GREEN MOUNTAIN AGENT VERMONT INSURANCE AGENTS ASSOCIATION | AUGUST 2019
Vermont Insurance Agents Association is a statewide trade association representing nearly 100 independent insurance agencies in Vermont, with more than 900 employees. VIAA member independent insurance agents represent more than one insurance company, and as a result, can offer clients a wider choice of auto, home, business, life and employee benefits.t
Green Mountain Agent is a publication of
CONTENT ________________ JULY 2019
04 Letter from the President
600 Blair Park Road, Suite 100 Williston, VT 05495 Phone: 802-229-5884 Fax: 802-876-7912 www.viaa.org VIAA Officers President Paul Plunkett, CIC Vice President Alan Kinney Secretary/Treasurer Dan Rodliff National Director Ron Bixby Directors Chip Ams Michael Barrett Erin Odell, CIC Staff Executive Director Mary Eversole mary@viaa.org
06 Evolve19 09 Feature: Claims Happen 13 Feature: Sales & Marketing 16 On the Hill 20 E&O Corner 25 Feature: Knowledge 31 Insurance Commentary 37 Company & Agency News
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LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT ______________________________ August 2019 Fall is soon upon us and with the summer heat behind us, we can begin to re-focus back to business. Registration is now open for our EVOLVE19 scheduled for September 18-19 at the Essex in Essex Junction. There is truly something for everyone! Meet and mingle with Carrier representatives at the Trade Show and Golf Tournament Enjoy outstanding education programs and earn CE Credits Learn how you can build a healthy culture, increase revenue and accountability Get great ideas that you can implement from the “Bites” session You will walk away from EVOLE19 re-energized with tools you can use right away!
Watch The Video To Learn More
Paul E. Plunkett, CIC VIAA President
New Vermont Logger Safety and Workers’ Compensation Insurance Program If you insure Loggers, you know that for many years, workers’ compensation insurance has been prohibitively expensive for Vermont’s logging contractors. To address this challenge and improve industry safety, a new program has been launched called the Vermont Logger Safety and Workers’ Compensation Insurance Program. Your insureds can save money by being “safety certified,” so learn more about this program. See page 20 for a summary or learn more from this informative video https://youtu.be/ZaeUMKCG21k. Your Board of Directors and staff continue to bring your programs, products and services to help your agency grow. Take advantage of these programs for the success of your agency. 04
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Schedule of Events Wednesday, September 18 11:00 am - Annual Golf Tournament 5:30 pm - Company Partners & Sponsors Welcome Reception (By Invitation Only) 6:30 pm - Open time for Company/Agent Dinners or Events Offsite
Featured Speakers Industry experts Zack Gould and Matt Naimoli of Bobbleon will help you stand out in the market. They will bring you the energy to change how you tune in to current consumers. They will show you how referral marketing works and help you understand what makes your agency unique.
Thursday, September 19
Zack Gould
7:30 am - Registration
Co-Founder of G&N Insurance & BobbleOn
7:30 am - Networking Breakfast 8:30 am - Personal Lines Issues Today, Tomorrow & Beyond (CE Seminar) 9:00 am - VIAA Annual Business Meeting & Board Installation
Matt Naimoli
10:00 am - Break, Vendor Hall Open
Co-Founder of G&N Insurance & BobbleOn
11:30 am - Grab & Go Lunch, Vendor Hall Open 12:45 - EVOLVE Opening Ceremonies 1:30 pm - BITES, 15 Minutes Each - 1 Idea to Implement 2:30 pm - Break, Vendor Hall Open 3:15 pm - Breakouts Breakout #1 Ways to Win with Your Underwriter Breakout #2 Amp Up Your Digital Presence
All Principals that register by August 9 are entered into a drawing for a Power Session with Matt and Zack immediately following the Opening Ceremonies! Register Now!
