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May 2010
Published monthly by United Farmers Agents Association, aka UFAA, Chapter 15 Eastern Oklahoma. The chapter meets the
first Wednesday of each month. Next Chapter 15 Member Meeting: Wednesday, May 5th 11:30 AM
Chapter 15 will meet in the upstairs meeting room at the Silver Flame Restaurant located at the S/W corner of 61st & Sheridan, Tulsa. A
fixed cost of the meals @ $12.50 per person that includes meal, drink, tax,
gratuity and group appetizer. We have a choice of 5 lunch entrees. Lunch MenuNon-member
agents welcome.
Mission Statement
The United Farmers Agents Association -UFAA-
is a professional association committed to helping our members through
education, communication, support and information and to establish a
true partnership with Farmers Group, Inc. Check out our website
UFAA Oklahoma Voice Editor
UFAA Oklahoma Voice Ads
To join an
Oklahoma UFAA Chapter
choose one closest to you and
contact the chapter.
Or, sign
up at the UFAA
Website.
United Farmers Agents Association Web Site
UFAA
Chapter 15 Newsletter Archive & Homepage
Insurance Exec says he is
'Blessed'
Executive Q&A with Oklahoma State Dir. John P. Lucido
"Oklahoma has great people. I feel blessed
to be here," Lucido said.
Oklahoma is among Farmers' top five markets,
he said. Here, it has 1,600 employees and 503 agents and insures
350,000 automobiles, 150,000 homes, 7,000 businesses and 59,000 lives.
Newsok.com
article 4/18/2010
From the Tulsa
World published 5/2/2010
Farmers Insurance Group of Cos. has appointed John P. Lucido as executive director for Okla. Lucido will oversee the Farmers operations throughout the state and will be responsible for driving the state's bottom line results for the company. "I look forward to working with the outstanding agents, district managers and employees who call Oklahoma their home," said Lucido. "Farmers has a long and proud history of serving the residents of this state, and I am pleased to be able to continue that tradition."
Lucido began his Farmers career in July 1984 as a claims representative in Campbell, Calif. In November 1987, he was promoted to supervisor in the San Francisco claims office and was later promoted to branch claims manager in November 1989 for the Santa Clara, Calif., claims office. He transferred in November 1991 to the human resources department in the Pleasanton, Calif., regional office, where he served as a human resources specialist. In January 1994 Lucido was promoted to division marketing manager in the Pleasanton office.
Lucido left California in June 1997 when he was transferred to the Phoenix Service Center as commercial service center manager. In October 2000 he was named state executive director for Nebraska; the states of North Dakota and South Dakota were added to his responsibilities in 2007, and Iowa was added in 2009. Lucido received his bachelor's degree from the University of California-Davis. Tulsa World 5.2.2010
Eastern Oklahoma Agents and DMs- Send Monthly Message to Home Office
When Oklahoma
Agents were polled in March on which song they would send to Home
Office that best describes the current condition of their businesses,93% of respondents related they were
not happy withFarmers
Management. This figure jumped to 100% in our April Poll:
Previous
poll results:
MARCH, 2010: No
Satisfaction: 50% Take this Job: 43% We are Family: 4% Celebration: 3%
Here are your April 2010 poll results. You can hear the songs again by mousing the
song title below.
Rolling
Stones- 1965
Performed on "The Ed Sullivan Show" on February 13, 1966.
AT A GLANCE: Oklahoma $10 MVRs Under the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act, the state releases
motor vehicle records for $10 to organizations and individuals for any
of the following reasons:
→Vehicle safety matters→Court proceedings→Research activities→Insurance claims, underwriting, investigations or other
insurance-related activities→Vehicle towing and impounding notices→Commercial driver's license verification by employers→If requested by a licensed private investigator or security service→If requested by a government agency, law enforcement, court or tribal
court→If requested by a private toll transportation entity→If written consent is provided from the person whose record is
requestedSource: Oklahoma
Department of Public Safety
Sign Up for Driver License/ID Card Renewal Notification by email. Did you know the State of Oklahoma has begun showing "Sex Offender" on DLs for those convicted of such crimes? Sample shown above.
What a Rip! Dear Oklahoma Voice Editor,
What a ripoff! I am sending you a link to the Oklahoman that published an article on the cost of motor vehicle records. The costs to the public is $10. I just reviewed my folio deductions and Farmers is ripping us off for 23% more at $12.30. This is fraud. Do we have to buy from them? Why can't we order them direct over the Internet?
