Every year there are a few items that you must ensure are checked off of the to-do list! Here are a few things that everyone needs to check into to make sure they are up-to-date and fully protected. Things change year to year, from health to financial situations and we want to make sure you go into this new year more prepared! 1. Schedule your annual physical. 2. Schedule your annual eye appointment. 3. Schedule a dentist appointment. 4. Replace the smoke detector in your home. 5. Have your tires checked and rotated. 6. Schedule a vet appointment for your pet. 7. Begin organizing your tax documents for annual tax filing. 8. Schedule an appraisal appointment for your new holiday jewelry or family heirlooms. 9. Estate Plan in place and up to date. 10. CHECK YOUR INSURANCE POLICIES TO ENSURE THEY ARE UP-TO-DATE and CORRECT. Have a policy that you need to have reviewed or in need of a new insurance policy quote? We can help! Click the button below to submit your request!
Analysts from Standard & Poor’s predicted this week that while personal auto results are starting to stabilize, the continued push for rate in 2024 will set the stage for more faceoffs between regulators and insurers. Tim Zawacki, principal insurance analyst, S&P Global Market Intelligence, and John Iten, senior analyst and P/C sector lead for S&P Global Ratings, offered a current snapshot of results for all segments of the property/casualty insurance industry—and a forecast for next year during S&P’s webinar, “IN/sights: Outlook and Trends for U.S. Insurers—What to Expect in 2024 and Beyond.” For the most part, Zawacki and Iten repeated information they provided earlier this year about the gap between a profitable commercial lines market and a lagging personal lines segment, while noting that a lower level of inflation is pushing personal auto loss costs down—a trend they are hopeful will continue to improve underwriting results in 2024. (See related articles: Improved Auto Insurance Results Coming—But Not Soon Enough: S&P GMI | Wait ‘Til Next Year: Auto Profit Unlikely to Return in ’23, S&P Says) But when Moderator Lynn Bachstetter, global head of cross-product market development for S&P GMI, asked directly what they believe will be the biggest impact P/C insurers will face next year, Zawacki responded, “The interplay between the industry and the regulatory community is going to be interesting.” “I think we will see results get better. I think we will also continue to see rate increases. And I think the juxtaposition of those two things at some point is likely to generate conflict,” he explained. “Given the politics that tend to be involved in such things, that’s going to become a stickier type of thing for the industry to navigate next year,” he said. A day after S&P’s webinar, Allstate’s chief executive told investors he expects price hikes from his company to continue next year. Separating three big states with difficult regulatory environments from the rest of the nation, Allstate CEO Tom Wilson added that failure to get rate increases approved in California, Florida and New York would prompt Allstate to drop existing customers in those three states. Allstate was one of only three companies to be downgraded by the S&P Ratings division this year, according to Iten, who explained that S&P changed its view of the entire P/C sector to negative from stable last October because the distribution of rating outlooks had significantly deteriorated at that point and that all three downgrades were personal lines writers. Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Financial Services Conference on Dec. 5, Wilson suggested that the Northbrook, Illinois insurer isn’t willing to continue to tangle with regulators in the three profit-challenged states. After Wilson reviewed the levels of rate changes taken in 2022 and 2023, and the favorable impacts on the company’s underlying combined ratios (combined ratios excluding catastrophe losses and prior-year reserve changes), Alex Scott, head of North American Research at Goldman Sachs asked the CEO two direct questions seeking the executive’s views on loss cost severity trend and an understanding of why Allstate’s rate hikes appear to be slowing. Wilson noted that auto claim costs went way up after the pandemic—as used car prices soared and the costs to repair cars also went up. In 2023, at the end of the third quarter, “the cost to replace cars has come way down,” Wilson reported, referring to the fact used car prices have declined, pushing down the market value that insurers have to pay for when they declare crashed vehicles to be total losses. In fact, Allstate had predicted a severity trend of 11 percent during the first two quarters of the year, but the company now estimates its around 9 percent, Wilson said, noting that repair costs, bodily injury and litigation costs have not declined along with replacement costs. “We factor that all in, which is why we think we’re going to continue to increase prices next year,” Wilson said. Scott then noted that Allstate achieved lower levels of price hikes in 2023 vs. 2022, asking the CEO whether the change was the result of the problems in getting approvals in certain states or a strategic slowdown for the carrier. Allstate’s leader suggested that both factors were in play. Overall, the Allstate brand put through over 27 percent in rate increases since 2022, 16.9 percent in 2022 and 10.4 percent in 2023, Wilson