4:00 pm - YACS Brew Tasting + Corn Hole Tournament 5:00 pm - President's Reception 7:00 pm - YAC Fiesta
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CLAIMS HAPPENS
TALES OF THE CROP: THREE STORIES OF E&O (PART I) By Janice Blantonn Let Me Tell Y'all a Story 'Bout A Farmer Named Fred Claim Scenario: The "Crops 'R Us" Insurance Agency had been placing crop coverage through the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, (a part of the United States Department of Agriculture, ) for Farmer Fred and his father for many years. Farmer Fred and his father had each claimed a 50% share interest in the crops on the acreage report in previous years. Farmer Fred's father retired from farming and Farmer Fred acquired a 100% share interest in all crops reported on the FSA 578 annual acreage report and the crop carrier's acreage report. Farmer Fred advised the Agency of the change in the share interest. Farmer Fred then completed the FSA 578 acreage report to reflect his 100% share interest in the crops. Farmer Fred provided the Agency with a copy of the FSA 578 acreage report. The Agency had Farmer Fred sign the crop carrier's acreage report and assured him that the Agency would make the change to reflect a 100% Farmer Fred’s share interest. Unfortunately, the Agency did not register the change in share interest on the crop carrier's acreage report, so it only showed Fred's 50% share interest. The Summary of Coverage was issued by the crop carrier and the Agency did not review it when received and therefore, they did not discover that Farmer Fred's share interest had not been changed on the policy.
Farmer Fred reviewed the Summary of Coverage form when he received it but did not notice the change had not been made. Some months later, Farmer Fred reported a total crop loss to the Agency. The Agency reported the claim to the carrier who assigned a crop adjuster and noted the share interest of 50% for Farmer Fred. The adjuster informed Fred that he would only be paid for the 50% share listed on the acreage report. Farmer Fred then contacted the agency and asked why he would not be receiving the full 100%. The Agency said they would check on it and get back to him. The Agency then reviewed their file and discovered that the change in share interest had not been completed. They then contacted their E&O carrier‌. continued . .
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The agent provided the documentation to the carrier showing the request by Farmer Fred to change the share interest and requested that the carrier correct the acreage report. The carrier reviewed the documentation and ultimately agreed to revise the acreage report and Summary of Coverage. The carrier then paid the claim in full to Farmer Fred. Although an E&O claim was avoided by the agency, what can be learned from the above? END RESULT In this case, the agent reported the claim to the E&O Carrier. The agent was understandably upset because they had not done as the customer requested. The Claims Specialist reviewed the facts with the agent and asked them to send a copy of their file. The Claims Specialist reviewed the documents and discovered that the agent had documented the request in the file but had not sent it on to the carrier. The Claims Specialist was aware of a Federal Crop Insurance Corporation Risk Management Agency rule which stipulated that if the share interest, reported acres or planting pattern were inaccurate, crop carriers will in most instances revise the acreage report to show the proper information in cases where the correct information was provided by the policyholder to the agent, documented in the file and inadvertently omitted. Knowing this, the Claims Specialist reviewed this with the agent, and instructed the agent to contact the carrier and advise them of the problem.
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Make all changes to the application and acreage report PRIOR to the applicant/named insured signing these documents. Give the applicant/named insured an opportunity to review these documents as well. Farmers are busy people during planting season, but ultimately it is their responsibility to check the accuracy of the information on the application or acreage report. Never ask the applicant or named insured to sign these forms in blank and never sign on their behalf. If any information is incorrect and there is a crop loss, it should be no surprise that the Farmer is going to look to the agency to fix it. You can avoid this by following the simple procedures outlined above. Share and Share Alike……NOT! Janice S. Blanton, AIC, is an Assistant Vice President and Claims Specialist with Swiss Re Corporate Solutions. Since joining Swiss Re Corporate Solutions as a Claims Specialist in 2002, Janice has handled claims for insurance agents and brokers. Prior to that, she worked in the Legal Department from 1995 until joining claims in 2002. Copyright © 2019 Big “I” Advantage, Inc. and Westport Insurance Corporation. All rights reserved. No part of this material may be used or reproduced in any manner without the prior written permission from Big “I” Advantage. For permission or further information, contact Agency E&O Risk Manager, 127 South Peyton Street, Alexandria, VA 22314 or email at info@iiaba.net.
