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RETURNING VETERANSA Great Source of Hiring for Insurance Agencies page 12

Why Google Couldn’t ‘Compare’ With Local Agents page 11

PIA CONNECTIONNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL INSURANCE AGENTS

MARCH 2016

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PIA CONNECTION | www.pianet.com March 2016 | 3

PresidentRobert W. Hansen, Jr., LUTCF, CPIA (NE/IA)[email protected]

President-ElectGareth W. Blackwell, Jr., CPCU (ME)[email protected]

Vice President/TreasurerTimothy G. Russell, CPCU (CT)[email protected]

Secretary/Assistant TreasurerKeith A. Savino, CPIA (NJ)[email protected]

Immediate Past PresidentRichard A. Clements, CIC, CPIA (LA)[email protected]

Executive Vice President/CEOMike Becker (PIA National)[email protected]

Publisher/Editor-in-ChiefTed [email protected]

Managing EditorSade [email protected]

Advertising DirectorAlexi Papandon, [email protected]

Government/Regulatory Affairs Executive EditorPatricia A. Borowski, [email protected]

Contributing EditorsJon [email protected]

Production EditorLaurel Prucha [email protected]

PIA Connection is published ten times yearly by the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents.

400 North Washington Street,Alexandria, Virginia 22314©2016 All rights reserved.

The information in this publication is general in nature and is not intended to serve as legal, accounting, financial, insurance, investment advisory or other professional advice as to any reader’s particular situation. Users are encouraged to consult with compe-tent legal, financial, insurance, investment advisory and or other professional advisors concerning specific matters before making any decisions and we disclaim any responsibility for any decisions or actions by readers.

All PIA members receive PIA Connection at the member subscription rate of $12.00 per year.

Non-member subscriptions available at $24.00 per year ppd.

For additional information on any of the subjects addressed in this publication, please access the PIA National website at www.pianet.com.

PIA CONNECTIONNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL INSURANCE AGENTS

MARCH 2016

CONTENTSTHE 2016 PIA FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE SUMMIT 8PIA members prepare to bring Main Street to Capitol Hill

CAPITOL HILL REPORT 9Congress continues to advance PIA’s legislative priorities

WHY GOOGLE COULDN’T ‘COMPARE’ WITH LOCAL AGENTS 11Google learns a very expensive lesson about our industry

RETURNING VETERANS 12-14A great source of hiring for insurance agencies

BEGIN WITH A QUESTION 15Dennis H. Pillsbury and Nancy Doucette of Rough Notes with case studies on why asking more questions is key

SCALIA’S DEATH LEAVES QUESTIONS ON CASES 17PIA National counsel Lauren Pachman analyzes the potential impact on several pending healthcare cases

AGENT & BROKER COMPENSATION IS UP 18New figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)

DEPARTMENTSFrom the President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5From the CEO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5News Brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6PIA Product Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19PIA Marketplace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19PIA Affiliate Listings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Member Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21The Last Word. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Cover image: Families welcome back Soldiers from the Minnesota National Guard’s 34th Combat Aviation Brigade at Holman Field in St. Paul, April 25, 2015, from a deployment to Kuwait. Nearly 80 members of the 34th Combat Aviation Brigade’s Headquarters Company and 2nd Battalion, 147th Assault Helicopter Battalion returned home from a year-long deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom-Kuwait and Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. Dajon Ferrell)

BEGIN WITH A QUESTIONPAGE 15

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PIA PARTNERSHIP TOOLSDesigned for agency success.Created by agents for agents.

How can you make the most of your opportunities with Gen Y customers? We can help you answer that question!

Our national survey listens to “the voice of the customer.” You may be surprised by what they have to say.

Use the calculators to examine your agency,decide what you’d like to change and the approach that’s right for you.

Our unique research examines business owners’ preference for agents vs. online insurance.

Perpetuation Central helps you determine your needs, create a working plan and find the resources you need.

Successful Planning can help you make decisions to create and implement plans tailored to your agency.

PIA volunteer leaders work alongside our company partners to conduct research and develop tools PIA member agencies can use to help them be more successful.

PIA members have access to Partnership research and tools on the PIA National Website at: pianet.com/partnership.

PIA Partnership Companies

Central EncompassErieHanoverLiberty MutualMetLife Auto & Home

MotoristsNationwide IndependentProgressiveSelectiveState AutoThe Hartford

&The Internet

SmallBusinessInsurance


FROM THE PRESIDENT

FROM THE CEO

A KEY FOCUS DURING MY TERM AS PIA PRESIDENT is increasing our industry outreach among our company partners, as well as other industry stakeholders.

In order for any association to produce the maximum possible benefit to its members, it must develop and cultivate positive relation-ships with a wide array of entities.

PIA is proud of our national agency-company council, The PIA Partnership. For many years, the Partnership, working with PIA mem-bers, has produced cutting-edge research and at-the-desktop tools that agents can use to help their businesses grow. The engagement and commitment of the carriers who participate in the Partnership contin-ues to grow.

The subject of independent agents not being able to bind cover-age in real-time has been with us for a long time. As a direct result of PIA research showing that insurance customers prefer to use an agent—but want their agent to be fully engaged digitally—we decided to engage the industry in a dialogue on what has come to be called the agent Buy Button. This dialogue started with a meeting PIA held at the headquarters of ACORD in January, and it continues.

Our industry outreach goes hand-in-hand with our advocacy. On Capitol Hill, advocacy means we focus on getting legislation passed that helps agents and derailing bad bills. The same principle applies in

the regulatory arena and throughout the industry.

In order to influence public policy in our favor, it is essential that everyone know that PIA is a force to be reckoned with. PIA is a major player for agents. PIA has a height-ened public profile in the insurance trade press. As a result, we have a strong reputation as a go-to organi-zation known for its quality work, deep knowledge and authoritative perspective.

All of these attributes are in service of one overriding goal: helping PIA members succeed.

We must continue and expand our ongoing outreach to our insur-ance company partners as well as to vital industry organizations, especially those at the cutting edge of technology. We must also con-tinue to innovate ways to attract more young people into our industry, and specifically the agency ranks. Therefore, we are taking a proactive approach and should always strive to be ahead of the curve.

Robert W. Hansen, Jr.President

SOMETIMES, ACTING IN YOUR OWN SELF- interest and doing what’s right for others can be one and the same. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does its special.

Independent insurance agencies have to face the challenge of hir-ing new staff to replace retiring personnel or fill new positions. Much has been said about the difficulties involved in attracting talented young people into the independent agency workforce.

Military veterans who are returning to civilian life form an excellent pool of potential hires for independent insurance agencies. In this issue of PIA Connection, we take a look at some of the efforts—both outside and inside the insurance industry—to bring together returning veterans who need jobs and employers who need talented employees.

You’ll read about the personal involvement of one agency owner, Robert Klinger of Klinger Insurance Group in Germantown, Maryland, a veteran himself. Bob has made Vets a prime and suc-cessful hiring pool for his agency. He also serves as the regional

ambassador for the Disabled Veterans Insurance Careers (DVIC) program, which works with the National Alliance to provide course content, instructors and training facilities.