said. Most “regulators understand it. They know we need to raise prices. They can look at our costs and see we’re paying out more than we’re taking in. And so we’ve been able to get pretty good price increases through just about every state except California, New York and New Jersey…. “We feel good about where we’ve gotten there [in the other states]. So, when you see the average price increase come down a little bit, it’s because in many of those places we’ve achieved what we think we need to,” he said, stressing that Allstate is “not all the way there” in its quest to return to profitability as it waits to earn in the higher premium. “It’ll take a while, but you can see it, right? You can see it coming,” he said. In California and New Jersey, Wilson said Allstate needs 30-plus percent increases in pricing, and about 18 percent in New York. “If we don’t get price increases approved this year in those states, we’re going to move from just not taking on new business to having to say goodbye to some existing customers,” he said, reiterating remarks he made on the last earnings conference call. “We don’t want to do that. I think the regulators would prefer we not do that. We’re not threatening anybody. We’re just saying we can’t afford to lose that much money in those three states.” “So, when you look forward next year, either we’ll be successful and we’ll get the kind of rate increases we need to get us back to the margins we want, or we’re going to get smaller in those states. Either way, it should improve auto insurance profitability,” he said. Back to the 1970s and 80s A day earlier, during the S&P webinar, Iten led off a discussion of the rating agency’s negative outlook for the P/C insurance sector, noting that in addition to three financial strength rating downgrades for personal lines insurers, S&P has announced rating outlook changes on individual groups—three positive ones on the commercial side and four negative outlook changes, again mainly personal lines writers. Across the industry, the current distribution of rating outlooks continues to have a negative bias, with negative outlooks on 11 percent of rated P/C insurance entities. The percentage with a stable outlook is 80 percent, which “is right where we were last October when we changed the sector view,” Iten said, adding that S&P’s rationale for its change in sector view also hasn’t moved much. He said one factor prompting the outlook change was the deterioration that S&P saw in capital last year—mainly driven by the rise in interest rates pushing down the value of bond holdings, but also a function of continued business growth. Growth, he said, increased the required capital for the underwriting risk that companies were assuming. “The situation really hasn’t changed much this year,” he said, noting that interest rates are up, but share repurchases, which were elevated last year, are down now. “And earnings have been fairly strong. So we don’t think there’s been much further [capital] deterioration at least so far this year.” “The other main factor that hasn’t changed is the deterioration that we’ve seen in personal lines,” he said, noting that beyond the spike in inflation that drove up auto loss costs, elevated cat losses were significant factor in the deterioration of personal lines writers last year and continued into 2023. Zawacki commented on personal insurer top lines. “You’re seeing incredible growth in home and auto premiums driven by economic inflation, largely just in terms of the costs to repair and replace vehicles, the replacement costs for homes going up, as well as the risk around insuring both residential and commercial property going up, and in turn reinsurance prices increasing.” Putting some numbers to what he termed “outsized expansion in premium growth,” the S&P GMI analyst said that homeowners insurance premiums across the industry rose 13 percent in the third quarter. “And then for the auto lines, you’re looking at mid-teens expansion, which is something that we haven’t seen in the scope of our data. You really have to go back to the mid-80s, or even potentially the mid to late 1970s when inflation was really rearing its ugly head on lost costs to see that sort of expansion,” he reported, noting that the industry is still playing catch-up with loss cost trends. “It all adds up to another underwriting loss for the P/C industry in the third quarter,” he said, reporting that S&P’s estimate of an underwriting loss in excess of $7 billion is a surprise to professionals writing only commercial lines business. “It’s just not the world they’re living in—a time when combined ratios are above 100. Their results are very strong,” he said. Iten noted that while by-line statutory results are not available for 2023, in 2022, the personal lines sector combined ratio deteriorated by 8 points to 110. Referencing GAAP results for S&P-rated companies that report quarterly, Iten said underlying loss ratios for carriers writing predominantly personal lines improved slightly this year—”anywhere from one to three points for most.” Underlying loss ratios, however, exclude the impacts of catastrophe losses, which have more than offset the few points of improvement. At the Goldman Sachs conference, Wilson said the Allstate brand implemented over 27 percent rate increases since 2022, including 10.4 percent through October of this year, and its National General brand increased rates about 10 percent in both