Tipping Point is It Time to Quit?

[clb]

Today I realized how much I dislike 90% of my clients. Each day we get calls to complain about their rate. I finally said to my caller - do you know any insurance company that decreases your rate at renewal? Have the prices for anything in your life decreased? How did you like the new $25,000 roof Safeco put on last year for "hail" damage - after all your roof was 25 years old! Who got the better deal you or Safeco?

How do you handle the non stop complaints? I actually had a woman call today and say she needed to lower her homeowners by $70/month. Her premium is $72/month! No one is going to give free homeowners!

We try to sell on value, personal service etc. Just received a glowing note about a claim - how great we were in helping her and how easy it was to deal with Travelers --- guess what? She switched to Farmers the next day - lying about her son - saying he doesn't live in the house anymore.

After 10 years, I am ready to quit! How does your agency handle the constant shopping? There are 3 of us and its really impeding our growth because we spend too much time rewriting.

 

[axeman462]

Choose your customers more carefully.

At this point though, if your that unhappy, you may want to sell your book and leave the business. Consider selling something that doesn't require servicing clients. Likes real estate or cars

 

[Dweezil]

My day job has me working with a big box retailer as a vendor and they create their own problems by calling it customer service. The reality is that they now have customers who know if they throw a big enough fit they can get what they want and everyone else now has to deal with customers who have the mentality of a 4 year old that wants a candy bar for dinner.

I have watched literal crack heads who were jumpy since they needed a fix return obviously stolen merchandise so they could get store credit to sell for crack. I have seen a store take an 10+ year old, worn out item and exchange it to keep a customer happy. Now these people want everyone to treat them the same way and they think that is how it should be.

 

[DHK]

I wish I had some advice to give, but you're describing exactly why I won't sell P&C insurance. Any little thing can jeopardize the entire relationship.

That's why I like the 'financial planning' and 'retirement planning' part of insurance. You get paid a lot up front and there is little service work really required. (Yes, if you do an 'infinite banking' program or sell a UL policy, you still need to service and hold reviews with the client.)

Unless you can find a REAL way to not be a commodity, or a way to attract new clients at a higher level... I don't see how you can get out of this and continue to sell the same lines of insurance to the same customers.

 

[indienoise]

Welcome to working with people, really. There will always be those. Even if you get into a field that's not customer-centric, there will be drama with colleagues or supervisors. Can't escape it unless you become a subsistence farmer or something.

 

[HoosierLife]

The extent of my service related issues usually revolve around the 3rd of the month. When our FE clients NSF.

Other than that, a bene or bank change is about all the service work I do. Honestly, most of my busy work comes with dealing with the carriers and their stupid rules.

Take this one. Had to write a Supp with Oxford because of her health.

I always write my Supps over the phone with an E app after I'm home for the evening.

So I take the app and the client does the pos in the morning. Then Oxford emails me amendments saying the eft and replacement form must have a wet signature. What's the point of having an Eapp if I still have to get a wet signature???

So I go to the clients house and sign and date it. Silly me, I dated it for today, not the day I took the app. I get another amendment from Oxford saying that the replacement form must be dated before or at the time the application was submitted.

I about lost it on the phone with agent services and I let our Regional have an ear full. I copied him on all my emails. So then I had to go back out and get it redated and initialed. They didn't tell me I needed an initial but I figured as much, if not, that would have caused another amendment.

I told Chad Knies to call me when got their stuff together. As another Supp agent told me today, they hired some new lawyer, for their business prevention department, who made all these changes so he can feel like he's doing something important with his life...

See! That's what I get for writing a Supp! No lol. That's what I get for writing Oxford!

 

[FEX Quotes]

Did the P&C rodeo for many years and got burned out for the reasons you cite. The tipping point for me was the perpetual market chase.

Went back to my roots on the life side and was a very happy man again.

 

[AZDave]

Sounds like you need a snickers bar!

Thanks to Flo, Geico, Esurance and others, P&C is all about price. Where is milk on sale this week?

Sell commercial. More money, less demanding service, more loyalty.

Dave

 

[CJHutsenpiller]

What if you set your agency up with the carrier service centers? Have an option when you call in for press 1 if you're an existing customer and 2 if you'd like a quote. Have the #2 option come to your office and the #1 option forward to the service centers. I know that can impede the "personal service" aspect but in reality the service centers are doing the same thing you are...

Just a thought.

 

[bobson]

Today I realized how much I dislike 90% of my clients. Each day we get calls to complain about their rate. I finally said to my caller - do you know any insurance company that decreases your rate at renewal? Have the prices for anything in your life decreased? How did you like the new $25,000 roof Safeco put on last year for "hail" damage - after all your roof was 25 years old! Who got the better deal you or Safeco?

How do you handle the non stop complaints? I actually had a woman call today and say she needed to lower her homeowners by $70/month. Her premium is $72/month! No one is going to give free homeowners!

We try to sell on value, personal service etc. Just received a glowing note about a claim - how great we were in helping her and how easy it was to deal with Travelers --- guess what? She switched to Farmers the next day - lying about her son - saying he doesn't live in the house anymore.

After 10 years, I am ready to quit! How does your agency handle the constant shopping? There are 3 of us and its really impeding our growth because we spend too much time rewriting.

Are you helping people manage risk or do you just sell them a policy?