SALES & MARKETING
R E N NICHE MARKETING R CO Four Ways to Scale Referrals with a Niche
O & E
By Matt Naimali The source of where you get your prospects has a massive influence on your business. But too many agents are focused on increasing lead generation without evaluating the quality of the opportunity. There are plenty of ways to generate leads digitally, but they will never hold a candle to the word-of-mouth referral. Most agencies, however, don’t have the volume to create enough of a flow to grow at the pace they desire. This is where niche networking comes in. Creating relationships with influencers who can drive high-quality referrals through your door is the least expensive and most powerful marketing strategy a small business can deploy. No matter what your business focus, tenure or resources, here are four simple steps you can take to scale referral networks within a niche: 1) Determine your ideal client. Your ideal client is your bull’s-eye prospect. Everything you do should be to garner more prospects like your ideal client. Choose your ideal client based on the cross section of three considerations: Your expertise and experience, your product offerings and the ROI on the particular client. Don’t pick a category if you’ve never been exposed to it—you should have familiarity and a gut feeling that it’s your bread and butter. Make sure your products match up with what
your ideal client needs so you have an easier time adding value. And understand that your time is valuable. If it takes a ton of time to quote, wait for underwriting and then convert the prospect to a client for a small revenue-generating sale, it’s probably not in your best interest from an ROI standpoint. 2) Reverse-engineer to the influencer. Who are the influencers in the professional life of your ideal client? An influencer is someone your client trusts and relies on consistently. For example, if your ideal client is a high net-worth individual, influencers might include family office planners and attorneys. If your ideal client is a commercial landlord, it might be commercial realtors or bankers. If your ideal client is an IT company, an ideal influencer might be a CPA firm that specializes in IT companies. If your ideal client is a moving company, a strong influencer could be the entity who sells or leases their trucks. continued . . .
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3) Become an expert in the influencer community. It’s not enough to just show up and introduce yourself—and it’s even worse if you show up and explain why they should refer their clients to you. To make inroads with influencers, you need to first learn their language, understand their processes, recognize their pain points, and become well acquainted with their opportunities. The only way to scale referral relationships within a niche is to help as many influencers get what they most want as possible. This may mean removing obstacles, providing education and training, offering marketing support, helping with drip strategies or assisting with client appreciation events. The only way you can do this is to find out what matters to them, and the only way to do that is to spend time in their world. Join associations, networking groups and social media groups, and meet them with your interviewer hat on—not your sales hat. 4) Rinse and repeat your proven process. Design a step-by-step process in checklist format for how you plan to scale networking within your niche. This should cover best practices for how to obtain meetings, how to master the in-person meeting, what to do post-meeting, and how to nurture your new relationships once they start referring you.
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Since you now know all about your influencer community’s pain, processes and opportunities, you should be able to position value that matters. If someone tells you they wish they could meet more of a particular industry professional, figure out how to make that happen for them. If your influencer says they wish they had more time to drip on old clients for new services, come up with a strategy to help them achieve this. If someone wants help financing a specific marketing initiative, evaluate the opportunity, create an agreement and make it happen if you see fit. If people want help with social media, go take a course yourself and then offer the support for free to your influencer community. Value is different to everyone. Your job is to find out what they want, then go produce. Matt Naimoli is co-founder of G&N Insurance and the podcast “BobbleOn,” which releases valuable content weekly to help agents across the country improve their systems, enhance their culture and make better marketing decisions. IA Magazine, reprinted with permission.
ON THE HILL:
Big “I” Applauds Founding of Bipartisan Congressional Crop Insurance Caucus By Katie Butler
The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America applauds Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Illinois) and Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-Pennsylvania) for founding the bipartisan Congressional Crop Insurance Caucus. “The Federal Crop Insurance Program (FCIP) is an essential insurance safety net which has been protecting America’s farmland for nearly 40 years,” says Charles Symington, Big “I" senior vice president of external, industry & government affairs. “We are thrilled to see efforts to educate members and staff on the importance of the program.” The press release from Rep. Bustos’ office announcing the initiative quotes 16
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Big “I” members Greg and Luke Sandrock from the Cornerstone Agency in Tampico, Illinois. Greg also serves as the chair of the Big “I” Crop Task Force. “I have seen firsthand the importance of the FCIP and the certainty and security it provides for our farmers, ranchers, and their broader communities,” says Greg Sandrock, Big “I” Crop Task Force chair. “I want to thank Reps. Bustos and Thompson for all their hard work to bring attention to the vital nature of the program.” The Big “I” looks forward to continuing to engage with Congress to ensure a strong and stable FCIP that will serve communities for years to come.