To add insult to injury, I was zapped $12.30 for one account MVR and have not yet been paid for the new business! So, at the moment that sale has become a cost as I carry the MVR note for Farmers for 30-60-90 or who knows how many days. They tried this MVR scam in 2006 or 2007 and it was months, if ever, before we were reimbursed. Now, if you order MVRs to get a valid quote, they zap you $12.30 per driver and only reimburse you if the policy is sold. Today with so many Farmers variables, there is no guarantee the quoted policy will be sold. So, a single car with 3 drivers, the agent is hit with 3 MVR charges totaling $36.90.
We only make $8 on a new business auto policy and have the carry the MVR note at $12.30 times the number of drivers. If the policy does not stay on the books until renewal, the agent is charged back the $8 NB fee and a pro-rate share of the commissions on the premium. Will they now come back on us for the MVR costs too making this sale very costly to the agent?
The MVR, like CLU, credit and other REQUIRED underwriting costs should be totally paid by the company. It is their cost of doing business as I have no control over MVR ordering. When I hit submit on dashboard, I am nailed for the underwriting MVR costs- no options- no control, just pay their bills. Okie Agent
Dear Okie Thanks for the MVR Article shown below. You make some good points. Farmers does reimburse agents for MVR costs on policies sold. Yet, I agree with you that all background costs of policy issuance or quotes including MVRs should be paid by them as their cost of doing business. Lord knows, we pay all the front end lead costs just to get the opportunity to process a quote for a prospect.
Oklahoma brings in millions
by selling personal data Privacy experts say practice doesn't
spark identity theft
The state of Oklahoma
makes tens of millions of dollars selling personal information about
people that some lawmakers and labor organizations want kept secret for
government employees, The Oklahoman and the Tulsa
World have learned.
At least $65 million has been made in the past five years from the sale
of millions of motor vehicle records that include birth dates and other
personal information of all state drivers, Department of Public Safety
records show. A private company has collected about $15 million conducting most of
those transactions on behalf of the state, records show.
As a result, birth dates and other personal information flow freely on a
daily basis to insurance companies, employment screening services,
government agencies, attorneys, individuals and more.
While the state earns money selling records that include birth dates,
lawmakers and some labor groups are working to shut off access to birth
dates of public employees to the public, The Oklahoman
and others working on the public's behalf. Senate Bill 1753, by Sen.
Debbe Leftwich, D-Oklahoma
City, and Rep.
Randy Terrill, R-Moore, would exempt government worker birth dates
from the state's Open Records Act.
Leftwich, Terrill and supporters of the bill claim releasing birth dates
could endanger the safety of employees and lead to identity theft. They
have provided no evidence of such harm being done in the past as a
result of birth dates being public.
Leftwich and Terrill did not return calls Friday seeking comment on the
state selling motor vehicle records that include birth dates.
If you wish to be excluded from future mailings please let us
know by emailing us at [email protected] or by using the Unsubscribe feature at
the located within this document. Disclaimer - The Oklahoma Voice is published
twelve times per year for the United Farmers Agents Association, Chapter 15
Northeastern Oklahoma. The United Farmers Agents Association and the editor
neither assumes any responsibility for the accuracy of the articles or
advertisers, nor any liability arising from reliance upon them. The Oklahoma
Voice expresses it's appreciation to the many members who assist in and support
it's publication,. Opinions in the Oklahoma Voice do not necessarily express the
views of any single member or Chapter officer or UFAA organization. Products and
services advertised are not endorsed by this Chapter or United Farmers Agents
Association, Inc. Complaints or inquiries should be forwarded directly to the
advertiser. All purchases and services are at the complete discretion of the
consumer. Trademarks and/or logos are the respective products or trademarks of their respective
owners.
Like DUI, is a $1,500 deductible on
homes only in Tulsa & OKC illegal?
Oklahoma Statutes Citationized Title
36. Insurance Section 1435.15
- Para. E Producer Acting as Agent
E.
It shall be unlawful for
any insurer to discriminate among or between the insurance producers it
has appointed. Any person or company convicted of violating the
provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be
punished by the imposition of a fine of not more than Five Hundred
Dollars ($500.00) or imprisonment in the county jail for not less than
six (6) months nor more than one (1) year, or be punished by both said
fine and imprisonment.