years. “We’ll continue to pursue rate increases to restore auto insurance margins back to target levels,” he said. Allstate’s personal auto underlying combined ratio dropping to 98.8 in third-quarter 2023, from 104.4 in third-quarter 2022. Allstate’s third-quarter financial statements reveal that the personal auto reported combined ratio remained above breakeven at 102.1, but fell more than 15 points from a third-quarter 2022 figure of 117.4 in third-quarter 2022—largely prior-year reserve development. Through nine months, Allstate’s underlying combined ratio was essentially unchanged from last year, 101.2 in 2023 vs. 101.7 in 2022, while the reported combined ratio improved to 104.9, down from 109.3 in 2022. According to Wilson, there’s a vast difference in the underlying combined ratios for the three problem states compared with the other 47. His slides included a graphic illustrating that 59 percent of the 2023 auto book is now producing combined ratios of 100 or better, compared with just 29 percent in 2022. For California, New York and New Jersey together, Allstate’s underlying auto combined ratio for the first nine months of 2023 was 119.6. It was 97.2 for the rest of the states and D.C., a heading on the chart revealed. Wilson also addressed the three states separately during a discussion of distribution channels. Focusing on the Allstate exclusive agent channel, he said that productivity (year-to-date new applications per agent) declined 5 percent in total. But excluding the “three profit-challenged states,” where Allstate has already severely restricted new business, productivity actually rose 13.4 percent. “We’re down over 75 percent in new business in those [three] states,” Wilson said. Personal Lines Property As for homeowners, in spite of the fact that catastrophe losses added 29 points to the third-quarter homeowners combined ratio (104.4), Wilson remains bullish about the line as he pointed out that Allstate’s “generated industry-leading underwriting margins outperforming the industry by 12 points from 2013 to 2022.” Scott asked Wilson specifically about homeowners business in the state of Florida, questioning the CEO about whether last year’s legislative reforms in the state are producing any favorable impact on loss costs. “The legislative changes were primarily around some litigation stuff, which is a good idea. [But] it’s not going to fix Florida,” Wilson said. “And we never thought it. We thought it was a good thing to do. We’re going to keep getting smaller in Florida until such time as you can get an adequate return. And so we’re a fraction of what we used to be. Our market share used to be 12 percent. Maybe we’re less than 3 [percent] today, and we’ll get smaller,” he said. During the S&P webinar, Bachstetter also asked Zawacki to talk about the property insurance situation in Florida and California, noting that many attendees sent in multiple questions about those two states. Zawacki went on to predict that “the idea of socialization of risk,” or property backstops would reemerge in 2024—but not necessarily because of hurricanes in Florida or wildfires in California. Such ideas “surfaced after Katrina, Rita and Wilma back in 2005 on the heels of a very active 2004 hurricane season and ultimately was put on the back burner for a dozen or so years until Irma, Harvey and Maria in 2017,” he said, noting that each time—and even in the case of California wildfires, “these were isolated occurrences that impacted only small segments of the population.” “What we’re seeing in recent years is that the severity and the impact on the industry of convective storms, which are not as bound by geography as hurricane and wildfire, has perhaps changed the thinking [about] states like Iowa, South Dakota, Wisconsin,” where insurers are experienced “some really high loss ratios in the property insurance business.” “So, you’re seeing reinsurers become more reluctant or not at all willing to write business for companies that are heavily concentrated in the upper Midwest,” he said. “As this impact of climate spreads, I think the push to some sort of solution, whether in the form of a backstop or otherwise, will be something that gets discussed again just given the extent of the population that gets impacted by either unaffordable insurance premiums or unavailable insurance premiums.” “We’re seeing in Wisconsin, in particular, the town mutual model that’s existed for 150 years really get washed under in this fallout from the reinsurance market just not having the appetite to be so geographically concentrated among cedents that may have small balance sheets.” “That’s something worth watching” if the frequency and severity of catastrophes of recent years continues, he said. This article was written by the Insurance Journal and the original article can be found here: Regulatory Battles In Personal Lines Ahead; Allstate May Drop Customers (insurancejournal.com)
December 2023