Military veterans have already been trained to be mission oriented and driven to achieve objectives. They are also adaptable, possess a high level of professionalism and are trained to be team players—all qualities that make them good candidates for positions in an agency.

The next time you face the challenge of hiring, think of a group that knows how to handle challenges—our veterans.

Mike BeckerExecutive Vice President & CEO

PIA PARTNERSHIP TOOLSDesigned for agency success.Created by agents for agents.

How can you make the most of your opportunities with Gen Y customers? We can help you answer that question!

Our national survey listens to “the voice of the customer.” You may be surprised by what they have to say.

Use the calculators to examine your agency,decide what you’d like to change and the approach that’s right for you.

Our unique research examines business owners’ preference for agents vs. online insurance.

Perpetuation Central helps you determine your needs, create a working plan and find the resources you need.

Successful Planning can help you make decisions to create and implement plans tailored to your agency.

PIA volunteer leaders work alongside our company partners to conduct research and develop tools PIA member agencies can use to help them be more successful.

PIA members have access to Partnership research and tools on the PIA National Website at: pianet.com/partnership.

PIA Partnership Companies

Central EncompassErieHanoverLiberty MutualMetLife Auto & Home

MotoristsNationwide IndependentProgressiveSelectiveState AutoThe Hartford

&The Internet

SmallBusinessInsurance

6 | March 2016 www.pianet.com | PIA CONNECTION

NEWS BRIEF!

GOOGLE DRIVERLESS CAR THOUGHT BUS WOULD STOP, CRASHES Google Inc., fresh off a failed attempt to enter the insurance business, had a problem recently with one of its self-driving cars. The company says it bears “some respon-sibility” for a minor crash involving one of its self-driving cars on February 14 in Mountain View, California. Google has previously said that its autonomous vehicles have never been at fault

in any crashes.

Google said that the self-driving Lexus RX450h was attempting to get around some sandbags in a wide lane when the vehicle hit the side of a municipal bus. A report filed with California regulators said that both the vehicle and the test driver thought that the bus would either stop or slow down to allow the Google vehicle to con-tinue.

In a statement, Google

said that it had made software changes so that from now on its cars “will more deeply understand that buses (and other large vehicles) are less likely to yield to us than other types of vehicles.” That’s the kind of thing humans already know. The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority is investigating to deter-mine liability.

CLAIMS SATISFACTION DOWNThe J.D. Power 2016 U.S. Property Claims Satisfaction Study found that customer satisfac-tion among homeowners filing a property claim has declined five points to 846, the first slip in five years. The largest

changes in satisfac-tion were in the service interaction factor, which declined eight points, fol-lowed by an eight point decline in local agent sat-isfaction and a 28 point decline in claims profes-sional satisfaction.

The survey suggests that the property and casualty insurance market has shifted its focus away from customer satisfac-tion toward areas of cost reduction. While customer satisfaction is driven by how well insurers handle weather events, recent declines in satisfaction have been tied to poor callback rates from agents and other service interactions, according to the J.D. Power study.

WARREN BUFFETT: DON’T WORRY ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE

Billionaire investor and insurance mogul Warren Buffett is getting flak for one of his state-ments about climate change.

Responding to a shareholder of his Berkshire Hathaway Inc. who put forth a proxy proposal to discuss the insurer’s risk exposure from climate change at the company’s annual meet-ing, Buffett was dismissive. He said that while Berkshire is a huge insurer, covering all sorts

of risks that might result from property losses because of weather change, the company remains unaffected because it does not write 10- or 20-year policies at fixed prices. Instead, policies cover one year and are repriced annually to reflect changing exposures, with projected losses translating quickly into increased premiums.

“As a citizen, you may understandably find climate change keeping you up nights,” Buffett said in his annual letter to shareholders. “As a homeowner in a low-lying area, you may wish to consider moving. But when you are thinking only as a shareholder of a major insurer, climate change should not be on your list of worries.”

In his 2007 shareholder letter, he wrote that “devastating storms” like Hurricane Katrina could “rock the insur-ance industry, adding [W]e do know it would be a huge mistake to bet that evolving atmospheric changes are benign in their implications for insurers,” Buffett said then.

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NEWS BRIEF!OPPORTUNITIES VIA SUPERCOMPUTERA new supercomputer owned by LexisNexis enables insurers to know many details about consumers and use them to market products. The Active Insights program at LexisNexis allows other companies to manage and forecast risks by find-ing out numerous details, including driving offences, a new divorce, a new baby, a new driver, and a new business venture.

LexisNexs collects information from 10,000 sources and a propri-etary database of home improvement permits nationwide. With the help of utility bills, LexisNexis also can know if a house is occupied or vacant. Meanwhile, credit report-ing agencies are trying to provide supercomputing and data analytics for insurers as well. Insurers also have their own staff supplying data to agents and salespersons.

LIBERTY MUTUAL TO INSURE OLYMPIC MEDALSThe U.S. Olympic Com-mittee (USOC) is working with Liberty Mutual to insure each gold, silver or bronze medal won by U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes competing in the

Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games (in addition to those who par-ticipated in the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Games for Team USA).

“Liberty Mutual Insur-ance is in the business of helping our customers worry less as they face life’s inevitable chal-lenges,” said Melanie Foley, Liberty Mutual Insurance executive vice president, and chief talent and enterprise services officer. “For Team USA athletes, a medal is the ultimate reward for their hard work and train-ing, and they deserve to have peace of mind that should anything happen to it, there is someone standing with them.”

Liberty Mutual Insurance is the official property and casualty and life insurance partner of the U.S. Olym-pic Committee for the 2016 Olympic Games and 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

PIERONI SUCCEEDS MACIAG AS HEAD OF ACORDACORD, the insurance industry’s global data standards and services organization, announced that William N. Pieroni was elected by the Board of Directors as its new President & Chief Execu-tive Officer. Pieroni suc-ceeds Gregory A. Maciag, who announced his plan last year to retire after nearly 40 years with the

organization. Maciag was also named Presi-dent Emeritus of ACORD and will be an advisor to the organization.Pieroni served as the

Global Chief Operat-ing Officer of Marsh and was

responsible for the firm’s global operations.

Greg Maciag said, “With four decades at ACORD, I am truly proud of our success. The future continues to be filled with opportunities and I can’t think of a better leader than Bill Pieroni to continue the ACORD journey.” PIA is a found-ing member of ACORD.


MAINST

MEMBERS OF PIA WILL BRING Main Street to Capitol Hill when they convene April 6-7 in Washington, D.C., for the 2016 PIA Federal Legislative Summit (FLS).

The annual PIA Federal Legislative Summit is a gathering of PIA members from around the country who come together to meet with their members of Congress and advocate their positions on issues important to Professional Insurance Agents.

“We closed out last year with a string of legislative successes that we are looking to build on in 2016,” said PIA National President Robert W. Hansen, Jr.

