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T H U R S D A Y , J U L Y 1 2 , 2 0 0 7 Industry News TRUSTED CHOICE® Trusted Choice® on ‘Designing Spaces’ Trusted Choice® has partnered with The Learning Channel’s “Designing Spaces” to sponsor a series on important insurance issues for homeowners. The series consists of three separate two-minute segments featuring one-on-one interviews with three Trusted Choice® agents by show host Debi Marie. The interviews will air on three different episodes of the home improvement and design TV program. Big “I” President Alex Soto (InSource, Inc.) of Miami was interviewed on flood insurance. Brick, N.J. agent Jeanne Heisler (The Ronan Agency) handled a segment on personal umbrella policies and social host liability issues. And Julie Turner (The Turner Agency) of Greenville, S.C. was featured in a piece on home remodeling insurance coverage concerns. All three segments were filmed in Florida last month at the “Designing Spaces” studios.
The first segment, featuring Turner, will premiere this weekend on TLC and the Women's Entertainment network. It will air on WE July 13 at 7:30 a.m. and on TLC July 14 at 7 a.m. in both the East and West (6 a.m. central time). The segments with Soto and Heisler will run in the September/October timeframe. In addition, all of these stories will replay on many local broadcast network affiliates after their TLC debuts throughout the summer and fall. Each piece will air about 20 times.
In addition, the Trusted Choice® logo will be used in all print advertising for these episodes. Those ads will appear mostly in family-oriented magazines (titles to be determined) during the next couple of months and will give Trusted Choice® extra visibility. Trusted Choice® will let members know as soon as it receives airdates from TLC for the remaining two segments. For additional information, contact Jenner Gohr at 800-221-7197; jenner.gohr@iiaba.net.
IIABA NEWS Coming Soon: New Big “I” Web Site The Big “I” Web site, www.independentagent.com, is getting a makeover. The site is being redesigned with new menus and layouts that will allow for easier navigation. Stay tuned to the Web site as the transition unfolds!
YOUNG AGENTS Register Now for Young Agents Leadership Institute The 2007 Young Agents Leadership Institute will be held Sept. 28-30 at the Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego, Calif. This event features distinct breakout sessions focusing on membership development, communications and political involvement. Attendees will hear from ACORD, Artizan Internet Services and Applied Systems and members of ACT during the technology panel, where they will gain insight into the latest technology trends. Attendees also will have the opportunity to network with peers and Big “I” leaders, learn new strategies for agency management and develop valuable professional and personal contacts. The Young Agent Committee Awards highlighting the efforts and enthusiasm Young Agent Committees have towards their states also will be announced at this event. The Young Agent opening event will be held on a San Diego dinner cruise on Sept. 29 with San Diego flair. Don’t let this opportunity pass by---visit www.independentagent.com and click “Young Agents” for updates on the event and for online registration. For more information, contact Katie Cosgrove at 800-221-7917; katie.cosgrove@iiaba.net.
BIG “I” MARKETSSM Will Supreme Court Drive More Fiduciary/D&O Purchases?
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that may cause business clients to be much more interested in their fiduciary liability insurance. As reported in June 25 edition of Business Insurance, if the lower court ruling in LaRue vs. Dewolff is overturned, the average employer with a 401(k) plan may have a much bigger exposure to liability. Stephen Rosenberg, head of ERISA practice for the McCormack Firm LLC, says in the article that if employers are not “scrupulous and really detailed oriented” in administering the individual investment decisions, employers and their employees could be held liable. While it’s not new that employees personally can be deemed liable as a fiduciary under ERISA act section 410(a), what is new is the individual ( James LaRue in this case) is now facilitated in bringing suit against fiduciaries at their employer.
It’s a good idea to discuss this exposure with any business clients that have any type of employer-sponsored investment plan, like a 401(k). A short primer on the subject is available from the International Risk Management Institute by clicking here. No matter what the Supreme Court does, clients should know their exposure in this area and address it with their agents. While employers with only non-retirement type employee benefit plans may be well served by a simple endorsement to the general liability called employee benefit administration liability, anyone offering employees retirement savings plans should consider finding broader fiduciary liability coverage. Coverage can be obtained on a stand alone basis, or many employers find it more convenient to include it as part of their D&O. Big “I” Markets offers ERISA Fiduciary coverage as part of its Wrap+ offering through St. Paul Travelers targeting privately owned companies. For more information log on to Big “I” Markets and review the Wrap+ Underwriting and Coverage Page. Agents authorized to product business can contact a St. Paul Travelers underwriter via the Big “I” Markets site. Member agents interested in signing up can do so via www.bigimarkets.com.
VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY
Environmental Liability Insurance Training Available
Chris Bunbury is an environmental strategist and president of Environmental Risk Managers, Inc. and Environmental Strategist™, Inc., the following is an article by Bunbury discussing the importance of environmental liability insurance training.
Virtually every business has exposure to environmental liabilities. Unfortunately, only a very small percentage of p-c insurance agents strategize with clients on their environmental issues. Agents who are not environmentally proactive need to understand the only coverage a client may have when an environmental loss occurs is the agent’s E&O insurance.
It is amazing that, today, agents still proclaim their insureds to be free of any environmental exposures. The lack of environmental knowledge by the agents is the problem. The solution can be found at www.estrategist.com.
Feeding off the information highway has brought an end to traditional insurance sales. Traditional insurance sales are built on theories to persuade, meaning agents need to convince the consumer to buy. This commodity-based insurance theory is facing rising operational costs and deteriorating profits.
The insurance market’s current climate does not allow for lackluster transactional sales hit ratios of 30%, 40% or 50%. Those ratios mean an agent fails more than succeeds and he or she is wasting time and resources.
Today’s commercial insurance consumers are more knowledgeable and have no time for persuasion they require the appropriate information in order to make an informed buying decision. Since environmental issues impact virtually every business, delivering the environmental information a consumer needs allows agents to help new clients to buy.
The phrase “organic strategies” means that through education, an agent is elevating the business transaction. The decision to buy occurs through a natural evolution of blending education with filling a consumer need, want, desire, dream---in other words, it’s organic.
With organic strategies, instead of trying to persuade or convince a consumer, agents assist them to buy. Organic strategies increase the hit ratio thus assuring maximum value and optimal performance in satisfying the buying needs of today’s consumers.
Business transparency (SOX, FIN 47, SAB 92 Ruling, terrorism, ISO 14000, ISO 26000, Brownfields, etc.) is also pushing demand for organic strategies far beyond just environmental liability insurance. Business transparency is forcing businesses to act naturally, or organic. Transparency has reinforced to consumers the need to be educated in order to make an informed buying decision.
An environmental Strategist (eS) refers to education as competitive environmental intelligence because it gives the consumer a competitive advantage. Working with an educated consumer raises the level of the entire business transaction and allows agents to move beyond the commodity based attitude of traditional insurance consumers.
Sharing a competitive environmental intelligence with consumers distinguishes an agent from the competition. It allows a knowledgeable consumer to determine if they want to build a relationship. Once the consumer makes that decision, the sale of the product, service or idea will naturally follow, organically. Competitive environmental intelligence is used to solve a problem, grow profits, and improve product quality and services.
Organic strategies naturally allow an agent to sell more than he/she ever thought possible, simply by assisting the consumer to buy.
The Web site www.estrategist.com gives agents the competitive environmental intelligence needed to implement organic strategies into their existing business strategy, thus adding value, while increasing sales and better protecting their E&O exposure.
Big “I” members can access this training on the Big “I” Virtual University by clicking here. All members and their employees need to access this online resource and classroom center is a login provided by the Big “I.” Those who do not have this login information, click here.
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