What Is Risk Analysis And Why Is It So Important?
The term risk analysis tends to sound like a complicated thing. But simply put, risk analysis is a review of the things that might create a loss for you, your family, or business.
Why Is This important?
You have so much invested in your family, home, and business. You need to have an understanding of things that might happen, which will create a negative impact on your family and business.
What Role Does Your Agent Play?
Your agent will be your guide, consultant, and advisor through this process. It is important that you have an agent who is not interested in selling you insurance. Your agent needs to educate you on your risk, offer options, and work with you to make sure you are correctly protected.
If your agent does not understand or is not interested in this process, you will be left with inadequate protection.
If your agent offers an off the shelf homeowners policy, without asking questions and educating you might get stuck in the event of a claim. For example, you have a fire in your business and have to move out for three months during reconstruction. Do you have the right coverage to help you with temporary rent, and other expenses? What if you have to close your business and you have a loss of revenue? Knowing the right coverage and limits you need is the responsibility of your agent.
We Help Make The Complex Simple
We offer a series of questions to help our clients understand their risk and what options they have to manage them, based on their individual situations.
We educate our clients so they can make informed decisions. For example, if you are renting out a part of your home, you will need special insurance, as your homeowner’s policy excludes operating a business out of your home.
If you own a home and have other financial assists, you may need a personal umbrella policy. This protects you against litigation or claims where your primary coverage is exhausted.
Let’s start a conversation on how we might be able to educate you and design an insurance program that fits your individual needs.
Will Drones Change The Way We Buy Insurance?
/in Insurance, RelationshipsDrones and Insurance
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released guidelines on the use of drones for commercial and personal use. Many businesses are considering, or actually using, drones as part of their business. Just a few applications include real-estate appraisals, making commercials, construction projects, and even security.
Most drone users have little or no aviation experience so, even if you follow the regulations and the laws, you might experience pilot error, or unplanned equipment failure. With some models tipping the scales of up to 55 pounds, rogue drones can pose a significant threat to people and property—and to your personal liability. That’s why it’s a smart to add an insurance review to your pre-flight checklist.
Here is a link to the FAA rules
Here is What You Need to Know
Will My Insurance Cover Drone Operations?
It will be important to talk to your agent regarding just how your insurance policy will respond.
While the massive national agencies spend millions on television ads and offer barebones policies, they do not know you. When your needs change or your situation complicates, you don’t want an automated phone tree or cold cyber-agent. You want to talk to compassionate, honest insurance experts – that’s our team. You shouldn’t have to spend hours researching and comparing policies. Let the specialists at Reichley guide you through the complex insurance industry.
Call today to alleviate the worry and get covered – (937) 429-0655.
Is Our Sharing Economy Creating New Risks For You?
/in Claims, Customer Service, Insurance, RelationshipsIs Our Sharing Economy Creating New Risks For You?
We live in a digital world that now allows us to share our possessions, including our car, bike, boat, apartment, and even our home, for profit with total strangers. Smartphones, and the applications that can be added, offer many useful tools for sharing, but some of these things create new and increased liability for you. Before you decide to jump into the sharing economy, consider the following:
The new sharing economy will most likely continue and can be a good way to make money. However, if you have an uninsured claim, the cost to you may be much greater than your profits. Be aware that using these services may increase your risk of loss.
A professional insurance agent can help educate you on your risks, review your current program, and then create an individualized plan to fit your needs.
While the massive national agencies spend millions on television ads and offer barebones policies, they do not know you. When your needs change or your situation complicates, you don’t want an automated phone tree or cold cyber-agent. You want to talk to compassionate, honest insurance experts – that’s our team. You shouldn’t have to spend hours researching and comparing policies. Let the specialists at Reichley guide you through the complex insurance industry.
Call today to alleviate the worry and get covered – (937) 429-0655.
Five Questions To Ask Your Broker
/in Agent, Customer Service, Insurance, RelationshipsFive Questions To Ask Your Broker
There is a growing trend that involves the idea that insurance agents are different. And that when selecting your personal insurance, it pays to use an agent who has experience, knowledge and the service you need.