PIA members will advocate for solu-tions that enable agents to better serve their clients and communities by encour-aging Congress to defend state regulation of insurance, protect a strong and stable crop insurance program, provide a long term authorization of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), and reinstate fair and just compensation in healthcare.

“We are optimistic that our legislative and policy priorities will continue to fare well,” said PIA National Vice President of Government Relations Jon Gentile. “This Congress has broken free of gridlock to act on many issues to the benefit of profes-sional insurance agents and their custom-ers. We look forward to continuing to work with lawmakers to support the inde-pendent agency system and Main Street

insurance agents everywhere.”The 2016 PIA Federal Legislative

Summit begins on the evening of Wednesday, April 6, at the Crystal City Marriott in Arlington, Virginia, PIA’s headquarters hotel, with an in-depth issues briefing session, followed by a fundraising dinner for the Professional Insurance Agents Political Action Committee (PIAPAC).

The following morning, April 7, PIA members will gather for a kickoff breakfast before making their way to Capitol Hill for

a day of advocacy visits with their mem-bers of Congress.

“This Congress has taken many actions to benefit insurance consumers, approving bills endorsed by PIA,” said PIA National Executive Vice President & CEO Mike Becker.

“We appreciate the responsiveness dem-onstrated by members of Congress for our issues and look forward to engaging with them again during our legislative summit,” Becker said.

PIA MEMBERS PREPARE FOR 2016 FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE SUMMIT

PIA Brings Main Street

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LEGISLATIVE SUMMITAPRIL 6-7, 2016 WASHINGTON DC

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PIA Members to Converge on Capitol Hill. The annual Federal Legislative Summit is one component of PIA’s year-round program of legislative advocacy. “There is no better way to forge and maintain relationships with lawmakers than to do it in person,” said PIA National Vice President of Government Relations Jon Gentile.


CAPITOL HILL REPORT By Jon GentileVice President, Government Relations

PIA National

CONGRESS CONTINUES TO ADVANCE PIA LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES

PRIVATE FLOOD LEGISLATIONThe U.S. House Financial Services

Committee passed the Flood Insurance Market Parity and Modernization Act (H.R. 2901), in a unanimous bipartisan vote on March 2.

The bill, introduced by Reps. Dennis Ross (R-FL)/ Patrick Murphy (D-FL), seeks to encourage the development of a private flood insurance market with strong con-sumer protections being overseen by state insurance regulators.

It will expand flood insurance options for consumers by clarifying the defini-tion of a private flood insurance policy as that which provides flood insurance coverage issued by an insurance company that is licensed and approved by the state insurance regulator. It ensures that private flood insurance can be used to satisfy the National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP’s) continuous coverage requirement, an essential aspect of ensuring policyhold-ers are not penalized for moving from one policy to another.

While PIA opposes outright, immedi-ate privatization of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), PIA supports sensible solutions for growing the private flood insurance market. A healthy private market is essential for consumer choice and the future of flood insurance, as the NFIP is $23 billion in debt. As most of that debt can be attributed to just two massive hurricanes over the last decade, Katrina and Sandy, an argument could be made for forgiving it—but any such proposal would be a nonstarter for most in Congress. A strong and growing private market will allow for more choices for flood policy in the future.

PIA has been actively working with

staff to advance this legislation and will continue to do so in both the House and Senate, where a companion bill, S. 1679, introduced by Senator Dean Heller (R-NV), awaits action.

PIA continues to support the engage-ment of private sector insurers in offering flood insurance policies and endorsement coverages. Opportunities for private sector insurers are better now than they have been in the past. However, the private flood insurance market is in need of legislative solutions to create sensible options for it to grow.

PIA OPPOSES CUTS TO CROP INSURANCE

In December 2015, a massive grassroots campaign by PIA helped lead Congress to overwhelmingly reverse a planned $3 bil-lion cut to crop insurance. However, once again, President Obama is trying to cut crop insurance—this time by $18 billion over 10 years in his most recent budget proposal.

In response to the President’s Fiscal Year 2017 budget proposal, PIA signed on to a coalition letter encouraging mem-bers of the House and Senate Budget Committees to protect crop insurance. This letter supports the 2014 Farm Bill, which places greater emphasis on risk manage-ment than previous farm bills had, and asks the Budget Committee to not reopen it before its 2018 expiration.

INTERNATIONAL INSURANCE LEGISLATIVE DRAFT GETS HEARING

On February 25, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance held a hearing titled, “The

Impact of International Regulatory Standards on the Competiveness of U.S. Insurers – Part II.” The first hearing on this topic took place April 29, 2015 and PIA National submitted testimony at that time.

The second hearing on this topic built off of the previous hearing by focusing on draft legislation that PIA has been actively engaged in developing. The draft legislation establishes a series of requirements to be met before the U.S. may agree to, accept, establish, enter into or consent to the adoption of a final international insurance standard. It incorporates several elements of PIA supported legislation (H.R. 2141) introduced last year by Rep. Sean Duffy (R-WI) that would require the Federal Insurance Office (FIO) and the Federal Reserve (Fed) to publish any proposed international capital standard and allow for public comment and sets negotiating objectives for U.S. representatives.

The draft bill also beefs up the role of Financial Stability Oversight Council’s (FSOC’s) independent member with insur-ance expertise, to ensure he or she has a real role where insurance standards are discussed.

While states set insurance policy and regulate insurance in the U.S., develop-ments at the international level heav-ily influence state laws and regulations. Actions by certain federal and interna-tional bodies have raised concern that the state-based insurance regulatory system may be unnecessarily eroded in the face of continuing global challenges.

PIA is strongly dedicated to protecting the state system of regulating insurance and will continue to work with Congress to promote legislation to accomplish this goal.


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Policies are written subject to the National Flood Insurance Program. Insurance is provided by the property and casualty insurance companies of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., Hartford, CT. © 2014 The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., Hartford, CT 06155. All Rights Reserved.

The Hartford is one of the largest providers of flood insurance, offering a full-service solution, competitive commissions and a dedicated local Sales Director.Contact Joseph Surowiecki, National Flood Sales Manager at 860.547.5006.

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PERSPECTIVES By Patricia A. Borowski Senior Vice President, Industry Affairs

PIA National

WHY GOOGLE COULDN’T “COMPARE” WITH LOCAL AGENTS

WELL, THE WORD IS OUT. Google Compare is shutting down opera-tions by the end of March. Begun in 2011 as a full financial services platform for banking, investing and credit transactions, Google announced the addition of insur-ance quoting in mid-2015. Now, not even a year into it, Google is shutting it all down.

So, what went wrong? Google seemed to hold several core beliefs, commonly held by “outsiders,” about our business that were just flat-wrong! In a nutshell Google appeared to believe that the insurance busi-ness is not competitive; all personal lines auto insurance is a commodity; and their own business and platform success can be imposed on, and replicated in, any sector.

Google seemed to think that they need only announce their interest to operate in the business of insurance, and carriers and consumers would come flocking. In announcing the wind-down, their repre-sentative acknowledged that the current operations had not met expectations. That is PR spin for “we failed.”