There are sales. And then there's the sales receipt. Sales like the one advertised here lead consumers to believe they'll be paying well below what the jewelry is actually worth. 82% off — really? And the appraisal's valuation proves that? Jewelry insurers frequently see appraisal valuations far beyond the purchase price. These appraisals often come from the retailer, whether it's an online site, a mall shop, or a brick-and-mortar jewelry store. The promise of a discount is a marketing tactic that sets customers up to expect high value and to accept that inflated appraisal valuation. But the "value" of an object is generally understood to be what a willing buyer will pay and a willing seller will accept. That is: the purchase price. Because grossly inflated jewelry valuations are extremely common, ALWAYS ask for the sales receipt. If there is a huge difference between appraised valuation and purchase price, the actual purchase price is likely to be closer to the jewelry's market value than an inflated appraisal. _____________________ Jewelry Insurance Issues talks about: Fraud catcher: the sales receipt of course any piece of scheduled jewelry should have an appraisal. But what about that appraisal's valuation? It's no secret: Many jewelry valuations are grossly inflated. Accepting such a valuation could lead to a grossly excessive settlement down the line. Having the sales receipt lets you compare the appraisal's valuation with the price actually paid — and price is likely to be a truer indication of the jewelry's market value. A large difference between purchase price and valuation suggests something is amiss. For a number of situations where the sales receipt could be a very useful document, see this month's JII. To view the full article, Click here: The allure of sunshine, low taxes and low housing prices have been attracting people to Florida for decades, but high insurance premiums are beginning to reverse the trend. The U.S. Census Bureau shows that nearly 276,000 people left Florida in 2022, and it's believed that skyrocketing insurance premiums motivated many of the departures.
The study showed most of the former Florida residents remained in the sun belt, moving to states like North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Texas. Those states offer similar benefits as Florida in terms of low housing costs and tax rates. What they also have in common is that they are not currently experiencing the insurance rate crisis that has gripped Florida for the last several years. Don't Miss:
They have come so fast and so frequently that insurers have barely recovered from the cost of covering claims for one hurricane when the next one comes rolling in. Adding to the misery is that as property values have spiked, the cost of claims has multiplied several times as well. Insurance companies are not set up for this situation. Insurers cover their potential losses by purchasing something called reinsurance, which is an insurance policy that insurance companies buy to protect themselves in the event of a natural disaster. The cost of recent hurricane claims has caused reinsurance rates to spike, and that has led to an unprecedented rise in home insurance premiums for Florida home and business owners. Worse yet, it's causing many insurance carriers to leave the state entirely. A Different Kind Of Sticker ShockAccording to the Insurance Information Institute, Florida insurance premiums have gone up by 300% in the last five years. The average cost of home insurance in the United States is $1,700, whereas Floridians pay over $4,200 annually if they can get insurance at all. Instead of renewal notices with higher premiums, many Floridians are getting notices advising them that their insurance carrier is leaving the state, and their policy will not be renewed. Retirees are getting hit even harder as premiums take up huge chunks of their fixed income, which contributes to the exodus. Having Insurance Is Only Half the BattleEven the Florida residents who are fortunate enough to be able to afford their insurance premiums are struggling. In addition to the property damage, every hurricane leaves thousands of lawsuits between angry homeowners and insurance companies in its wake. The cost of fighting these lawsuits is another factor in motivating insurers to leave Florida. A Problem Without A Solution?The exodus of insurers from Florida has left Citizen's Property Insurance Corporation as one of the state's largest insurance providers. The problem with that equation is that Citizen's is a state-run insurance provider that was not meant to be anything more than a last resort for people on the insurance market. For many Floridians, it's becoming the first option. The idea of a state that doesn't charge income taxes being on the hook for millions of home insurance policies is problematic. If another storm that matches the power of Hurricane Andrew slams into Miami or Tampa, paying out the claims could potentially bankrupt the state. That is why so many Floridians are choosing to become ex-Floridians. This article Florida Is Beginning To Lose Homeowners Over High Insurance Premiums originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2023 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Farmers Insurance Group of Cos. and United Services Automobile Association (USAA) have increased homeowners insurance rates by nearly 15% each to lead all other insurers. According to S&P Global Market Intelligence‘s RateWatch application, Farmers’ year-to-date calculated effective rate change on homeowner policies through Sept. 1, 2023 was up 14.8% – just a tick higher than USAA’s 14.7% rate hikes thus far in 2023. “Macroeconomic conditions continue to plague US personal lines-focused insurers as the past two years have seen a higher-than-average rise in homeowners’ insurance rates,” S&P said. “Between 2018 and 2021, the countrywide yearly average change was in the 3% range