C E O & R O N ER
Be Careful What You Promise On Your Website By Ellen McCarthy SwissRe Corporate Solutions
Technology has done wonders to increase an insurance agency's productivity and sales goals. But the statements an agency makes on its website and marketing materials can lead to serious, unintended consequences from an E&O perspective. Consider John Client, who owns several older apartment buildings. He comes to your agency seeking property coverage for the buildings. You meet with John, visit the buildings and procure a policy based on the limits John specifically and unequivocally requests. Several months later, one of the buildings burns down due to faulty wiring. The carrier pays the full policy limits to John. Dissatisfied with his recovery, John then sues the agency, asserting that the amount of coverage on the building was inadequate and that the agency should have recommended higher limits. You meet with your appointed defense counsel and discuss the standard of care of insurance agents in your state. Your state has an "order taker" standard, meaning that an agent has an obligation to procure requested coverage without any duty to advise as to appropriate limits. Your defense counsel is relatively confident that you met the standard of care. But then, John amends the lawsuit. In the new complaint, John cites the agency's website language, which advertises that it procures "great insurance protection," that its "agents will help you choose the amount of coverage that best fits your individual situation,� “work hard to insure that you are fully covered for all those risks that most apply to you" and "produce the most complete plan to safeguard your business."
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Now, counsel informs you that the allegations based on your webpage in the amended complaint may be sufficient to establish that a "special relationship" existed between you and John. In the event of a special relationship between agent and customer in your state, the agent may have an affirmative duty to advise about types and limits of available coverage. Your website language makes you susceptible to an adverse finding. Subsequently, your E&O carrier enters into a negotiated settlement of John's claim with your consent. While hypothetical, the above situation is not at all unusual. Thoroughly review your website and other marketing materials, asking: Could any representations create unrealistic customer expectations? Does the content make promises the agency may not be able to fulfill? Does the agency inadvertently create a heightened standard of care through its written commitments? Would you want your website statements blown up on a poster board as a trial exhibit? Statements on your agency's website are not just advertising slogans. Don’t make promises unless you can deliver.
Ellen McCarthy is a vice president and claim expert at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions and teleworks out of the Overland Park, Kansas office. Reprinted with permission from IA Magazine.
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3 Underutilized Homeowners’ Endorsements
KNOWLEDGE
By Chris Boggs Although every independent agent knows insurance is not a commodity, many treat the homeowners' (HO) policy like a commodity focusing only on price rather than protection. Consider this, the price is ALWAYS too high if that is where the focus lies. But explain coverage, and price objections wane. Moving away from the commoditization of the HO policy also allows the opportunity to customize protection. Remember, the HO policy is written for the average" home owners; the problem is, no insured is average." Every insured is unique. To encapsulate these concepts more bluntly, you become a better agent when you begin treating the HO policy and your client with the proper respect. And being a better agent" requires searching for, finding and attaching the necessary customizing endorsements. In the HO-2000 world," ISO has promulgated over 145 homeowners' endorsements. Some of these endorsements take protection away (we want to stay away from those), some apply to specific exposures (such as home sharing) and others even clarify what the policy already says. But among this long list are great endorsements that are greatly underutilized by many agents. Let's review three. HO 04 43 - Replacement Cost Loss Settlement For Certain Non-Building Structures on The Residence Premises: Although Coverage B (Other Structures) provides replacement cost protection to most other structures," Coverage B in the unendorsed HO policy does NOT provide replacement cost to non-building structures.