Everyone forgets that while most carri-ers do not have or participate in carrier-controlled comparative raters, almost all independent insurance agencies and bro-ker-firms do, and they use these services regularly. The insurance agencies that are moving forward into this next invention of our business are tech-savvy, know and meet their prospects and customers with e-skills and tools.

GOOGLE’S EXPENSIVE LESSONGoogle’s spokesperson also observed

that the insurance business is more complex than most people would assume. Google forgot that their success, also the

basis for their business experience and expertise, is in mercantile. That is a point-click to shopping cart checkout kind of business, where each transaction is really done once completed.

There is a common pattern to personal lines auto insurance in the nature of risk being insured, coverage types offered and the policyholder obligations that are transferred to us through the policy, and creating a customer relationship. However, never underestimate the high percentage of exceptions this industry makes every day across thousands of transactions, because it is necessary for those policyholders. Independent insurance agencies can dem-onstrate that fundamental rule. Ignoring

the details and many differences in this business, even in P/L auto, is cruising for an Errors and Omissions bruising.

Some say Google is just shutting down to retool and be better. However, that is certainly not clear. Google just learned a very expensive lesson: this is a very com-petitive industry. Google didn’t know that, or how to compete. The trade purpose and customary operations of insurance are entirely different than that of mercantile.

This also has important lessons and reminders for insurance people. This busi-ness is highly competitive, highly detailed, exceptions oriented, and legal obligations-heavy. Also, never underestimate the importance and power of Local Agencies Serving Local People, even as millennials grow into their adult place in our insurance economy. Overlooking these fundamentals can spell disaster.

Insurers and Main Street independent insurance agencies and broker firms know, accept and are finding their way through the upgrades to new open technologies and how best to deploy these for the success of their businesses.

Google discovered what independent

insurance agents have always known: when it comes to insurance, customers appreci-ate that it is a complex transaction that requires professional advice.

There may be a temptation on the part of some independent insurance agents to conclude that Google’s decision to pull the plug on Google Compare means that local agents have “won the battle.” In reality, agents have merely won a skirmish. More competitors are out there.

GOOGLE JUST LEARNED A VERY EXPENSIVE LESSON:THIS IS A VERY COMPETITIVE INDUSTRY.


RETURNING VETERANS:A SOURCE OF HIRING FOR INSURANCE AGENCIES

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SINCE LATE 2013, PIA MEMBER-leaders have been addressing the increased challenges associated with hiring new staff to replace retiring personnel or filling new positions in agencies. Among the differ-ent hiring pools, several PIA members have had a particular focus on returning veterans. Why?

The US military of today is more edu-cated and highly trained than general mili-tary populations of the past. In great part, this is due to the tremendous increase that electronics and computers play in today’s military operations and the demands that place on military personnel in dealing with these. They are tech-savvy and come with many leadership skills.

PIA member Bob Klinger, owner principal of Klinger Insurance Group, Germantown, MD, has made this sector a prime and successful hiring pool for his agency. In sharing with PIA member-lead-ers during a recent discussion forum, Bob advised that understanding what Vets have to offer and knowing how to pick the right fit of Vet and agency are key. Getting that right can lead to success for both the Vet and the agency.

“Today’s military personnel have all the skills needed by and applicable to being a success in the independent agency system,” he says. Bob goes on to point out that they know how to work and enjoy working in teams. However, they can think quickly to problem solve as challenges arise, even under pressure. He notes that they are very mission oriented and driven to achieve the set objective. Military experience also gives them a level of maturity and respect in working with others that many of their same-age non-military peers are miss-ing. This is why they carry and comport themselves with professionalism. They are excellent multi-taskers and most have management experience for operations involving thousands of dollars of tech-nical equipment and/or assignment of personnel.

The challenge for the military is to:

(i.) more successfully and broadly inform employers of the Vet hiring opportunities; and (ii.) support returning Vets’ training transition to private sector employment. To respond to the challenge, a number of pro-grams have been developed by the Veterans Administration (http://www.va.gov/opa/ militaryfamilies.asp), as well as the US Small Business Administration (https://www.sba.gov/content/veterans-0).

NON INSURANCE-SPECIFIC PROGRAMS

However, these programs are not with-out their challenges. Often, they lead Vets to concentrate on starting their own small businesses aimed for government procure-ment. Unfortunately, the reality is that there is only so much federal government contracting work available, most of which is already secured through well-established contractors that hire Vets. Also, as every PIA member knows, starting your own small business is not for everyone!

There is also a broader program offered by the US Chamber of Commerce that assists with its Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) job fairs (https://www.uschamber.com/ hiring-our-heroes) held across the

country. This brings in other employers and employment opportunities, but the challenges are: (i.) for most Vets coming in cold to such an event, they do not know or appreciate how to “position” their military service into a private sector job resume; and (ii.) most employers, not having served in the military, don’t know or appreciate how to interview these Vets for the best outcomes.

No doubt that Bob’s edge in the game is that he, too, is a veteran. He saw the potential and fit between his drive and skills and that of owning and running an independent insurance agency business. “I think that both insurance sales and service at the agency level are made for Vets since it is very mis-sion and objective driven.”

Bob is on a mission to get the word out to Vets, the insurance community, and

By Patricia A. Borowski Senior Vice President, Industry Affairs

PIA National

On a Mission: Bob Klinger, owner principal of Klinger Insurance Group, Germantown, Maryland, attends a job fair sponsored by the US Chamber of Commerce and its Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) program. Bob is on a mission to get the word out to Vets, the insurance community, and especially independent insurance agencies. “I think that both insurance sales and service at the agency level are made for Vets since it is very mission and objective driven.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14


especially independent insurance agencies. Helping to make such an effort even more successful are a number of training pro-grams that have recently become available specific to Vets to secure the fundamental background knowledge and experience needed in the entry level career positions available in this business.

DISABLED VETERANS INSURANCE CAREERS (DVIC)

One that is holding particular prom-ise, and that Bob serves as the regional ambassador for, is the Disabled Veterans Insurance Careers (DVIC) program (http://www.dvic.us). DVIC was only estab-lished a few short years ago by insurance executives, Jim Pender and Gary Trippe, two respected principals of an independent agency based in Fort Myers, Florida. It is led by Retired Lt. Col. Gary Bryant, President and CEO ([email protected]) and featured in the May 2013 edition of Rough Notes (http://www.roughnotes.com/ rn2013/include/05_2013/#/46). Working with the National Alliance to provide the course content, instructors and training facilities, it is an additional and differ-ent program to the one that the National Alliance does directly with Florida State University.

It is the DVIC program that Bob Klinger sees great advantages for PIA agencies. The fundamental concept is a work-study program, but in a manner that leads to success. It is available in two ways: One is that an already trained Vet through this program secures a job opportunity upon graduation. However, in this option, PIA agencies would be competing with everyone else, including carriers, to “hire-that-Vet.” The other option, which Bob believes is the potential ticket for PIA agen-cies, is that an agency hires and sponsors a qualified Vet for this program.