Oklahoma Voice, "Regarding the [April} article "Deductibles
Up on
Selected New Business Fire" - it is stated that "A similar
bulletin 07-05363 on wood roof inspections was tried in [only] Oklahoma City
and
Tulsa in July 2007 and state law prohibited it as it
discriminates in the underwriting and rating of a policy against/for
selected agents and their clients." Has UFAA
brought this
to the attention of the Oklahoma Insurance Department/Kim Holland or
anyone within Farmers management? If so - what was the response?" Okie Agent
Dear Okie Agent,
Thank you for bringing this
to our attention. The 2007 field
bulletin # referred in April article was 07-05363, a typo, and should
have been listed as 07-0563 dated 7-3-2007 with a subject of Pre-binding roof inspection. You may
view this bulletin on the dashboard main page by entering the 07-0563
in the search box.
The
Pre-binding Roof Inspection eff 7/1/2007 above was dumped eff
August 1, 2007 under the authority of the Oklahoma Insurance Dept at the request of Oklahoma UFAA Chapters. Field bulletin 07-0657 dated 08/7/2007 corrected this issue. -ed Typically, when we suspect an insurance law violation, we first
print it in the Oklahoma Voice in an attempt to keep it "in house" and
let the you and others know it may be illegal. If a timely correction is not made,
we file an inquiry with the OID.
Concerning bulletin 10-0205,
requiring a $1,500 H/O deductible only in surrounding areas of Tulsa and OKC, it was not
effective until April 16. So, no violation had yet occurred when our
April Okla Voice was created and emailed to agents on April 1st.
Forcing a $1,500 deductible on homes for only Tulsa & OKC ans surrounding areas may also violate state required insuring conditions of Affinity Groups listed below- ed
Oklahoma Statutes
Citationized
Title 36. Insurance Chapter
2 Section 6001.1
- Group or Risks Not Considered Fictitious Group.
A group or combination of persons or
risks shall not be considered a fictitious group if the conditions
provided in this section are met:
1. The group shall have been in existence
for at least two (2) years prior to the purchase of the intended group
plan of insurance or conclusive proof submitted to the Insurance
Commissioner that such group was not organized primarily for the purpose
of purchasing insurance;
2. The group shall have a highly
reasonable degree of homogeneity;
3. Eligible members of the group shall be
persons in good standing in the group. In the case of employees, such
employees should be engaged in active employment of the employer of the
group for not less than thirty (30) hours each week, or shall be on a
pension with that respective employer or be the surviving spouse of a
deceased pensioner;<< We believe this requirement is still not currently provided -ed
4. Group underwriting standards shall be
applied consistently throughout the group;
5. Coverage shall be available to all
eligible members and the individual members of their family, who are
members of their immediate household; but no prospective employee or
employee already employed shall be required to participate as a
condition of employment;
6.The experience of other similar groups
within the state and insured by the same carrier shall not be combined
for the purpose of determining rates;
7. Policies issued to members of such
groups shall provide no more restrictive insuring agreements and
conditions than those of policies available to the individual purchaser
from the same insurer, and such groups shall be provided with the option
to select a policy with such limits of coverage as are available to
individual purchasers from the same insurer;
8. Any insurer offering such a group plan
shall also be required to provide insurance on an individual basis to
the general public of the state and shall not be permitted to enter in
this state an insurance company solely for the purpose of mass marketing
or grouping of auto insurance policies for any group; Mass Mktg. of 21st Century TV ads- Aren't Okla.citizens a group? -ed
9. The insurer shall be required to offer
to a member a conversion to a standard plan of insurance offered by the
same insurer to the general public of the state in which the group
operates in the event of separation of the member from the group through
termination of employment for any reason;
10. Individual policies of insurance
shall be issued to each member of the group and the premiums shall be
paid to the insurer periodically by the group or member, with or without
payroll deductions; and
11. With regard to automobile insurance,
unless the insurance for the entire group is canceled concurrently, no
policy of insurance issued to a member shall be canceled except as
otherwise provided by law.
Editors note: If all 11 conditions above are NOT met, the groups are fictitious and the OID could de-certify the the affinity group(s).
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Note: If you
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Printer ink by the cartridge costs up to $10,000 a Gallon
Save
Money by Changing Your
printers Font
A Wisconsin college has found a new
way to cut
costs with e-mail - by changing the font.
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
has switched the default font
on its e-mail system from Arial to Century Gothic. It says that while
the change sounds minor, it will save money on ink when students print
e-mails in the new font.
