How much was the claim for ? That's what's nice about selling fe or even Medicare . Fe death claims usually between $10-$20k . Few few few attorneys taking long drawn out cases to make 30% of $10-$20k .
E-n-O ... How much do I need?
- Thread starter CJ Tibbs
- Start date
Approx $20,000. A prospect came in my office to insure a double wide. My CSR handled this. She took the down payment of $89.00 but the prospect didn't have the year model or serial number of the home. She just knew it was an Oakwood mobile home purchased here in Albany, GA. My CSR made a copy of the application and highlighted in yellow the info the prospect needed to get and bring back to us before we could bind coverage. Two weeks later at 4:30 in the afternoon the prospects father called and said the home had burned to the ground and needed to file a claim. I couldn't find a file or the app so I told him it would be monday before I could get a claims rep. My csr was gone for the weekend. Monday morning when my csr came in I told her she better have the signed app. She got the app but said she couldn't bind the coverage because the prospect never gave us the info we needed. The prospect got a local attorney and filed suit against me. My E&O carrier hired an attorney in Auburn, Al to represent me. He was good. The day of the deposition we had to be at the attorney's office. There was a court reporter there and we were all sworn in. The prospect and her dad were deposed first and we went to lunch. The prospect said she brought the app by and slide it under my office door. This was a lie, my office door is air tight, you can't slide anything under the door. When my lawyer questioned the prospect she admitted that the app was in her glove box of her auto and she never brought it to us. After lunch my csr was deposed. About 4:00pm it was my turn. The lawyer asked me if I had ever been on the sales lot of Oakwood Homes in Albany. I said no and I don't even know where it is. The attorney said I'm going to ask you that question again, and I said no, I don't ever know where it is. The lawyer said Mr Hall before I ask you that question again, here is something for you to read. I didn't pick it up but could see it was an affidavit from the manager at Oakwood Homes stating that after the home burned I hurried to their office to get the serial number and other info on the home. I then said to the attorney, let me tell you something. If that manager lied I am going to burn his ass, your ass and everyone that something to do with this is ass. My lawyer grabbed me by the arm and said we want to take a break and pulled me outside. He said calm down, calm down, that affidavit isn't signed. That manager would be a fool to sign a false affidavit. We went back in and the attorney asked me the question again. I leaned toward him and yelled, "NEVER". He said I am going to ask you again. I leaned toward him and yelled loud enough to hear me outside, NEVVVVER." The court reported was laughing. The lawyer closed the deposition and later withdrew the suit. My lawyer showed him the law in Georgia that states you can't bind coverage without the year, make, model and serial number. Just because the prospect pays doesn't bind coverage. I couldn't believe a lawyer would stoop so low as to try to get me to agree to a false affidavit.
The mistake your csr is taking money without a fully completed signed app . I would never take a penny unless everything 200% filled out .Car ins carriers bind coverage with fully filled out apps with no money yet. That possibly could be because I already have coverage with them on other cars .
The Benefit Coach
Expert
- 47
Going after the prospect probably would have been pointless as he was likely judgement-proof (no money). But I definitely would have lodged an ethics complaint against his attorney with the Georgia Bar Association.
You will probably never have a claim but, if you do, remember that people can lie, misunderstand, or whatever. We are in a time when lawyers offer to represent people for FREE. And, court records are PUBLIC. You could be required to go to court while you are praying that the judge lets you go home. At the very least, when you have E&O, the insurance company's lawyers are going with you. I would buy it, and I have bought it, so you can sleep at night. $1,000,000 should be enough with the defense costs INSIDE the limits.
- 31,074
Nice paragraph.
You're lucky if ones by you are still doing 30%. Around here it is usually 40% plus expenses. They end up getting about 55% of the judgement overall (eg counting expense).
- 11,011
Read the fine print on those attorneys who take it on contingency. Often there are "admin fees" on top of the 30%. I was recently told about a case where the lawyer marketed 30%, and ended up with close to 50% after the fees were included.
- 5,254
legally binding contract law generally would beg to differ
to be legally binding, you need offer, acceptance & tender.
putting down money is merely a deposit
in insurance, the offer is the client signed application. Acceptance is the carrier accepting the offer in exchange for signed application & requirements & exchange of tender (todays world tender can be the banking documents or credit card numbers or even promise to pay within X days, etc)
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