but jumped to about 6% in 2022. Through roughly the first eight months of 2023, the national average rise in homeowners’ premium rates was 8.8%.” Farmers has received approval to increase rates across 43 states, with an average hike of more than 10% in 28 states. S&P said the insurer’s three largest effective rate increases were in Illinois, Texas and Tennessee, at 25.3%, 25.1%, and 23.8%, respectively. Meanwhile, USAA has raised rates in 44 states through Sept. 1, highlighted by a 36.6% effective rate change in Arizona, which saw insurers increase rates the most of any other state – a weighted average of 18.4%, S&P said. Texas was second-highest, with a 16.4% increase. USAA also increased rates by more than 30% in two other states — Colorado and Tennessee. Progressive Corp. has the largest year-to-date effective rate change in any state among the country’s largest homeowner writers with an uptick of about 57% in North Carolina that went into effect June 19 for renewals. Progressive was also approved to hike rates by a weighted average of 25% in California. The states with the lowest weighted average increase by insurers so far in 2023 are Hawaii, Vermont and New Jersey at 1.8%, 2.5% and 2.8%, respectively. Original Article can be found here: Farmers, USAA Lead Pack in Hiking Homeowners Insurance Rates in 2023: S&P (insurancejournal.com)
Of all the tools people will tell you to add to your garage, anything that would derail you from efficient work would seem the least worthwhile. However, items that many would label as distractions can be very helpful in specific situations, and to ignore their benefits is to risk complicating your life.
Let’s take a look at six things that appear to be distractions but that deserve a place in your shop—even if you have to explain why to your friends. TV: Let’s start with the ultimate distraction. When I’m cleaning, I’ll often put on the reply of an endurance race or a favorite concert, sideshows that I can tune in or out of without guilt. It also serves as a generously sized screen on which I can review my own race footage or watch a how-to video. Recently, the TV proved its worth when a friend was over with a motorcycle I’d never worked on before. We ended up watching a how-to video on the big screen and talking through the process together. Very helpful. Fridge/Freezer:A staple of the garage for those who spend hours belly-up to the workbench. Kept stocked with cold beverages, a fridge is always a threat to productivity; all it takes is one pop tab to turn a night of productive wrenching to one of bench racing. Sure, some folks can enjoy a cold beverage and notice little change to their productivity, but any change in judgement combined with a high-risk task is a recipe for trouble. Imbibe wisely, and remember that thermal changes can be very helpful during assembly of some pieces: That fridge or freezer can provide the perfect temperature differential to make press-fits just a bit easier. Computer: I know it’s not just me that spends the whole working day on a computer. Therefore the last thing I want to do after hours is peer at a screen. Heck, that’s why my cars have carburetors. I don’t want anything on the car that requires a screen. Yet having a computer on the workbench helps me assemble a parts order while looking at the project, and review reference materials or how-to outlines easily. My personal favorite is using a full-sized computer screen to review photos of assemblies I took apart weeks or months ago to know I’m putting them back together correctly. It’s far easier to scroll photo albums on a computer than on my phone. Do I need the laptop all the time? Certainly not, but it can really make life easier. Comfortable Chair: Sometimes you just need to take a mental break. Personally, I find it helpful to continue looking at what I’m working on while I think through the process. Even reading shop manuals is more productive when the parts are in front of me. (Plus, I haven’t sold the missus on bringing engine blocks into the living room.) A nice place to sit is a luxury worth having in your garage. This could mean a barcalounger if you’ve got the space, or even a supportive, bench-height office chair to replace that battered, wooden kitchen stool. Anything that creates a comfortable opportunity to get off your feet for a bit. StereoThe right music can dial in your focus, while the wrong tunes can be attention-grabs that do nothing but sidetrack you. Background noise can help keep you maintain focus and motivation while plugging away on tedious projects, like parts cleaning or bodywork, so don’t be scared to have a nice stereo in your shop. Bonus points if you listen to era-correct music while working on your car. That’s just affordable time travel! FriendsHaving a “helping hand” can sometimes mean that even less work gets done, but such is the cost of camaraderie. The human connection is more important than the cars. Never feel bad if the conversation ends up being your focus, instead of the project. Our friends bring a different type of joy into our lives and it is not to be ignored. Original article can be found here: 6 distractions worth having in your garage - Hagerty Media More Florida homeowners are self-insuring amid property insurance crisis. Here’s what that means9/22/2023
ORLANDO, Fla. – Amid Florida’s property insurance crisis, more Floridians are taking protecting their property into their own hands.