Your agent should have many years’ experience in the industry. They should have a staff that has the knowledge and experience to handle your individual personal insurance concerns and questions. Your agent should be able to offer alternatives and services that others can’t. For example, can your agent help you with flood insurance, ATV coverage or your second home?
Here Are Five Questions To Ask You Broker
There are other ways to help you evaluate the agent, which include; visit their web page to learn more about their services, ask for references, and check other social media sites.
One Example Of How We Define Customer Service
/in Customer Service, Insurance, RelationshipsThis past year our community has been hit hard with wind damage from the Memorial Day Tornados. We should know because many of your clients have claims that we have been helping them with. Our team of professionals has been working hard to help our clients get the best possible settlement under the terms of their individual policies.
The services we provide during a claim is another good reason for individuals to partner with a local independent insurance agent. We work under the premise that insurance is a promise between the client and the insurer. Our job is to make sure all promises in the insurance policies are kept and communication between the insurance carriers and our clients maintained. People define integrity as doing the right thing when no one is watching. Over the past few months, I have noticed our staff acting with incredible integrity when dealing with both our clients and insurance carrier representatives; here are a few examples.
We are in business to make sure promises are kept and to educate our clients on the risks they face and how to manage them properly. Choosing the right insurance starts with choosing the right insurance agency.
How We Help You Make Informed Insurance Decisions
/in Customer Service, Insurance, RelationshipsUnderstanding
It is important that we have an understanding of your needs, concerns, and risks. Our goal is to gain knowledge of what risks you have and how we can manage these together. Some risks we can say for sure may need insurance, but there may be some risks where insurance is not the best solution.
Educating
Once we understand your risks and needs, we educate you on how to manage them best. We believe that our primary purpose is to educate and inform our clients so they can make the best possible decision.
Planning
Once we agree on what your risk is, we set up a plan. The plan may be to offer insurance options, increase deductibles, transfer your risk, or self-insure. Notice that this is the first time we mention insurance. If the first word out of an insurance professionals mouth is insurance, all they are doing is trying to sell you a product, not deliver on a promise.
Managing
We manage your program through insurance placement; risk reduction techniques claims assistance and customer service. We understand that our job does not end when your policy is delivered. We answer questions and solve problems throughout the entire year.
Evaluating
To continue the process, we assess your program and make corrections based changes in your needs and risk. We believe that your insurance needs change, and therefore, our approach needs to be flexible enough to adapt and change over time.
In the end, you have a better-designed insurance program and be more satisfied with the results. Just remember, cheaper is not better and better is not always more expensive. We offer a way to add value to your insurance purchases.
Agents Keep Changing And Evolving
/in Agent, Customer Service, InsuranceIn case you have not figured it out, I am on a mission to change the way agents/brokers and their clients interact with each other. There are three things that every agent should be doing with their clients; educate, educate, educate. Ok, I know what you are thinking. Just like real-estate, it is location, location, and location. But not so fast.
Here Is What I Mean By Educate
Educate Your Clients About Their Risk
The very first thing every agent needs to do is help their clients understand what their risks are. Not just simply fire, wind, and auto hazards, but rather the client’s complete risks. These risks can include liability assumed in a contract, cyber risk, employment liability, and more. This involves truly understanding the client’s business and how to create and deliver real solutions; some of which may not include insurance.
Educate Your Clients About Insurance
Every agent needs to be providing information to their clients on how insurance works, and the pros and cons of the insurance their clients are considering. Do your clients fully understand all the terms, conditions, and exclusions of their insurance?
Educate Your Clients About The Market
It is very important that your clients understand how the insurance markets work, including market trends and market volatility. The swings in market pricing can actually provide opportunities for our clients. As prices go up, why not increase the deductible, thus keeping premiums level?
It should always be the goal of every agent to help your clients understand the value you bring to the relationship.
Filing A Claim Correctly Can Save You Time And Money
/in Claims, Customer Service, InsuranceHere are some tips to help you file your claim
Our agency is here to help you through the entire claim process.
What Is Risk Analysis And Why Is It So Important?
/in Agent, Customer Service, Insurance, RelationshipsWhat Is Risk Analysis And Why Is It So Important?