Paragraph D.1.c. under loss settlement limits non-building valuation as follows: D. Loss Settlement 1. Property of the following types: c. Structures that are not buildings; at actual cash value at the time of loss but not more than the amount required to repair or replace. Attachment of the HO 04 43 alters this loss settlement limitation for specific types of non-building structures. The endorsement extends replacement cost valuation to: Reinforced masonry walls; Metal or fiberglass fences; Fences made of plastic/resin materials such as polyvinylchloride; Patios, walks (not made of wood or wood products); Driveways; and Inground or semi-inground: Swimming pools; Therapeutic baths; or Hot tubs; with walls and floors made of reinforced masonry, cement, metal or fiberglass. However, this does not include their accessories or equipment. Beyond picking up replacement cost for the listed property, the HO 04 43 does something interesting, it highlights the fact that patios, walks and driveways are includes as other structures." The unendorsed HO does not exclude these types of property, but adjusters have been known to deny coverage for them. Even if this endorsement is not attached, it can be used to prove coverage exists for patios, walks and driveways. continued . . . www.viaa.org
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KNOWLEDGE
Rule 409 states that the HO 04 43 increases the base premium between two and five percent based on the property included. The water-related other structures add five percent to the base premium. All other types of property increase the base premium two percent. HO 04 59 - Assisted Living Care Coverage: According to various sources, approximately 5 percent of the nation's 47 million seniors live in nursing homes, assisted care living facilities and other like facilities or arrangements. This means approximately 2,350,000 seniors currently occupy these types of facilities. Further, the number of senior" adults is expected to balloon to 100 million by 2060. If the same percentage holds true, there will be approximately 5,000,000 residents of these facilities. Depending on the type of facility/living arrangement, the senior may not have any insurance protection or the protection available to them may be rather expensive. And even if the senior doesn't have much in the way of personal possessions (from a value perspective), he/she still has a liability exposure. ISO created the HO 04 59 to address the needs of individuals residing in assisted living, nursing homes and other like facilities, but as an endorsement on a relative's homeowners' policy. Rather than the senior purchasing his/her own policy, a child, grandchild or other relative can purchase the needed personal property coverage (Coverage C) and personal liability coverage (Coverage E) by attaching this endorsement. To qualify for this endorsement, certain conditions must be met:
The individual named must be related to the named insured by blood, marriage or adoption; The individual is not a member of the insured's household and regularly resides in the named facility (meaning this endorsement is for a permanent living arrangement, not one that is temporary); The facility must be scheduled; and The facility must provide assisted living services such as dining, therapy, medical supervision, housekeeping and social activities. A Coverage C and Coverage E limit is chosen by the insured and placed in the endorsement schedule. If no limit is chosen, the basic limits are $10,000 for Coverage C and $100,000 for Coverage E. Like Coverage C in the HO policy, there is a special limits section applicable to specific property such as hearing aids, eyeglasses, contact lenses, false teeth or dentures, medi-alert devices, walking aids and devices such as walkers or canes, and wheelchairs. There is also an Additional Living Expense" provision in this endorsement. The policy will pay up to $500 per month for 12 months for any additional expenses because a covered loss makes the facility untenable requiring the person to move to another location. One last key facet of this policy not discussed above, the use of this endorsement is not limited to seniors. Any relative in a care facility can be covered by this endorsement provided the conditions are met. For instance, if the insured has sibling that requires care, this endorsement can be used. continued . . .
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HO 06 14 - Increased Amount of Insurance For Personal Property Located in a SelfStorage Facility: Approximately 10 percent of American households rent space in a self-storage facility. This is one reason 90 percent of self-storage space is currently rented and why there are 50,000 selfstorage facilities in the US. If it's reasonable to assume that 10 percent of an agency's clients use a selfstorage facility, then it's reasonable to ask this question, do those client's have enough coverage for the property stored in these facilities? ISO limited the amount of coverage available for property in a self-storage facility in the 05/11 edition of the HO form as follows: b. Self-storage Facilities Our limit of liability for personal property owned or used by an "insured" and located in a self-storage facility is 10% of the limit of liability for Coverage C, or $1,000, whichever is greater. However, this limitation does not apply to personal property:
Depending on the Coverage C limit, the insured may not have enough coverage for the stuff" (a technical term) kept in the selfstorage facility. For example, if the insured has $300,000 in Coverage C, there is $30,000 available for the personal property in the self-storage facility. However, if the insured has a Coverage C limit of $30,000, the $3,000 extended to property in the facility may not be adequate. The need for this endorsement revolves wholly around the Coverage C limit and whether 10 percent of Coverage C is sufficient or not. Ask the insured if property is stored in a facility and the value of that property. Conclusion These are but three of the nearly 150 endorsements available to HO customers; but these three are not used as often as needed. Consider these and the many other enhancement endorsements when meeting with your HO clients.
(1) Moved from the "residence premises" because it is: (a) Being repaired, renovated or rebuilt; and (b) Not fit to live in or store property in; or (2) Usually located in an "insured's" residence, other than the "residence premises".