Some are doing away with property insurance and self-insuring. The number of Floridians self-insuring their homes has increased over the last year, according to the Insurance Information Institute. It is directly attributed to the high cost of insurance in Florida, according to industry analysts. Over the last few years, 90-year-old Bronson Collins has watched the cost to insure his Apopka home steadily increase, but the latest rate hike gave him sticker shock. Because of the rising cost, more Floridians are opting out of property insurance altogether. Industry analysts estimate 15% of Florida homeowners are now self-insuring, which is double the national average of 7%, and up 2% from last year. Mark Friedlander is with the Insurance Information Institute, a national association of insurers. “We are clearly seeing an uptick in self-insurance,” Friedlander said. “One of the key reasons is the cost of insurance is going up so much in the state of Florida.” Self-insuring means you don’t have an insurance policy to protect your property. Instead, the theory is you save what you would pay in premiums in an investment account that you can access, and then you pay for any potential repairs out of pocket. Tasha Carter is Florida’s Insurance Consumer Advocate and said she gets inquiries all the time from Floridians about self-insuring. “It definitely puts those consumers at significant risk,” Carter told News 6. “I don’t recommend people self-insure. Most consumers just don’t have the available funds to be able to cover a catastrophic loss,” she said. There is no law that requires you to have insurance but if you have a mortgage, mortgage companies do require insurance to protect their investment. Only people who bought their houses outright or have paid off their mortgage have the option to self-insure. Carter says there are ways to lower the cost of insurance. Collins for example immediately went to see his agent and talked to them about taking some coverage away. “We made some adjustments, and I was able to lower the premium by $700, but it is still more than doubled over last year’s premium,” Collins said. Carter said you should ask insurers about all premium discounts. Some insurers will offer discounts if you install a security system for example. There are discounts for bundling policies like having your home and auto insurance with the same company. Original article published here: More Florida homeowners are self-insuring amid property insurance crisis. Here’s what that means (clickorlando.com) Americans have been dealing with inflation costs since 2021, from food, gas, housing, and now auto insurance.
Due to the flooding damage caused by Hurricane Ian in 2022, Florida insurance companies were forced to raise auto insurance rates to compensate for the cost of claims. WINK News spoke with Mark Friedlander, Director of Corporate Communications at the Insurance Information Institute about the drastic rate hikes on Florida car insurance. “Florida was the highest when we looked at all the data,” said Friedlander. An article written by the Washington Post reported that Florida saw an 88% increase in car insurance rates. Friedlander clarified the information regarding the article. “Nobody could afford car insurance at that rate. It’s just not possible. I don’t know where it came from,” said Friedlander. “But I’ll go back out. According to the insurance information, it’s just analysis, auto insurance increased year over year 14%, compared to 2022, which by the way, is the highest average increase of any state.” The 88% increase stems from how much car insurance went up since 2013 in Florida, according to FINN, a car subscription service. The Insurance Information Institute said factors like accident frequency, litigation, fraud and severe weather can raise premiums, with at least 40,000 auto claim lawsuits filed each month in Florida this year alone. “The average cost of auto insurance is running about $3,100. That is 50% higher than the average, which is running at about $2,000,” said Friedlander. Friedlander said there are ways people can save so they aren’t drowning in costs. People should shop around for different policies and compare quotes, take advantage of discounts and overall be good drivers. Florida will see the highest average premiums in 2033, with an estimated annual cost of $4,813 due to climate change increasing the likelihood of claims filed. That’s more than $2,500 than the predicted national average if current trends continue. The original article can be found here: Floridians struggle with rising auto insurance rates amid inflation (winknews.com) Insurance 220 Experienced Sales Associate
Are you a licensed sales associate feeling undervalued in this stressful insurance environment? Are you looking to work in a flexible, chill office and get paid what you’re worth? Look no further! Let’s be honest, the insurance market in the state of Florida has everyone working harder than ever to take care of clients while meeting the absurd demands of underwriters. It’s crazy! Let’s be crazy together in an office that recognizes this, is growing rapidly and will help you take your career to the next level. Check out our google reviews and see what our clients have to say about us! Anderson Agency is a reputable and fast-growing insurance agency committed to providing exceptional service to our clients. As a member of our team, you will play a vital role in our success by cultivating relationships, generating leads, and closing