miscellaneous bonds. Goldleaf can provide: excellent surety markets for these bonds; 24-hour response time on many license bonds required throughout the U.S.; and access to online bond forms and statutes in many states.
There is a small segment of the marketplace Goldleaf does not handle which includes certain hazardous classes of bonds, bail bonds or customs bonds. To learn more about how your agency can access the Goldleaf product through Big “I” Markets, visit www.bigimarkets.com.
Big “I” Professional Liability
Free Risk Management Webinar: Avoiding E&O Pitfalls in E&S Business
Webinar is the first in a series addressing E&O risk management.
Swiss Re Academy and the Big “I” Professional Liability Program will present a free risk management webinar for Swiss Re agency E&O policyholders on May 15 from 2-3 p.m. EST. The webinar is appropriate for all agency staff and covers the E&O issues of placing insurance in the excess & surplus lines market, and working with E&S brokers.
This is the first webinar in a series addressing knowledge of E&O risk management that will be held throughout 2009.
The highly knowledgeable panel will include: an experienced E&S broker, a respected Big “I” state executive director with years of E&S experience, an attorney who has handled numerous cases involving independent agents and their E&S placements, a Swiss Re underwriter who works with E&S placements and a Swiss Re claims attorney who works with Swiss Re E&O insured agents.
Attendees will learn more about: where E&O claims occur with the placement of E&S risks; when and why to use the E&S market; laws affecting E&S markets, such as cancellation requirements, coverage changes and Guaranty fund protection; how to select an E&S broker; the duties of the producing agent or broker and more. Please join us as we give you more ammunition to protect yourself in the ever-changing world of the independent agent. Click here to register now.
Swiss Re policyholders can also find more valuable agency E&O risk management information by visiting www.independentagent.com/eohappens.
ACT
Real Time/Download Campaign Adds Webinar Dates
As a result of strong agent and carrier interest, the Real Time/Download Campaign (www.getrealtime.org) has added session dates to its monthly webinars entitled, “Real Time: The Next Major Advance in Agency Workflow.” The sessions will provide independent agency owners and employees a free, convenient opportunity to understand how to leverage a wave of change underway that improves customer service and agency profitability. Upcoming sessions are scheduled for May 6 and June 3. “Why should agency staff take an hour out of their day to learn about Real Time,” says campaign co-chair Cyndy Smith, vice president and director of technology at Haylor, Freyer & Coon in Syracuse, N.Y. “Agencies using this advanced workflow are saving 30 minutes or more per day per CSR. So in less than a week, CSRs will see a return on the time they invested in attending the webinar.” More than 1,000 insurance professionals have participated in the webinars already this year. In each session, presenters explain real time, demonstrate its capabilities, discuss benefits, and outline steps agencies and brokerages can take to implement real time or increase its usage. They also discuss the increasing importance of download, which completes the round trip of data between agency and carrier. The free webinar, designed for principals, systems professionals and CSRs, runs an hour long, with time available for questions and answers. The webinars are relevant to all agencies regardless of the agency management system they use. Live demos of real-time quoting and inquiry transactions will be shown. These vendor-specific demos are intended to demonstrate the efficiencies of real-time workflows. To see the presentation outline, click here. Attendees can also listen to the audio through computer headsets or speakers and a recorded version is available on demand at www.getrealtime.org.
To register for the May 6 event, click here. To register for the June 3 session, click here.
Big I AdvantageSM
Big “I” Members Save on FedEx Shipping
Did you know that the Big “I” can help you save on your shipping costs? Big “I” members can now save up to 26% on select FedEx® shipping services. For more information or to enroll in this free discount program, please click here or call 1-800-636-2377, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. EST, Monday – Friday.
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