Diane Blohowiak is the school's
director of computing. She says the
new font uses about 30 percent less ink than the previously used font.
That could add up to serious savings, since the cost of printer ink
works out to about $10,000 per gallon.
(purchased by the cartridge that
holds just a few cc's.)
Blohowiak says the decision is
part of the school's five-year plan
to go green. She tells Wisconsin Public Radio it's great that a change
that's eco-friendly also saves money. GREEN
BAY, Wis., March 25, 2010 . This article is written in the suggested
10 pt Century Gothic font.-Here's a short video by Kim Komando showing other ink saving options.- ed
Farmers Way Sales Maze A:No Sale-Rates/Credit B: No Sale-Underwriting C: No Sale- Deductibles -/+: Maybe so, Maybe no
Dear Editor, The Sales Success Maze keeps gaining more dead-ends
It all began on Date: January 14, 2010 with Field Bulletin No: 09-0981
Condensed here due to space.
Wood roofs Due to higher losses on wood roofs in states prone to windstorms and hailstorms, new deductible guidelines have been established. All new business owner occupied dwellings with wood roofs issued on or after January 15, 2010, will require a minimum 2 percent Wind/Hail deductible. All new business Landlords Protector Package policies with wood roofs will require a minimum $2,500 Wind/Hail deductible (if the split Wind/Hail deductible is not available, the All-Peril deductible is required). Out-of-production roofs Out-of-production roofs are defined as roofing materials that manufacturers no longer produce. Examples of these types of roofs include T-Lock, Woodruf™and organic shingles such as CertainTeed Horizon. A minimum 5 percent Wind/Hail deductible for owner-occupied new business issued on or after January 15, 2010 is required for all types of out-of-production roofs. All new business Landlords Protector Package policies will require a minimum $5,000 Wind/Hail deductible (if the split Wind/Hail deductible is not available, the All-Peril deductible is required). Multiple layer roofs Unacceptable multiple layer roofs include those with more than two (or three or more) layers of composite shingles. These roofs are unacceptable as they have been proven to be more susceptible to hailstorm and windstorm damage. Two layer roofs will remain acceptable; however, those with composite shingles over the top of wood shake are unacceptable. Roofs which have composite shingles over wood shakes are of lower quality and are more susceptible to damage. For other two layer roofs, a minimum 1 percent Wind/Hail deductible is required for owner-occupied business. For Landlords Protector Package, a minimum $1,500 Wind/Hail deductible is required (if the split Wind/Hail deductible is not available, the All-Peril deductible is required). Tips of the Trade Information and photographs will be provided on the Agency Dashboard to assist in identifying the roof types described above. Out-of-production roofs, including T-Locks, and multiple layer roofs are relatively easy to recognize; therefore, it is strongly recommended to closely inspect a customers' roof from the ground before submitting the business.
Then, bulletin 0267 04/13/2010 tells about express enhancements on the above changes and includes more documentation! "Agents should scan the document into the Image Center under the "High Deductible Disclosure Form" document type."
Then, Bulletin No: 10-0205 dated 03/15/2010effective 04/16/2010 [$1,500] "Minimum deductible requirements on new business are being implemented in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and surrounding areas. "As we have grown our [fire] policies in force, our overall exposure to severe weather events has increased dramatically." We did? Let's just ask the agents...
Surrounding Areas? Just what does that mean, Dean? Surrounding Tulsa and OKC- how far? To the city limits? To the County Line? Just those homes above the average ground elevation with more exposure as verified with GPS? What about the town of Bugtussle, Oklahoma? It surrounds Tulsa or OKC if the underwriter wants to s-t-r-e-t-ch it because they don't know either. It's just another guessing game, coin toss and usually confusing like most bulletins written by never-been-agent employees. Roofing Layers? I was at an agent's meeting two weeks ago and the roofing contractor said "It's common practice to cut back an old layer of roof from the eve edge before an overlay is placed on top." When I do a visual from the ground, I will see only one visible edge or layer. How many more could be hidden? Will the new buyer or real estate agent know?
I have concluded that...