deals. We offer a competitive commission structure and a supportive work environment that fosters growth and professional development. Responsibilities: - Identify and prospect potential clients through various channels such as cross-selling opportunities, referrals, networking, and social media. - Conduct thorough needs assessments to understand clients' insurance requirements and recommend suitable coverage options. - Present and explain insurance policies to clients, highlighting their benefits and addressing any concerns or questions. - Generate quotes and prepare proposals tailored to clients' specific needs. - Close sales and achieve monthly targets while maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction. - Maintain accurate records of client interactions, sales activities, and follow-up tasks in our CRM system. - Stay updated on industry trends, product knowledge, and regulatory requirements to provide accurate and up-to-date information to clients. Requirements: - Active Insurance 220 license. - Proven track record of success in insurance sales, with a minimum of 4 years of experience. - Strong sales and negotiation skills, with the ability to build lasting relationships and establish trust with clients. - Excellent communication and interpersonal skills. - Self-motivated and target-driven individual with a proactive approach to sales. - Proficient in using CRM software and other sales tools. - Knowledge of various insurance products: personal and commercial lines. - Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience preferred. If you are a motivated and results-oriented Sales Associate seeking a challenging yet rewarding career, we want to hear from you. Join our dynamic team at the Anderson Agency of NE FL and be part of our continued success. Apply today by sending your resume and a brief cover letter to kathleen@andersonagencyfl.com www.andersonagencyfl.com Job Type: Full-time Farmers Insurance is the latest home insurer to pull out of Florida’s market, labeling the move as a business decision that was “necessary to effectively manage risk exposure,” per the company’s statement provided to Fortune. Shortly after, AAA announced it'd reduce its presence in Florida. This week, AAA announced that it’d “made the difficult decision to not renew a very small percentage of higher exposure homeowner’s policies in Florida,” according to the company statement provided to Fortune—because of, what it called, a “challenging” insurance market. Unlike Farmers, which announced its decision earlier this month, AAA will continue to write new home policies in Florida, aside from those it’s choosing not to renew. Given that Farmers is not the first home insurer to stop offering coverage in Florida over the past year or so, things are looking challenging for its housing market, and particularly, its homeowners that are already paying the highest insurance premiums in the nation, with an average premium of $6,000 per year versus the U.S. average of $1,700 per year, according to Mark Friedlander, Florida-based director of corporate communications for the Insurance Information Institute. That’s 42% higher than the year prior, Frielander added. “Just in the last 18 months, 15 companies have stopped writing business in Florida, three have voluntarily withdrawn—Farmers being the most recent, and seven companies have been declared insolvent,” Friedlander explained to Fortune just before AAA’s decision was made public. The exodus, which the Insurance Information Institute calls a “man-made crisis,” is driven by two key factors in its view: legal system abuse and claim fraud. “Florida’s property insurance industry has not posted positive financial results since 2016,” Friedlander said. “Last year alone, the industry posted a $1.4 billion underwriting loss and $900 billion net income loss. The underwriting losses have averaged more than $1 billion per year for the last three years. So it’s been a very paralyzed market for insurers. And it’s not a sustainable model to operate in the state. If you keep losing that much money, year after year, it becomes very challenging.” Ken H. Johnson, a former real estate broker and current associate dean of graduate programs at Florida Atlantic University—whose research focuses on real estate economics, pointed to insurance claims that result in litigation. Citing data from Florida’s Office of Insurance Regulation, Johnson told Fortune that last year, 79% of home ownership lawsuits occurred in Florida. That’s costly for insurance companies, and a lot of what they’re paying goes toward legal fees rather than the damage itself, he said. That being said, insurers are leaving the state, and those that are staying seem to be consistently increasing their premiums to offset their losses. And it doesn’t help that most Florida housing markets saw home prices jump over 50% between March 2020 and April 2023 (see map below), while mortgage rates are now hovering around 7% after a short-lived era of historically low rates during the pandemic. “The cost of homeownership is already way above where it should be,” Johnson said. “We pay really high homeownership prices, and on top of [that] at really high interest rates, approaching 7%. And then on top of that, we’re going to add very expensive homeowners insurance. So affordability is going to become a dramatic question for, I believe, several years.” Florida’s insurance consumer advocate, Tasha Carter, who was appointed by Florida’s chief financial officer, Jimmy