DVIC will provide the agency guidance in terms of the type of Vet eligible for the program.

DVIC and the VA can assist employers with securing adaptive equipment for the Vet-hire if that is needed as well.

The PIA agency hires and pays the Vet a salary as an entry level non-licensed staff as well as pays for their training through DVIC. The online training courses are offered on a specific six-month “class/semes-ter” schedule. At their conclusion, the Vet secures a National Alliance CISR Certificate.

The newly hired Vet agency employee participates in the DVIC online train-ing for half-a-day. The balance of the day gives the agency the opportunity to show the new employee how that days’ training applies specifically in the agency’s opera-tions. During this time, the agency may also work with the Vet-employee in study-ing for their licensing exams as well.

Bob Klinger advises: “DVIC helps solve two challenges that agencies face when hiring anyone. First, the Vet population is a highly motivated group, already trained to be very mission-job accomplished. Success is their middle name. Agencies need staff with that type of focus and track record. Second, it helps agencies manage the train-ing dilemma.”

He goes on to point out that the idea that agencies will replace retiring staff with simi-larly qualified/trained staff is a pipe-dream. So, the challenge is how and how fast do you bring along that untrained individual? Bob believes that, “The work-study concept of this DVIC program answers that for

agencies and the new Vet employee.” PIA agencies may find some financial

assistance with the cost of Vet training from their current carriers. There are also many states that give employers tax credit for hir-ing Vets. The training provides a set course of study with a CISR certificate that the agency would opt for, anyway, as a first line training for new people. It actually manages the study portion, so that this work-study program will be successful and on-point for the agency. This allows the agency to offer a true career path training program to and for the new Vet employees. The agency may also create employment milestones which, when accomplished, give the employee a sense of progress in their agency career and possibly increase in salary earning (in surveys millen-niums make clear that they want this).

DVIC welcomes your support for their cause, as well as becoming a participating employer. Bob also welcomes PIA members to contact him, get to know the program bet-ter, and spread the word among their carrier-partners as well as to the Vets. Employing our Vets is the best way to show your appre-ciation for their service and sacrifice.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13

RETURNING VETERANS

P INNAC L E PARTNER

Bankers Insurance Group Encompass Insurance

Erie Insurance Nationwide Independent

Progressive Insurance State Auto Group

The Hartford The Motorists Insurance Group

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Bob Klinger of Klinger Insurance Group, Germantown, Maryland (right), has made has made veterans a prime and successful hiring pool for his agency.


AGENCY CASE STUDY

BEGIN WITH A QUESTION

IF YOU’VE SPENT ANY TIME with five-year-olds you know they ask lots of questions. If one of your goals is to keep your agency’s producer pipelines percolating, per-haps it’s time to get in touch with your inner child and start asking more questions.

Michel Drouin, president of Charlesbois-Trepanier, Gatineau, Québec, started quizzing himself at the suggestion of a speaker at a Greenwich Group meeting. During a presentation by MarshBerry at the meeting, attendees were asked: “What is the biggest problem that producers and account executives have?”

Michel says a number of ideas ran through his head but before he could settle on one, the presenter answered his own question. “Getting the first appointment,” he announced. “Getting in the door and talking to a prospect.”

It was true, Michel thought to himself. The agency’s producers were having diffi-culty getting enough appointments to keep the agency growing. They were stuck in the “process and service” trap.

So he decided that the agency needed to hire someone for whom setting first appointments would be their sole

responsibility—a business development coordinator (BDC). Because this position didn’t exist in the agency, the management team needed to develop a profile for the BDC. They also needed to create a suit-able workspace, in addition to developing scripts because the BDC would be solicit-ing appointments over the phone.

“It’s important to have somebody with a mature voice—not a young voice,” Michel says. “And no call reluctance,” he adds with a chuckle. “The BDC needs to be comfortable approaching large accounts, have business acumen, and not be discouraged by rejec-tion—cold calling is hard work.

“This is not an entry level position,” Michel emphasizes. “A semi-retired person might be a good fit.”

As for the workspace, the management team determined that the BDC would need an office, rather than a cubicle, to avoid cross talk or other background activity; a wireless headset so the BDC wasn’t teth-ered to the desk; and a large screen display to check a prospect’s website before making a call—to gather details to personalize the call and help start a conversation.

Once Charlesbois-Trepanier hired its BDC, he started working off a list that the agency had compiled based on inactive prospects that the agency’s producers and account execs provided. The list also included chamber of commerce, board of trade and program members. “We have a

car dealers program,” Michel explains. “We subtracted the ones we already write and contacted the others.”

Out of 500 contacts, the BDC obtained 160 appointments that took place within the first five months. Another 140 were to be secured at a later date. “Our BDC was gener-ating about 12 appointments a week,” Michel reports. “We couldn’t handle that much traf-fic so we gave him some other work to do to slow him down.” Nice problem to have.

ADDING VALUEAt Peoples First Insurance in Rock Hill,

South Carolina, producers approach pros-pects by asking: Please tell me about your business and the daily risk and compliance issues that frustrate you. How does your relationship with your insurance broker help with these frustrations?

This is the entrée into the agency’s Risk Watch™ process—a diagnostic, consultative approach which helps the agency identify exposures, define strategies, implement programs, and monitor and adjust the pro-gram as the client’s organization evolves. Risk Watch is based on the tenets of the Beyond Insurance Global Network (BigN) of which the agency is a member.

“Several years ago we started to look at ways we could add value to the relation-ship we have with our customers,” recalls

By Dennis H. Pillsbury and Nancy Doucette


Michel Drouin, president of Charlesbois-Trepanier, Gatineau, Québec

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agency president Jimmy Galloway. He says he liked the BigN approach of “becoming partners with clients and help-ing them reduce and/or eliminate risk.”

“We made the decision to do the right thing in terms of risk management, even if it meant turn-ing down a potential customer,” explains Ken Cushman, CIC, CWCA, vice presi-dent, commercial risk advisor. “By taking this approach, we team up with those cli-ents or prospects who want to create a safer workplace, reduce losses, and are willing to work to do so.

“We bring the Risk Watch process to our top clients—each producer’s top rev-enue producing clients,” Ken notes. He says Peoples First provides its Risk Watch pro-cess to commercial cli-ents whose accounts generate $10,000 in revenue, although some accounts gen-erating only $5,000 in revenue qualify. He adds that there are elements of the process that apply to small commercial accounts and high net worth personal accounts.

All the agency’s producers recently obtained the Certified WorkComp Advisor (CWCA) designation through the Institute of WorkComp Professionals. “A focus on comp brings another element to the Risk Watch process that we are very pleased with,” Ken says. “It’s a new initiative—approaching prospects from the standpoint of work comp and then pivoting off that into the other coverages.”

When Peoples First appeared on the October 2013 cover of Rough Notes one of its manufacturing clients was celebrat-ing five years without an accident, thanks to the Risk Watch process. In May 2015 another Risk Watch manufacturing client was celebrating 1,000 days with no lost time. The agency hosted a lunch for all 250

of the client’s employees. The process works and brings in referrals, Ken says.