I need a company issued ladder, a helmet, tool belt and rainproof roof picture manual. Oh yes, also, a corporate issued weed eater as last year the company canceled a new business home because the inspector showed a photo of three blades of grass growing in the gutter. And, they might as well throw in time and mileage, a digital camera and a GPS as they have not reimbursed for photos in years. Otherwise, I will use "Google Satellite" to guess at the roof layers cause I am deathly afraid of heights and ladders are a real challenge for me with one good leg. If Google Satellite fails to work for me, I guess I will have to solicit trailer homes. But, we need to convince underwriting that a dozen concrete blocks with a few worn out truck tires on the roof will qualify for the tie-down credit. Okie Agent.
Dear Okie, Sorry to hear about the bad leg. The company issued equipment is a new idea. Instead of issued, it would likely be sponsored equipment explained below. With your bad leg, I would pass up the ladder for the new power scaffolding with safety railing that you trailer behind your farm truck. Just pull up into your new client's, now trenched, front yard, hop on the trailer and use the remote to lift you to the roof to "peek" under that first layer. And, be sure to get the "face shield" option on that new helmet. It will be useful when 200 wasps swarm out of that raised shingle. Please, don't mention the wasps as they will cancel for having vicious attacking pets.
Your request for tools will likely get Farmers to sponsor a contractor to provide you those items including lots of email spam tool advertisements while setting you up with the Farmers Credit Union to finance them. That's Farmers Way, today! -ed
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Water, Storm Damage & Other Perils
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Provided by: Paul Davis and Safelite Auto Glass
Tuesday June 8-Agency
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thinking, and communication courses at a local university. June
8: Agency Customer Service (3
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We will look at key communication skills and principles for insurance
professionals, including a review of insurance procedures and dealing with
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lunch Location: The
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When an agent terminates, their farmersagent.com email address is also eliminated from the system. The Oklahoma Voice receives a return mail report each month on agent addresses we mail to that are non-existent. Here's a breakdown of Okie agents. 2010 Jan.- 6 Feb.- 10 Mar.- 6Total 22 1st Qtr. 2009 Dec.- 7 Nov.- 9 Oct.- 2Total 18 4th Qtr.
Agents lost during last 2 Qtrs. *40
As our look back records on non-existent agent email addresses is limited. Here is an article from the Okla Voice May, 2009 issue based on our emailing during the 1st qtr.2009 and returned mail on non-existent farmersagent.com addresses
2009
Jan 6th- 2 Feb 2nd- 8 Feb 11- 13
Mar 3rd-
7 Mar 30th- 3 Total 1st Qtr.`2009- *33(*Our numbers could vary from actual)
Updated comments on Job Vent.com/Farmers Seems Bristol-West may have had lots of FIG Agent E&O exposures.
Employees fired up at 21st Century on Job Vent.com/21C Caution: some language may not be appropriate on the above links. Reader discretion advised.
Pulse of the agents Poll Results for April
Results show 84% of responding agents do not get vital info from DMs; (94% mistrust the rating system or think it's hiding rate hikes; 100% believe an immediate or high priority should be placed on correcting BBB ratings.
Concerning
the delay of processing FA2 renewals, did your DM forward to you this
information?
Yes 16%
No, I saw first saw it in print in the Okla. Voice 84%
Do you
believe our rating system is confusing the abilities of the company to
consistently get it right?
Yes67%
No 6%
New products & changes
are just corporate cover for more rate hikes! 27%
What priority do you believe
Farmers should place on correcting their failing BBB ratings viewable
over the Internet?
Immediate
priority 79%
High priority 21%
Medium priority0%
Low priority 0%
Residential and Commercial
Edmond 405-330-0025 Tulsa 918-270-2888
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Learn more about our advertisers as you or your clients may need their services in the future.
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You may mouse any of our valued ads in this issue for direct access to their informative and educational website.
ads rotated for 05/10 issue
By Kim Komando
Apple's new iPad is hot. It's cool. But is it for you? In part 1 of my iPad review I'll show you just what the iPad is. In part 2 I'll show you what the iPad can--and can't--do.
To access videos below by Kim Komando Videos click here iPad
Review (Part 1) Duration: 5:16
iPad
Review (Part 2) Duration: 4:51
Medical
Record Privacy in the New Health Plan Duration: 3:26
Set
up Facebook to keep your privacy Duration: 4:27
Three
Essential and Free Software Programs for your PC Duration:
4:15
Oklahoma
Voice has reprint rights. Copyright 2008 WestStar TalkRadio Network.
