RIPoff Reports and Complaints..Does It Ever Deter You

[insurancemet]

from selling for certain companies. I just did a research and surprise to find Mass Mutual had quite a bit of complaints from consumers..also Agla etc but NY life not much.

What causes all these bad experiences? There were complaints about cash value projection and having a hard time collecting death benefits, also increases in premiums...etc...How much attention should agents give to these complaints.. Are they all usually valid?

Is it the insurance company's fault usually, the agent overlooking or saying the wrong info. What about increases in premiums, do agents usually know if that is something that will happen in a policy. I always thought that premiums were locked in.

 

[Josh]

The problem with most of those sites is there is zero accountability. I have a complaint on CompanyNameSucks.com. Here's what happened:
-Someone bought a list from me
-Didn't like cold calling
-Didn't make any sales
-Claimed the data was bad.

I have one other complaint on my google checkout review, the guy claimed 18 of the 50 records I sold him were bad (which is surprising considering that I sold over half a million records last year and have not had anyone complain about a 40% bad number rate). I typically run 95% plus accurate and offer to replace bad numbers or even offered this guy a refund but he still wrote a nasty review. As a vendor there is nothing I can do about this but respond to it publicly, but the reality is that companies like ripoff report give anyone with an axe to grind a place to get attention. I think organizations like BBB, although as a business I don't care for them, at least investigate claims and give the vendor a fair shake. As of yet I have not had any negative reviews on ripoff reports and I'm grateful for that, but I think plenty of great companies get smeared on there for no legitimate reason.


Just touching on a few of the specific points you've asked about:
-When a carrier hits a certain size, they're always going to have some people upset about the way they handle things. The old "you can't please everyone" cliche has a great deal of truth to it. Are some companies better at handling claims than others? Sure. I've had folks rail against Geico and Allstate about paying claims poorly, but both have handled claims with me flawlessly. I've had people rave about how great State Farm is at handling claims, but I've had a very negative experience with them.
-The whole UL projections thing is more of an agent issue than the carriers themselves (in most cases). Everyone got a black eye on that one and I don't know that I'd hold that against any carrier, but maybe some agents/managers that should have known better.


Personally, I would bet that 80% of the Ripoff report claims are all bogus and the people complaining really are just venting about a perceived injustice verses an actual problem. Some I'm sure are telling the truth, but most are not. I usually look at the scam reports/bad reviews to get an idea of worst case scenario and usually it's just folks complaining for no legitimate reason. There are a short list of carriers I actually think are bad carriers and they aren't any of the ones you listed.

 

[rousemark]

I take reviews on RipOff Reports with a grain of salt. Some people are going to complain no matter what. Especially when it comes to insurance companies. Most have no idea of how insurance works. If you doubt that just go back through this forum and see what ridiculous ideas some posters have (and many of them are licensed).

 

[Cenla Agent]

I take the reviews with a grain of salt as well. But if a company or organization is consistently looked down upon on this forum and there as well, you'd best be aware. NAA would be the best example but there are many others like Bankers etc.

 

[GeminiGroup]

Most of those comments are equal to those on a bathroom wall.
It's like asking somebodies ex-wife who's fault it was.


Just because, some ppl "bark" a lot doesn't make them, correct and these types of boards attract more a certain "type" of person...think "in-laws".

The McDonlad's, WalMarts and large players, will NEVER come off "squeaky clean" in those environments because only those that want to vent get a "mic" and whiners, whine....that's what they, do.

Some woman's going to complain that the Dr. made her natural child birth more painful than her cousin Delia said it should of been.

And how the ice chips were too icy and wet but you'll never hear a peep out of the folks that just took home happy healthy babies w/ no 'extra' issues. Only the "ice chip" whinner goes home and gets online, have you seen bridezillas, that's who's typing.

Remember to "picture the poster" when reading these reviews, some of them sound like nuts with their expectations, while some just seem to "wish" things would work the way they "thought" they actually do.

 

[bill3173]

If it's a large company and there are a handful of complaints, it probably doesn't mean much, but if it is a small company, dealership, individual etc., and there are multiple postings on ripoff report, there may be something to it.

If you have a dealership pull a fast one on you, or the service dept is subpar, and you go the the ripoff or consumer complaint board and see their names, it's likely a big problem.

Most businesses don't just wake up one day and say, we''re going to start cheating customers, it's a pattern.

 

[DHK]

If you're starting off at a captive firm... then I'd be a little more concerned than if you're going to be appointed as a broker.

"Birds of a feather..."

This was one of the reasons why I left American Express Financial Advisors. Not only were they "captive"... but they charged a financial planning FEE (which implies 'objectivity' in all recommendations). I couldn't see myself charging a planning fee to every client just to recommend the purchase of proprietary products.

Every industry and every profession has their crooks and 'bad apples'. Ours is no different.

 

[HomeService]

Check the stories about Torchmark- LibNat and United American on ripoff report sometime. If you take them with a grain of salt or not, at the very least it is some fun entertainment!!

 

[Josh]

That's a great example. Torchmark owns American Income Life and folks *HATE* AIL. That being said, I made $7k my first month in the industry with them and received excellent training. People get different results, but if I had listened to folks about them before I went into it I would have missed a fantastic opportunity.

 

[GeminiGroup]

That's a great example. Torchmark owns American Income Life and folks *HATE* AIL. That being said, I made $7k my first month in the industry with them and received excellent training. People get different results, but if I had listened to folks about them before I went into it I would have missed a fantastic opportunity.

Truer words have never been spoken (or typed rather) but it also can work the other way.
Like getting married it's a F-N crapshoot, it may seem GREAT but unfortunately there is really no way to know if it's going to SUCK for you, until AFTER you're in the deep end.

If things go well you die at the same time with your 'soul-mate',
if not you hate that b and send a check monthly,


Either way SOMEBODY in your family "told 'ya they knew it from day one"

Good Luck