BEWARE of Some FMO's!!

[goillini52]

I have been in the Medicare business over 35 years, I know most of them pretty well.

38 years here.

A few things you can get from FMO's and still get street contracts: 1,000 piece DM lead drop for 12 issued Med Supps/FE policies.1,000 piece DM lead drop for 10 issued Med Supp/MA policies. Free T-65 lists. CSG that covers every company in all 60 states for Med Supp, MA/PDP, FE, HIP, Cancer and Dental. Free AHIP. Free or dicounted E & O. Free CRM. Free "business card website. Some have catalogs you can accumulate points toward about anything and shop from. Some have their own trips in addition to carrier trips. I'm sure there's more.

In addition to the "freebies", you can get supplies quicker from a FMO than from the carrier. they're good for letting you know when new companies hit the scene, updates, marketing materials and ideas, good articles, video tutorials on how to work with technology, etc.

I'm just saying that I used to feel the same way you do until I started looking around. I don't want a FMO for their knowledge or training. I just want the best deal I can get.

 

[Todd King]

Companies should allow all to contract direct, FMO's do nothing more than the majority of agents can do on their own, they just collect a piece of your pie!

This is where you are wrong...or if you are not, you need to change FMOs. They are not getting a piece of YOUR pie at all. If you do enough production to have higher contracts than you are on now, then you should be telling your FMO to give it to you or find another one. Either way, they take NOTHING from you.

 

[myinsurebiz]

38 years here.

A few things you can get from FMO's and still get street contracts: 1,000 piece DM lead drop for 12 issued Med Supps/FE policies.1,000 piece DM lead drop for 10 issued Med Supp/MA policies. Free T-65 lists. CSG that covers every company in all 60 states for Med Supp, MA/PDP, FE, HIP, Cancer and Dental. Free AHIP. Free or dicounted E & O. Free CRM. Free "business card website. Some have catalogs you can accumulate points toward about anything and shop from. Some have their own trips in addition to carrier trips. I'm sure there's more.

In addition to the "freebies", you can get supplies quicker from a FMO than from the carrier. they're good for letting you know when new companies hit the scene, updates, marketing materials and ideas, good articles, video tutorials on how to work with technology, etc.

I'm just saying that I used to feel the same way you do until I started looking around. I don't want a FMO for their knowledge or training. I just want the best deal I can get.

Dang - knew there were more and the Russians were holding out . . .

 

[Newby]

38 years here.

A few things you can get from FMO's and still get street contracts: 1,000 piece DM lead drop for 12 issued Med Supps/FE policies.1,000 piece DM lead drop for 10 issued Med Supp/MA policies. Free T-65 lists. CSG that covers every company in all 60 states for Med Supp, MA/PDP, FE, HIP, Cancer and Dental. Free AHIP. Free or dicounted E & O. Free CRM. Free "business card website. Some have catalogs you can accumulate points toward about anything and shop from. Some have their own trips in addition to carrier trips. I'm sure there's more.

In addition to the "freebies", you can get supplies quicker from a FMO than from the carrier. they're good for letting you know when new companies hit the scene, updates, marketing materials and ideas, good articles, video tutorials on how to work with technology, etc.

I'm just saying that I used to feel the same way you do until I started looking around. I don't want a FMO for their knowledge or training. I just want the best deal I can get.

I went on an agency trip a year or two ago that was nicer than most of the insurance company trips. It was through an agency that my wife runs some of her Medicare through. Definitely was a nice value add with no loss of commission.

 

[goillini52]

Dang - knew there were more and the Russians were holding out . . .

O'bama added 10 states. Probably to please Vlad.

 

[ncaggie]

38 years here.

A few things you can get from FMO's and still get street contracts: 1,000 piece DM lead drop for 12 issued Med Supps/FE policies.1,000 piece DM lead drop for 10 issued Med Supp/MA policies. Free T-65 lists. CSG that covers every company in all 60 states for Med Supp, MA/PDP, FE, HIP, Cancer and Dental. Free AHIP. Free or dicounted E & O. Free CRM. Free "business card website. Some have catalogs you can accumulate points toward about anything and shop from. Some have their own trips in addition to carrier trips. I'm sure there's more.

In addition to the "freebies", you can get supplies quicker from a FMO than from the carrier. they're good for letting you know when new companies hit the scene, updates, marketing materials and ideas, good articles, video tutorials on how to work with technology, etc.

I'm just saying that I used to feel the same way you do until I started looking around. I don't want a FMO for their knowledge or training. I just want the best deal I can get.

Inboxed

 

[InsuranceGuy29]

I just wanted to warn other new agents out there to beware. I have learned the very hard way that you if you sign up under agency and they don't work out for you, you can get stuck in a 6 month waiting period to transfer to your New Agency with certain Medicare Advantage carriers, UHC, Humana and others. The local GA I signed under for my Medicare contracts under promised me he would give me an immediate release and even put it in writing. A few months in I realized we were not a good fit to work together but UHC was in a blackout during AEP 2018 so I waited till January to find a different agency to work with.
I found one, went to sign up with them and went to get my written releases which UHC, Humana and others needed. My old Agency was under 2 different FMO's. One of them does give a release and are a good agency that I hear about on these Forums sometimes. But my GA has to request to them to release me and they write the release. Waiting on him to contact them for some of my contracts.

The big problem is his other FMO which is for my United Healthcare contract, who is the big player in this area for Medicare Advantage. They will not give me a written release and I believe that is their policy but they refused to tell me that. So I assume they are an FMO that will NOT give an Immediate Written Release. They have no reason to withhold a written release from me since I do not owe any chargebacks and I am in good standing, so obviously this is their policy. I will tell any new agent wanting to get started selling Medicare and is looking for the right FMO or IMO to work with, please get it in writing from the FMO or IMO that they do offer Written Immediate Releases. If you are going through a GA, UHC, Humana will not take a Written Release from the GA, the Written Release has to come directly from the FMO or IMO. And if you are going to work under a local GA, you better find out who all their FMO's are and talk to them individually directly yourself before getting yourself stuck with an FMO or IMO who will not give releases because I found out the hard way that it does not matter if the GA that you sign up with tells you they will give you an immediate release or not, they do not have the authority to give you a written release. That comes from their FMO or IMO. This is important because if they have an FMO that won't give you a release, then that puts you in a 6 month waiting period in which you can't transfer or move your contracts under another Agency till after that 6 month waiting period. So after saying all this, the only other advice I can give you is to stay away from an FMO called MCC Life Brokerage. This is the one that refuses to give me a Written Release and I would warn others that this could happen to them if they sign up under them.

Definitely beware. There are FMO's on top of FMO's, on top of FMO's. My agency has 2 that they had to contract with, in order to get some of the bigger contracts/deals with the insurance companies. Luckily my FMO is completely transparent, awesome, and isn't trying to scam anyone. So we had full disclosure of how all of this works, but for some crappier agencies, it is SO incredibly easy to screw over newer agents, it isn't even funny.

 

[WinoBlues]

but for some crappier agencies, it is SO incredibly easy to screw over newer agents, it isn't even funny.

True, Unless or until they find this forum.

 

[dandan]

You know I am right!

 

[goillini52]

You know I am right!

About what?