Us insurance consultants have an inside joke: if you are growing, you will have coverage mistakes and potential E&O issues. When agencies are built around avoiding an E&O exposure, it can often stifle growth since the necessary checks and balances are cumbersome and, quite frankly, tedious to the modern consumer. We aren’t saying throw caution to the wind, but if your independent insurance agency has been in business for even a few years, there is most likely a hidden E&O issue somewhere in the book. Remember, this is why you have E&O insurance. However, if some team members have come and gone, or if you purchased a book of business that didn’t quite have the same standards as you, it can be challenging for your team to find and fix sloppy work. In this blog we will break down how to handle a hot mess of a book in your agency.
If You’re in a Glass House, You Have No Right to Complain
Team morale can take a hit when everyone is fixing mistakes from the ghosts of the past. They are getting chewed out by customers, and they aren’t even the one that made the error. Customers don’t love hearing, “By the way, we never added that vehicle, but we are now and here is the bill.” Trust me, finding the issues and making those phone calls can lead you to consider placing a margarita machine in the break room. However, all of us are in glass houses. If all of our work was audited, we would all find something. We may have to take a moment and thank the insurance gods that we found the issue before a claim. And remember, that is the worst thing that can happen.
There are times when you find a random issue, and then there are times you know a good portion of the book has issues. This can stem from a less-than-qualified person or an acquisition. As a leader, you need to understand that (just like everything) this is on you, and you need to be there to help the team fix it. This includes taking some of the unpleasant calls. It’s also your responsibility to keep morale high and encourage the team. At the same time, you can’t allow the smack talking about the ghosts of the past to take control. We have a 30 second vent rule. If a team member needs to vent, put the timer on for 30 seconds. Then it’s over and we move on.
Arm Your Team With Scripts for Fixing Insurance Coverage Mistakes
Most of your team’s apprehension will be around what to say and how to defuse an upset customer. Your best bet in these situations is to role play and practice. In our scripts below you will see how we take an approach of asking questions rather than going in with the direct problem. The reason is many things may have changed between now and then, and, well, there is no sense in upsetting the person if we have new challenges we need to uncover.
- Call them to conduct an account review — this means top to bottom. Frame it as a service.
- Start asking questions. “CARRIER is showing the following vehicles on your policy. Is this accurate?”
- Find the differences. Some may be the agency’s fault; some may be the client’s fault.
- If the call turns, allow the client to vent. But if they get to the point of swearing, the call needs to conclude. Remember, this is the beginning of the process.
- Clarify the issue. This is the middle, so don’t interrupt a vent session, and realize most people will go in a lot of different, illogical directions. Once they have completed the rant, it’s ok to restate for clarity what you gathered.
- Provide options. This is the end. When someone is upset, often it’s because they don’t clearly see options. Options empower the client to make the decision that is best for them.
- Get involved. If you have to, get involved to relieve the frontline team member.
Be Prepared to Lose Some Clients
When you find a mess, it’s not rational to think that you won’t lose a few clients or get a bad Google review. It can and most likely will happen. Let the team know that you expect it, and they are not held responsible or accountable. You want to relieve the pressure on the team.
Best Way to Make Sure You Don’t Repeat This Issue
We preach that agencies need to be doing annual account reviews for this reason. Yes, when you find a particular team member’s lack of diligence or a book acquisition that didn’t go well, you dive in, but let’s be honest: There are plenty of times our team can make mistakes. Proactive renewal reviews (as outlined in our AppX Retention program) help your agency stay on top of this issue!
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What’s Insurance Burnout & How to Solve It In Your Agency
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What To Do When It Feels Like Your Insurance Agency Is Against You?