Reprinted
with permission. No further republication or redistribution is permitted
without
the written consent of WestStar TalkRadio Network. Visit Kim Komando and
sign up
for her free e-mail newsletters www.komando.com
A form of malware can be activated by prompting Internet Explorer users to press the F1 key. More on this issue from snopes.com a verification site that confirms or denies email rumors that travel through the internet. Snopes advises this is true and provides links to Microsoft's site for additional info. -ed
The Insurance Sales Pitch
Airman Jones was assigned to the induction center, where he advised new
recruits about their government benefits, especially their GI insurance.
It wasn't long before Captain Smith noticed that Airman Jones was having
a staggeringly high success-rate, selling insurance to nearly 100% of
the recruits he advised.
Rather than asking him about this, the Captain stood at the back of the
room and listened to Jones' sales pitch.
Jones explained the basics of GI Insurance to the new recruits, and then
said, "If you are killed in a battle and have a GI Insurance, the
government has to pay $200,000 to your beneficiaries. But, if you don't
have a GI insurance and get killed in the battle, the government only
has to pay a maximum of $6,000."
"Now," he concluded, "which group do YOU think they are going to send
into battle first?"
Don't ever mess with or Eavesdrop on Mother Nature Del Rio, Tx 5-5-01 Radar unit damaged by storm it was tracking. Turning the tables on forecasters, a supercell thunderstorm punched this
radar's dome inward, as if by a huge fist. The dome was located in the
rear flank of a supercell, under or very near the
mesocyclone. The "fist" was a severe rear-flank downdraft (RFD) that
slammed the reinforced fiberglass skin of the dome, collapsing it
against the back of the antenna contained within, and of course, disabling the
radar. National Storms Prediction Center
Oklahoma City officer accused of falsified claim
Sergeant was charged in shooting
BY NOLAN CLAY Published: April 15, 2010 NewsOK
An Oklahoma
City police sergeant who already is facing trial over a strip club
shooting was charged Wednesday with insurance fraud.
Michael
W. McKethan, 35, is accused of beating his Chevrolet
Tahoe with an ice chest during a 2007 fight with his then-wife and
later claiming vandals did the damage. Farmers
Insurance Co. paid $2,896 to a body shop for repairs, police
reported.
The new charge is a felony. His attorney, Scott
Adams, said McKethan's ex-wife and her boyfriend "trumped this up." McKethan was suspended last year after the June 16 shooting outside
Night Trips, a strip club in Oklahoma City. No one was hurt in the
incident. He and another police sergeant, Diron Carter, 31, are charged with a
felony - using a vehicle to facilitate the intentional discharge of a
firearm. McKethan had been cooperating with prosecutors in the shooting
case. He testified at a preliminary hearing that Carter fired the gun
after they left the club together. Both were off duty.
Agents tell carriers technology
lacks ease of use
A survey of independent
property and casualty
insurance agents reports that they find the technology carriers offer
them has problems with ease of use and real-time integration.
Deep Customer Connections conducted a survey of 405
agents and found that when asked what should carriers do to improve
their technology, close to 25 percent said carriers need to make
technology reliable and easy to use and access.
Twenty-four percent said that real-time integration
with the agency management systems is an important improvement carriers
need to make.
On the agents' wish list of what they would like to
see to improve working with carrier systems, agents said they would like
to eliminate password problems and have easier navigation capabilities
that match their workflow, making it fast and reliable. Agents also said they would like to have real-time
access to claim reporting and information, endorsement lookup, policy
lookup and rating.
A repeated request among agents was improvements in
working with their agency management, according to the survey, along
with more upload and download capability. Some other items on their wish list were:
Develop more standard solutions to technology to
eliminate the edge direct writers have.
Easier and more accurate quoting tools.
Easier access to information.
Elimination of double entry.
Better communication with their carriers.
Improve technology training and support.
Agent Broker Mag 2/26/10
Greetings!The Oklahoma Ins Dept (OID) has moved. See below.
Are Oklahoma DMs
Withholding
Vital Info from Agents?
When FIG's Oklahoma Lobbyist, Kim
Decker, sent out her legislative newsletter dated 2/14/2010, she stated, "In the past, you likely saw these
legislative updates that I create
every week
during session in an e-mail forwarded from your district
manager. However, State Executive John Lucido, in
response to
feedback from some of the district managers and agents, has asked
that I begin forwarding these updatesto every individual agent and
district manager."If,
by chance, this is yourfirst time to see
this update....."