He points to one recent referral—a steel erection business—which came to Peoples First by way of another client that was part of the Risk Watch process. “The company was beyond being frustrated because of a workers comp situation,” Ken says. Keith Richardson, CIC, CWCA, the agency’s Risk Watch leader, met with the business’s safety manager and Ken says while the work comp issue isn’t resolved, Keith is “on track to impact the experience mod of the client.”

Peoples First uses several approaches to develop leads, Ken points out. One is Business Digest—a newsletter which addresses the business-related challenges business owners face: personnel, marketing, management, and communications—but not insurance. The agency provides its pre-ferred SICs to Business Digest and the faxed newsletters are branded with the agency’s logo. Peoples First has 150 regularly sent out to build name recognition and trust.

Ken says the agency is also offering Lunch-n-Learns, focusing on lowering workers comp costs. He notes that the agency’s youngest producer, Brandon Berger, CWCA, recently closed an account generating $5,000 in revenue as a result of a lead that he cultivated from a seminar on workers comp and experience mods.

Producers ask existing clients for referrals in addition to meeting with CPA groups, showing them the Risk Watch process—specifically how it relates to the workers comp element—in an effort to develop new centers of influence. And

each quarter Jimmy Galloway meets with his centers of influence to go over a list of their clients the agency would like to meet. “When we work off referrals, it’s basically a 100% hit ratio,” Ken states.

“We don’t talk about price or coverages initially. We offer to do an assessment. If the prospect will engage with us, and we go forward with the Risk Watch process, it’s usually a solid sell,” Ken says. “They may trust us with only one of their coverages at first, but once they engage with us and buy into the process, it’s a long-term relation-ship. Our retention is in the high 90s, year after year.”

Dennis H. Pillsbury is Executive Editor for Rough Notes magazine. Nancy Doucette is Managing Editor for Rough Notes magazine.

LIKE THIS ARTICLE? WANT MORE LIKE IT?

If so, then you should read all of the marketing tips in past and present issues of the annual PIA Agency Marketing Guide. Read them all at www.PIAAgencyMarketingGuide.com.

PIA wishes to thank the sponsors of the most recent issue of the PIA Agency Marketing Guide: EZLynx, ITC, Rough Notes and Smart Choice.

PIA’s Agency Marketing Guide is published as part of the PIA Branding Program, PIA’s agency marketing program (www.piabrandingprogram.com). Funding for the PIA Branding Program is provided in part by PIA’s Pinnacle Partners: Bankers Insurance Group, Encompass Insurance, Erie Insurance, Harleysville Insurance, Progressive Insurance, State Auto Group, The Hartford, The Motorists Insurance Group, and Wright Flood.


BEGIN WITH A QUESTION

Ken Cushman, vice president, commercial risk advisor of Peoples First Insurance, Rock Hill, South Carolina

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Beyond Insurance Global Networkwww.beyondinsurance.com

Business Digestwww.businessdigestcompany.com

Charlebois-Trepanierwww.charleboistrepanier.com

Institute of WorkComp Professionalswww.workcompprofessionals.com

MarshBerrywww.marshberry.com

Peoples First Insurancewww.peoplesfirstinsurance.com

The Greenwich Groupwww.greenwichgroup.com

Jimmy Galloway, president of Peoples First Insurance, Rock Hill, South Carolina


THE SUDDEN DEATH ON February 13 of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has raised a political debate centered on the appointment of his replacement. At the same time, it has thrown into doubt the fate of many signifi-cant cases scheduled to be heard during an interim period of undetermined length, during which the high court may deadlock.

Because Scalia was generally viewed as a stalwart conservative, it will be more dif-ficult for conservatives to prevail without him on the court. With the court down to eight members, it could split 4-4 on controversial matters. When that happens, the lower court’s decision would remain in place, but only for the area of the country served by that circuit. With the Supreme Court’s “decision” tied, the judgment of the high court would not bind the whole country. Their published opinions could, however, influence the actions of state legislatures and other circuit courts facing related public policy concerns.

There are a number of pending cases with potential impact on healthcare issues:

Challenges to Affordable Care Act (ACA) contraception mandate (sev-eral cases, consolidated and collectively referred to as Zubik v. Burwell): The ACA’s “contraception mandate” requires entities that provide health insurance coverage to provide contraception free of charge as part of that coverage.

This particular set of challenges to the contraception mandate was mounted by religious nonprofit organizations (includ-ing schools, hospitals, colleges, and chari-ties) opposed to the Obama administration policy that if these entities want to opt out of the mandate, they must provide infor-mation to their third-party administrator or the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to enable the government to provide contraception instead.

By these suits, the nonprofits seek to be absolved of responsibility for provid-ing contraception to employees and students. The legal basis for the claims is the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), which prohibits the federal

government from imposing a “substantial burden” on someone’s religious practice or beliefs, even if the law imposing the burden doesn’t directly mention religion at all. If a federal law imposes a “substantial burden,” the government must demonstrate a “com-pelling government interest” in upholding the law, and, even then, the law must use “the least restrictive” means by which the law may be upheld.

A case like this one would be ripe for a 4-4 divide of the remaining justices of the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS), with Chief Justice Roberts joined by Justices Alito, Thomas, and Kennedy concluding that the contraception mandate constitutes a “substantial burden” for which there is no “compelling govern-ment interest” and therefore concluding that the mandate violates the RFRA.

The justices one might expect to uphold the contraception mandate (finding no violation of the RFRA) would be Justices Breyer, Ginsburg, Kagan, and Sotomayor. Notably, however, the outcome could be more complex, if a majority of the justices agree that the mandate is a substantial bur-den, for instance, but fewer than a majority conclude that the federal government has established a compelling interest in upholding it, or fewer than a majority find that the ACA has used the least restrictive means by which to create a contraception mandate.

So far, seven circuit courts have ruled in favor of the government, and one has ruled in favor of the nonprofits. A split decision would be insufficient to overrule the decisions of the circuit courts, leaving the inconsistent circuit court decisions in place around the country and the issue unresolved at the national level.

Whole Women’s Health v. Hellerstedt: This case arises from a challenge to a Texas law (HB 2) that requires Texas doctors performing abortions to have admit-ting privileges at a local hospital (within 30 miles of the abortion facility), and it requires abortion facilities to abide by the same requirements as are imposed on Texas ambulatory care centers. In this case,

a 4-4 split by the SCOTUS (with, presum-ably, Justices Breyer, Ginsburg, Kagan, and Sotomayor ruling the law unconstitutional and Chief Justice Roberts joined by Justices Alito, Thomas, and Kennedy [the notorious “swing vote” on the current court] ruling in favor of Texas) would effectively uphold the Texas law, because it would make final the previous ruling by a federal appeals court that the law was constitutional, concluding that it didn’t unduly burden a woman’s right to an abortion. (The “undue burden” standard was established by Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the landmark 1992 SCOTUS abortion case.)