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Torture Numbers and They’ll Confess to Anything
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I just read this article: “How Fine Print Ruins Customer Experience“ From the article: “According to an Accenture study, only 27% of consumers consider insurers to be trustworthy. And Deloitte found that only 11% of people have strong trust in insurance agents and brokers.” I’ve seen studies like this over the years. What is usually missing from these statistics is the Q&A related to the insurer or agent OF the consumer. If you ask a consumer if THEIR insurance agent is trustworthy, the numbers are almost always WAY higher than those above. The same is often true of politicians…when the question just references “politicians,” polls imply that they are universally despised, But ask people what they think of a politician they voted for and the statistics are completely different. But, back to the article…before you continue, I encourage you to review it: “How Fine Print Ruins Customer Experience“ The driving force behind insurance policy evolution is litigation and regulation where the difference in coverage, according to the courts, can be the tense of a verb or a punctuation mark. Berkshire just came out with a policy called “THREE” that combines property, business income, general liability, auto, professional liability, workers compensation, and cyber liability (I’m probably forgetting something) insurance…IN THREE PAGES. And that’s going to be clearer to business owners as to what is or isn’t covered?
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"Inarguably, the most important “customer experience” is the one that takes place at claim time." Inarguably, the most important “customer experience” is the one that takes place at claim time. Insurance policies are complex, legal contracts whose terms and conditions have often been interpreted over decades. And the reality is that virtually no consumers read them…far too many insurance practitioners don’t even read them. I doubt that reducing dozens of pages to 2-3 pages will change that metric. When it comes to contract understandably, less is not necessarily more. And, by the way, there is no such thing as “fine print” in regulated insurance policies. Copyright 2016-2019 by InsuranceCommentary.com. Reprinted with permission.
COMPANY & AGENCY NEWS
Hickok & Boardman Insurance Group Opens New Office in Plattsburgh, New York Expanding Outside Vermont Hickok & Boardman Insurance Group is pleased to announce the opening of a new office in Plattsburgh, New York. The office, located at 14 Durkee Street, Suite 430 in The Gateway Building overlooking Broad Street and the Saranac River is scheduled to open in July and will be Hickok & Boardman’s first physical location outside of the state of Vermont. “Hickok & Boardman, Inc has been doing business in northern New York for more than fifty years. We are excited to now have a physical location in Plattsburgh. We view our location in the Gateway Building as the logical next step to foster current and build new relationships with the Plattsburgh community and its businesses” noted Scott Boardman, President at Hickok & Boardman, Inc. Ryan Lee, long-term resident of Plattsburgh joined Hickok & Boardman, Inc in early 2018. Ryan will be located in The Gateway Building office with responsibility for business development in the commercial insurance area. Hickok & Boardman Insurance Group was founded in 1821 with offices in Burlington, Lyndonville, Montpelier, St. Albans and Stowe. They have most recently been awarded with “Best Places to Work” in Vermont, and “Best of Business” in Vermont for Property and Casualty Insurance, both for the second consecutive year.
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Eddie Lewicki promoted to Commercial Risk Management Consultant at The Richards Group The Richards Group is pleased to announce that Eddie Lewicki has been promoted to the Commercial Insurance and Risk Management team. Eddie will be based in The Richards Group’s Bennington and Manchester offices. “I’ve been excited to take this step for some time now. We have a lot of important local businesses and non-profits as clients, and I’ll be able to help them manage their risks and contain costs”, commented Eddie Lewicki. “At The Richards Group we have a wide range of commercial insurance markets, expertise and technology and I know this will help me put my clients in the best possible position”. “We are very happy to have Eddie as part of the Commercial Insurance team at TRG,” added Peter Richards, VP of Commercial Insurance and Risk Management. “Eddie brings a natural talent and relatability that will be very helpful to our clients. He’ll be a real asset to our clients in Bennington, Manchester and beyond”.
Tammy Pollard of the Richards Group Recognized with Safeco Award of Excellence Tammy Pollard, Personal Lines Supervisor at The Richards Group in Manchester, VT has earned the Safeco Insurance Award of Excellence for her superior underwriting skills and long-term commitment to Safeco® Insurance for the second consecutive year. This prestigious award recognizes those individuals with excellent underwriting skills who have developed a solid underwriting partnership with Safeco and whose agencies have qualified for the Safeco Insurance Premier Partner Award, the company’s top recognition program. Agents who earn this designation will have the ability to make selected underwriting decisions, in addition to being recognized publicly as an Award of Excellence recipient. Pollard, a resident of Manchester, joined The Richards Group in 2013. An Accredited Customer Service Representative (ACSR), Pollard is highly qualified to meet the complex insurance challenges facing today’s consumer. She helps The Richards Group deliver customized insurance solutions from many of the country’s finest insurance companies at competitive prices.