One must wonder why the change from DMs forwarding
updates to agents? The Oklahoma Voice set out to find out if DMs were
not actually sharing info with agents concerning vital operations of their
business. So, we provided three Oklahoma Voice agent polls since February concerning DMs
forwarding company/state office emails to district agents. Below results average
only 16% of the responding agents receive such information from DMs over a 3 month period.
Feb Poll Results:
Did
your DM advise you & your staff of this NEW single corporate phone
number? 877-411-1FIG
YES, but I am
a newer agent under 18 months 4%
NO, I saw it in the
Oklahoma Voice- Thanks! 91%
YES, I saw it months ago
in a field bulletin. 4%
March Poll Results:
Did your DM
forward to you the Oklahoma State Office email in this article
concerning patio cover damage claims by weight of snow being reviewed
for coverage?
Yes 29%
NO, I saw it in the
Oklahoma Voice- Thanks! 71%
April Poll Results
Concerning the delay of
processing FA2 renewals, did your DM forward to you this information?
Yes 16%
No, I saw first saw it in
print in the Okla. Voice- 84%
It is true
that DMs and Agents have absolutely no written contract or even an
obligation requiring them to support the other. But, the
company passes information through DMs and DMs, we assume, are expected by the
company to forward such info to district agents. But, less than 17% of responding agents are receiving such vital info from DMs, according to our recent agent polls.
DMs receive an
over ride service commission from you, similar to what you receive from your clients.
For those commissions, both Agents and DMs are required to service their
clients. Policyholders are your clients while agents, on the other
hand, are considered clients of DMs. Simply stated, you work for your clients and DMs work for you.
The state law, printed in this issue applies to ANYONE who
discriminates between or among appointed agents when it states,
"It shall be unlawful for
any insurer to discriminate among or between the insurance producers it
has appointed. Any person or
company convicted of violating the
provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor..."
It is documented a few DMs service selected agents while avoiding service to others in the district. The company and DM approves orphan policy assignments and 21st Century leads to some agents while avoiding others. This may result in multiple counts under the above law and may expand the jail time to 1 year and fines to the number of agents discriminated against times $500. Also, license penalties might be invoked.
Complaints may be filed with The Oklahoma Ins. Dept.- Criminal/Fraud Div. 1-800-522-0071. The Department's law
enforcement officers and regulatory investigators also investigate and
gather evidence related to administrative disciplinary proceedings
against insurance industry licensees. A complaint form is available on the OID website. Mailing Address: Oklahoma Insurance Department P.O. Box 53408 Oklahoma City, OK 73152-3408
Local: (405)
521-2828
Toll Free: (800)
522-0071
Fax: (405) 521-6635
Office Hours & Additional Information
Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM (Except Holidays) You may also contact our Tulsa office: Tulsa Office Location: 4157 S. Harvard, Suite 121 Tulsa, OK 74135 1-800-728-2906 or (918) 747-7700 Fax: (918) 747-7720 The Oklahoma Insurance Department (OID) has moved to a new location as of March 24, 2010. Following is the new physical address: Oklahoma Insurance Department
Five Corporate Plaza 3625 NW 56th Street, Suite 100 Oklahoma City, OK 73112 Note: OID Email addresses, phone numbers, fax numbers and P.O. Box number remain the same.
Check out the UFAA Chapter 15 Home Page
with more Farmers, industry news, lots of member benefit information, newsletter archives and breaking news too late to publish above.
Have you missed past issues of the Okla. Voice? If you missed past issues due to the spam problems, you can access them on our home page link above. More news on our home page link above Ten Simple Tricks To Remembering Names Is it Joe or Jim? Ellen or Elizabeth? Here's some help at the above link. Farmers Blocks Agent Emails Obama signs flood extension UFAA E&O Update Newest auto and fire rate comparison charts by OID Need a copy of your insurance license?
Also on the home page link above...
HOT OID Info you need to know -
Do not call the Okla. Ins. Dept. (OID) They now provide info on line:
Anti-fraud Complaint Form- for you & your clients Consumer Request for Assistance Form- for your clients
Have you joined UFAA yet?We just can't make it much easier. Just mouse the logo above to obtain the membership application. Fill it out; attached a check and mail or use the bank card option and fax it to 1-314-631-7963. United we stand. Divided we fall.
AT A GLANCE: Oklahoma $10 MVRs
What a Rip!
Section 1435.15
- Para. E Producer Acting as Agent 
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Chapter 15 Home Page