Arguably as a result of the passage of the law, and the lower court’s decision upholding it, about 75% of Texas abor-tion clinics closed. In June, the SCOTUS granted a stay in the case, temporar-ily blocking the appellate court’s ruling upholding the law, and many of the affected clinics reopened. The stay was issued by a 5-4 vote, in which Justice Kennedy voted with the liberal bloc of the SCOTUS, and the late Justice Scalia with the conserva-tive bloc. Justice Kennedy’s vote on the stay could be viewed as a window into his thinking on the underlying case; his ques-tions during oral arguments earlier this month seem to support that conclusion as well. Although the SCOTUS decision won’t have a direct impact outside Texas, it could pave the way for the passage of similar abortion-clinic laws in other states.

SCALIA’S DEATH LEAVES OPEN QUESTIONS ON HEALTH POLICY CASES

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SCALIA’S DEATH LEAVES OPEN QUESTIONS ON HEALTH POLICY CASES

Another option for the SCOTUS would be to remand it back to the lower courts to hold hearings on whether the remaining abortion facilities in Texas are sufficient to meet the needs of Texas abortion-seekers.

Universal Health Services v. United States ex rel. Escobar: This case arose from accusations that a satellite mental health facility owned and operated by Universal Health Services (UHS) violated the False Claims Act by an “implied certification” theory of legal falsity, whereby falsity is

demonstrated if evidence shows that a defendant didn’t comply with a condition of payment. The decision in this case will test the validity of the implied certifica-tion theory, now being used to bring fraud suits against healthcare organizations, so the outcome of this case could reduce or increase the number of False Claims Act suits brought against health care provid-ers. The second question posed by this case is whether, if the implied certification theory is upheld, a reimbursement claim

by a government contractor like Universal Health Services can be viewed as “false” if its failure to comply with a statute, regula-tion, or contractual provision is not explic-itly set forth as a condition of payment.

Like the circuits addressing the issues raised by Whole Women’s Health, the cir-cuits are split on the implied certification theory of the False Claims Act. The eight justices are scheduled to hear oral argu-ment in Universal on April 19, 2016.

AGENT & BROKER COMPENSATION UPTHE BUREAU OF LABOR Statistics (BLS) said the median income of insurance agents is up. The latest figures, just released, are from 2014; income for agents nationwide averages $63,730.

Meanwhile, the high nationwide—for those in the 90th percentile—is $119,970. That’s up, too. The previous high was $117,830.

The median income for insurance agents varies, depending on the state.

These are the 10 states where agents make the most money:

1. Rhode Island — $88,5602. New York — $80,5403. Minnesota — $79,9204. Massachusetts — $78,7805. Illinois — $73,8606. Kansas — $72,9107. New Jersey — $72,8108. Vermont — $71,5609. California — $71,51010. Connecticut — $70,150

These are the bottom 10: 40. Nebraska — $54,65041. Tennessee — $54,57042. Mississippi — $53,52043. Nevada — $52,15044. Arkansas — $51,04045. Louisiana — $50,16046. Montana — $49,18047. West Virginia — $48,620

But on average—or the 50th percen-tile—it’s $63,730.

EARNINGS BY OCCUPATION:

WAGES, 2014HOURLY ANNUAL

MEDIAN MEAN MEDIAN MEAN

Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators 28.82 30.06 59,950 62,530

First-line supervisors/managers of office and administrative support workers

28.42 30.51 59,110 63,450

Insurance claims and policy processing clerks 17.74 18.66 36,910 38,800

Insurance sales agents* 22.98 30.70 47,800 63,860Insurance underwriters 30.76 33.96 63,980 70,630Employment 374,700

*41-3021 Insurance Sales AgentsSell life, property, casualty, health, automotive, or other types of insurance. May refer clients to independent brokers, work as an independent broker, or be employed by an insurance company.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes413021.htm http://www.ibamag.com/news/agents-in-these-15-states-earn-the-most-bls-28823.aspx

EMPLOYMENT AND WAGE ESTIMATES FOR THIS OCCUPATION:

EMPLOYMENT MEAN HOURLY WAGE MEAN ANNUAL WAGE 374,700 $30.64 $63,730


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DID YOU HAPPEN SEE THE 2016 PIA NATIONAL Guide to Member Benefits inserted into the most recent issue of PIA Connection? If not, head on over to the member benefits section of PIA National’s website at www.pianet.com/benefits where you can download a PDF of the publication.

Below we’ve listed just a few of the PIA program highlights from the 2016 guide.

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Floodbroker.com: A unique tool for the flood insurance industry that provides National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) informa-tion to PIA members’ clients and prospects to quickly and easily get a flood insurance quote.

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Individual and Group Insurance Products from the PIA Trust: Basic, voluntary, and dependent term life; long/short term disability; AD&D; business overhead expense; and hospital income protection for you, your employees, and families.

Employee Profiling from OMNIA: OMNIA’s behavioral assessment, The Omnia Profile, gives you the insight to take the guesswork out of personnel deci-sions. Whether you are hiring a new employee, deciding on future roles for current employees, team building or creating a succession plan for your business, Omnia can help.

Penn National Agents Umbrella Program: Excess insurance pro-tection includes E&O and business liability coverage, with available endorsements for EPL and personal coverage. Coverage not available in all states.

Rough Notes Producer Online: Helps identify risk exposures and provides detailed coverage analysis. PIA members get a special rate.

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ALABAMAPIA of Alabama, 3805 Crestwood Pkwy NW #140, Duluth, GA 30096PHONE: (770) 921-7585 | FAX: (770) 921-7590e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaga.com

ARKANSASPIA of Arkansas Inc. 10801 Executive Center Drive, Suite 207, Little Rock, AR 72211PHONE: (501) 225-1645 | FAX: (501) 225-2550e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaar.com

CA/NV/AZ/NMPIA Group, 3205 Northeast 78th St #104, Vancouver, WA 98665PHONE: (888) 246-4466 | FAX: (360) 571-7600e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piawest.com

COLORADOPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

CONNECTICUTPIA of Connecticut, P.O. Box 997, Glenmont, NY 12077-0997PHONE: (800) 424-4244 | FAX: (518) 434-2342e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pia.org

DELAWAREPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

FLORIDAPIA of Florida, Inc., 1390 Timberlane Road, Tallahassee, FL 32312-1766PHONE: (850) 893-8245 | (800) 277-1171 FL only | FAX: (850) 893-8316e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piafl.org

GEORGIAThe PIA of Georgia, Inc. 3805 Crestwood Pkwy NW #140, Duluth, GA 30096PHONE: (770) 921-7585 | FAX: (770) 921-7590e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaga.com

HAWAIIPIA of Hawaii, 1247 Kelewina St. Kailua, HI 96734PHONE: (808) 261-9460 | FAX: (808) 262-5355e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piahawaii.com

ILLINOISPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

INDIANAPIA of Indiana, 50 E. 91 Street Ste. 207 Indianapolis, IN 46240PHONE: (317) 899-9200 | FAX: (317) 493-0408e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaindiana.com