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The Richards Group named Best Employee Benefits Firm
The 2019 Best of Business Award winners have been announced by Vermont Business Magazine and The Richards Group has won as Best Employee Benefits Firm. This awards program celebrates the best Vermont companies in business-tobusiness categories. “We’re very proud to be named Vermont’s Best Employee Benefits Company again in 2019,” said Tom Scull, Vice President at The Richards Group and leader for the Employee Benefits and HR Solutions business: “Many of the surveyed readers of VBM are clients and know first-hand how important employee benefits and HR Solutions are to a company. To be named a best-in-class provider in our field of expertise a second year supports our mission to be a team who is known for going above and beyond with team members who pay close attention to detail and trends in the industry. Congratulations to our team of employee benefits experts and thanks to our clients for the recognition.”
Acuity Named a Top Performer by Ward Group for 20th Straight Year Acuity has been named to the 2019 Ward’s 50 list of top-performing property-casualty companies, putting the company in the top 2 percent of insurers nationwide. Acuity has earned a spot on the Ward’s 50 every year since 2000, making the company one of only four insurers, and the only regional carrier, to be named to the list for 20 consecutive years. Ward Group is the leading provider of benchmarking and best practices studies for insurance companies. “We recognize Acuity for outstanding financial results in the areas of safety, consistency, and performance over a five-year period,” said Jeff Rieder, partner and head of Ward Group. “In selecting the Ward’s 50, we analyze the financial performance of nearly 3,000 propertycasualty insurance companies, identifying the 50 companies that pass financial stability requirements and demonstrate the ability to grow while maintaining strong capital positions and underwriting results.”
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Vermont Mutual Named a Top 50 Insurance Company for Eleventh Year in a Row Ward Group, an Aon Hewitt company, has again recognized Vermont Mutual Insurance Group® as one of the top 50 property and casualty insurers in the United States. This is the eleventh consecutive year Ward Group has affirmed Vermont Mutual’s place as a “Ward’s 50®” insurer. Every year, Ward Group conducts a comprehensive financial analysis of approximately 3,000 U.S. property and casualty insurers. The “Ward’s 50” identifies the top 50 P&C carriers in the U.S. for their consistency, safety and superior financial performance. Every company recognized by Ward Group as a Top 50 Insurer has demonstrated superior performance based on a comprehensive examination of the past five years of operation and passed all safety and consistency screens. This is the 29th year Ward Group has conducted the analysis. As a recipient of the Ward’s 50 designation for eleven consecutive years, Vermont Mutual has again affirmed its position as a leading provider of automobile, homeowner and business insurance in the Northeast, and ranks their performance in the top tier of all companies nationwide since 2009.
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In Memory of Kyle Burkhard in Memory of Kyle Burkhard who passed away at the age of 33, by an undiagnosed auto-immune disease. Kyle used his gift of time each day pridefully fulfilling his responsibilities and showing boundless love and loyalty to his friends and family. He lived his life with incredible intention and passion. From the beginning, Kyle would see the benefits of friendships and creating opportunities to become “successful.� Before he was 10, he would start small businesses like lemonade stands, selling beaded necklaces and more with his younger brother and lifetime soul extension, Drew. Everything was an opportunity to start a business! He pushed himself toward higher education attending Endicott College then transferring to the Art Institute of Boston to earn a degree in Film and Media Studies. Being forever pulled back home, he wove himself into the fabric of his community. He coached baseball at Mallets Bay Middle school while being a special education assistant. He loved mentoring and motivating young athletes with positivity and honest passion for the game. Using his degree, he became a member of the WCAX television station family as a director. Raising a four-legged friend was next on his list. He trained and nurtured the first, yet affable member of the family, Jett. Kyle consistently held tight to those he loved in an effort to share days filled with joy and laughter together. He always had a way of understanding what is most important in this life. His legacy to us is to live life to its limits and express your love and gratitude out loud, as he did everyday. Kyle taught us all so much in his far too short and precious time here with us. His charismatic personality will reverberate throughout our lifetime and beyond. Kyle had a way of making the world a brighter place, and for that, we are eternally grateful for his light, his love and the lasting impression he left on each of us. Kyle is survived by his wife, Jennifer Burkhard and son, Benjamin Burkhard. His mother Lisa Burkhard of Colchester and his father Joe Burkhard and step mother Jessica Burkhard of Colchester and Naples Fl. His younger brother Drew Burkhard of Springfield NJ.
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