The term risk analysis tends to sound like a complicated thing. But simply put, risk analysis is a review of the things that might create a loss for you, your family, or business.
Why Is This important?
You have so much invested in your family, home, and business. You need to have an understanding of things that might happen, which will create a negative impact on your family and business.
What Role Does Your Agent Play?
Your agent will be your guide, consultant, and advisor through this process. It is important that you have an agent who is not interested in selling you insurance. Your agent needs to educate you on your risk, offer options, and work with you to make sure you are correctly protected.
If your agent does not understand or is not interested in this process, you will be left with inadequate protection.
If your agent offers an off the shelf homeowners policy, without asking questions and educating you might get stuck in the event of a claim. For example, you have a fire in your business and have to move out for three months during reconstruction. Do you have the right coverage to help you with temporary rent, and other expenses? What if you have to close your business and you have a loss of revenue? Knowing the right coverage and limits you need is the responsibility of your agent.
We Help Make The Complex Simple
We offer a series of questions to help our clients understand their risk and what options they have to manage them, based on their individual situations.
We educate our clients so they can make informed decisions. For example, if you are renting out a part of your home, you will need special insurance, as your homeowner’s policy excludes operating a business out of your home.
If you own a home and have other financial assists, you may need a personal umbrella policy. This protects you against litigation or claims where your primary coverage is exhausted.
Let’s start a conversation on how we might be able to educate you and design an insurance program that fits your individual needs.
After Recent Storms Agents Show Their Value.
/in Agent, Claims, Customer ServicePeople buy insurance to protect their family and financial assets from a loss. So when a loss occurs, most people expect their insurance to step up and take care of the issue. Understanding insurance and the process involved in designing a policy can help prevent a standard claim from turning into a disaster.
How We Are Adding Value Post Storm
Why Your Agents Knowledge And Experience Matters
Having a well-written policy at the time of a loss will make the entire process easier and more efficient. Every insurance policy offers basic coverage like coverage for your home and personal property. A trusted insurance partner will go beyond this and counsel you on how much coverage limits you may need and the benefits of modifying deductibles based on your financial capabilities.
The Value of Annual Insurance Reviews
An annual insurance review can offer time for the client and agent to sit down and determine what kind of coverage is needed based on your unique needs. This has become increasingly important after the recent Memorial Day tornado.
Your policy has coverage limits and deductible that will apply to each loss or claim. We can help you understand how these work and the value to you of adjusting these based on your individual needs.
We help you understand the value of viewing insurance as more than just a policy. It is a relationship with your agent and the insurance company. Your agent can become a trusted partner and help you with many areas of your personal insurance. This involves building a relationship of trust. You will want to have a comfortable, professional
Low Premium Vs. Value… Which Is Better?
/in Claims, Customer Service, Insurance, RelationshipsMany people think the best way to select an insurance agent is to hire the one that offers the lowest possible price. Lower price can mean inferior coverage and that’s fine until you experience a loss that isn’t covered. My goal is to help you understand that there is more to insurance then getting the lowest price. I use concepts like value, cost benefit and service as a foundation for the agent/customer relationship.
Here are a few ideas to help you along your path
Independent agents offer more options. Independent agents represent many different insurers. You want an agent who represents many insurers; especially an insurer who have experience in your specific industry, and who is willing to take the time to get to know you. Allow the agent to market your risk with many different insurers, this is a good way to bring vale to the process. You want a relationship, not a policy.
What can your agent offer? If you own a business and are looking for an agent to write your commercial insurance, you want to make sure they have experience in your industry. If your agent only has experience with personal lines, do they really have the experience and knowledge you need?
Know your agent’s credentials and experience. Ask your agent about their experience and qualifications. Are they investing in extra training and or do they have accreditations, like ARM or CIC. Also ask about their staff, is the account manager also seeking additional designations.
Does the agents personality fit with yours? Your agent can become trusted advisor and help you with many areas of your business. This involves building a relationship of trust. You will want to have a comfortable, professional relationship with your agent, so you can ask questions and get the straightforward responses you deserve.
Your agent can build an insurance program that provides sound insurance and risk management that adds value. And in the long run value is much better than low price.