Patronis, listed four factors behind the homeowner insurance market that she said is in “dire condition.” The first has to do with claims from recent hurricanes, given hurricane Irma, Michael, and Ian (combined) generated nearly 3 million claims filed and resulted in approximately $46 billion in estimated insured losses. Then, there’s reinsurance rates that have gone up 52% on average in the last year, which results in increased costs to policyholders in the form of higher premiums. Next, there’s an increase in litigation involving insurance companies, which also results in increased costs to policyholders. And the last factor comes down to insurance fraud. In what seems to be a defense of its decision, in AAA’s statement it said: “Florida’s insurance market has become challenging in recent years. Last year’s catastrophic hurricane season contributed to an unprecedented rise in reinsurance rates, making it more costly for insurance companies to operate. Prior to that, the market was already strained by an increase in claims costs due to inflation and excessive litigation.” Farmers, on the other hand, did not explain its decision beyond doing so to manage risk exposure. It’s clear that there’s several factors at play, and it all culminates in homeowners having less options in terms of insurance coverage. “The homeowners insurance market is continuously shrinking and becoming more and more restricted, with less capacity,” Carter told Fortune. “And that means it is becoming more and more difficult for consumers to find homeowners insurance coverage.” In this sort of postmortem period, as Johnson put it, he doesn’t know exactly how to feel about Farmers leaving the state. More so, he’s curious about the relationship the company had with its reinsurers, given reinsurers’ capital declined by 15% in 2022. Farmers Insurance’s subsidiaries will continue to operate within the state, and the company claims only 30% of policies will be affected by its decision to discontinue its Farmers-branded auto, home, and umbrella policies in Florida. Still, theoretically, the less competition there is among insurers, the more control they have over the market. How that’ll play out in terms of individual costs is unclear, Friedlander seems to think that more consumers will look to Citizens Property Insurance, which he said is a state-backed insurer of last resort, and end up with that coverage (particularly if their company fails or leaves Florida, like Farmers Insurance). In that case, Citizens Property Insurance is lower than private market rates, around 40% less, Friedlander said, which is a problem in itself because of the pace at which it’s growing—but that’s for another day. Jason Damm, an assistant professor of professional practice of finance at the University of Miami, owns an investment property in Miami that has two separate houses on it (both of which he rents out). He renewed his insurance in April, and his premium went up 25%. A month later, Damm said the insurance company sent him a notice that it was pulling out of the state. By June 30, his policy was canceled. “I don’t have insurance on the house, which is quite dangerous,” Damm said. “I’ve been looking, it’s very expensive, so I’m trying to decide what to do… it’s a huge problem. I mean, I don't know what I’m going to do with it, whether I’m going to try and find a policy or just go without insurance.” I don’t have to explain how risky it is to go without home insurance, let alone in a place like Florida that’s prone to natural disasters, yet people are doing it. Carter spoke to a consumer recently who told her she is thinking about self-insurance, even though she doesn’t have the financial means to repair or rebuild her home if a natural disaster were to strike. Still, in order to meet her other financial demands, this is what she feels she has to do. Companies are also becoming more selective of the homes they insure, Carter said. They’re looking at the roof conditions, and the age of roofs, along with the overall age of homes. Consumers with roofs over 10 to 15 years old are having a hard time finding coverage, and in some cases, are being asked to replace their roofs to secure coverage, Carter said. Others are limiting the age of homes they’re willing to insure, with some companies choosing to only insure newly built homes and homes built within the last five years. “Consumers are experiencing an increase in their insurance premiums,” Carter said. “They’re really shocked when they receive their renewal notices…what we’re seeing is for those companies who are willing to remain in the state and who are willing to write homeowners insurance coverage, unfortunately, that coverage comes with a very, very high price tag that is making it very difficult for consumers to be able to afford [it].” In Johnson’s view premiums are likely to continue to increase until legislation, that’s already in effect, takes hold—and it’s not a quick and easy process because this legislation isn’t retroactive. Still, in the meantime this exodus of home insures is only going to worsen affordability. “It’s going to drive up the cost, which is just going to prolong this affordability crisis that has developed in Florida,” Johnson said. This story was originally featured on Fortune.com At Anderson Agency, we understand how frustrating this situation is! Allow us the opportunity to help. Click the button below to allow us to shop the policy for you! |
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