KANSASKansas Association of Professional Insurance Agents216 SW 7th Ave, Topeka, KS 66603PHONE: (785) 232-4143 | FAX: (785) 232-0272e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.kansaspia.org

KENTUCKYPIA of Kentucky, P.O. Box 4205, Frankfort, KY 40604-4205PHONE: (502) 875-3888 | FAX: (502) 227-0839e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaky.org

LOUISIANAPIA of Louisiana Inc., 8064 Summa Avenue, Suite C, Baton Rouge, LA 70809PHONE: (225) 766-7770 | (800) 349-3434 LA only | FAX: (225) 766-1601e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaoflouisiana.com

MAINEMaine Insurance Agents Association 17 Carriage Lane, Hallowell, ME 04347PHONE: (207) 623-1875 | FAX: (207) 626-0275e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.maineagents.com

MARYLANDInsurance Agents & Brokers of Maryland P.O. Box 2023, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055-0763PHONE: (717) 795-9100 | FAX: (717) 795-8347e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.iabforme.com

MASSACHUSETTSPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

MICHIGANMichigan PIA, P.O. Box 99579 Troy, Michigan, 48099PHONE: (616) 454-4461 | FAX: (616) 454-4491e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.mipia.com

MINNESOTAPIA of Minnesota, 8646 Eagle Creek Circle, Suite 202, Savage, MN 55378PHONE: (866) 694-7070 | FAX: (866) 749-8678e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piamn.com

MISSISSIPPIPIA Association of Mississippi, 4744 I-55 North, Jackson, MS 39211PHONE: (601) 984-8855 | FAX: (601) 984-9008 | (800) 898-0136 MS onlye-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piams.com

MISSOURIMissouri Association of Insurance AgentsP.O. Box 1785, Jefferson City, MO 65102-1785PHONE: 573-893-4301 | FAX: 573-893-3708e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.missouriagent.org

MONTANAPIA of Montana, 3205 NE 78th St Ste 104, Vancouver, WA 98665-0697PHONE: (888) 246-4466 | FAX: (360) 571-7600e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piawest.com

NEBRASKA/IOWAPIA of Nebraska/Iowa, 920 South 107th Avenue, Suite 305, Omaha, NE 68114PHONE: (402) 392-1611 | FAX: (402) 392-2228e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianeia.com

NEW HAMPSHIREPIA of New Hampshire, P.O. Box 997, Glenmont NY 12077-0997PHONE: (800) 424-4244 | FAX: (518) 434-2342e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pia.org

NEW JERSEYPIA New Jersey, P.O. Box 997, Glenmont NY 12077-0997PHONE: (800) 424-4244 | FAX: (518) 434-2342e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pia.org

NEW YORKPIA New York, P.O. Box 997, Glenmont NY 12077-0997PHONE: (800) 424-4244 | FAX: (518) 434-2342e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pia.org

NORTH CAROLINAPIANC, PO Box 1387 Davidson, NC 28036PHONE: (704) 534-2338e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianc.net

NORTH DAKOTAPIA of North Dakota1211 Memorial Hwy Holiday Park Office #6, Bismarck, ND 58504-5213PHONE: (701) 223-5025 | (800) 733-1050 ND&MN onlyFAX: (701) 223-9456 | e-mail: [email protected] Site: www.piand.com

OHIOOhio Insurance Agents Association, Inc., 600 Cross Pointe Road, Gahanna, OH 43230PHONE: (614) 552-8000 | (800) 555-1742 | FAX: (614) 552-0115e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.ohioinsuranceagents.com

OKLAHOMAPHONE: 703-836-9340 | FAX: 703-836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.org

OREGON/IDAHOPIA of Oregon/Idaho 3205 Northeast 78th Street, #104, Vancouver, WA 98665PHONE: (503) 287-7570 | FAX: (360) 571-7600e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piawest.com

PENNSYLVANIAPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

PUERTO RICO & CARIBBEANPIA of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean IncPO Box 192389, San Juan, PR 00919-2389PHONE: (787) 792-7849 | FAX: (787) 792-4745e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaofpr.com

RHODE ISLANDPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

SOUTH CAROLINAPIA of South Carolina, PO Box 21367, Columbia, SC 29221-1367PHONE: (803) 772-0557 | (888) 742-6372 | FAX: (803) 772-0846e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piasc.net

SOUTH DAKOTAPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

TENNESSEEPIA of Tennessee Inc 504 Autumn Springs Court Suite A-2, Franklin, TN 37067PHONE: (615) 771-1177 | FAX: (615) 771-3456e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piatn.com

TEXASTexas Insurance Professionals 3632 Frankford Rd, #200B, Dallas, TX 75287PHONE: (972) 862-3333 | FAX: (972) 307-7888e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piatx.org

UTAHUtah Association of Independent Insurance Agents4885 S. 900 E., Suite 302, Salt Lake City, UT 84117PHONE: (801) 269-1200 | FAX: (801) 269-1265e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.uaiia.org

VERMONTVermont Insurance Agents Association 600 Blair Park Road Suite 10, Williston, VT 05495PHONE: (802) 229-5884 | FAX: (802) 223-0868e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.viaa.org

VIRGINIA/DCPIA Assn of Virginia & DC 8751 Park Central Dr., Ste 140, Richmond, VA 23227PHONE: (804) 264-2582 | FAX: (804) 266-1075e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piavadc.com

WASHINGTON/ALASKAPIA of WA/AK, 3205 Northeast 78th Street, #104, Vancouver, WA 98665PHONE: (360) 571-7100 | FAX: (360) 571-7600e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piawest.com

WEST VIRGINIAPHONE: (703) 836-9340 | FAX: (703) 836-1279e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.pianet.com

WISCONSINPIA of Wisconsin, Inc., 6401 Odana Road, Madison, WI 53719-1126PHONE: (608) 274-8188 | (800) 261-7429 | FAX: (608) 274-8195e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.piaw.org

WYOMINGAssoc. of Wyoming Ins. Agents, PO Box 799, Sundance, WY 82729-0799PHONE: (307) 283-2052 | FAX: (775) 796-3122e-mail: [email protected] | Web Site: www.awia.com

PIA AFFILIATES

BUSINESS-BUILDING TOOLS

✦ PIA BRANDING PROGRAM. Print ads, radio commercials and social media support for PIA members. www.piabrandingprogram.com

✦ HARTFORD FLOOD INSURANCE. PIA’s endorsed flood provider since 2004. Dedicated local sales directors and book transfer/rollover team plus great commissions for PIA members. Call (860) 547-5006.

✦ FLOODBROKER.COM. Sell more flood insurance with a flood quoting Web portal. A PIA member exclusive!

✦ PIA AGENCY MARKETING GUIDE. Hands-on marketing tips from industry experts. Published annually.

✦ ROUGH NOTES PRODUCER ONLINE. Identifies risk exposures. Provides detailed coverage analysis. PIA member price $500 annually (reg. $1,695). Call 800-428-4384. Use your PIA member ID# above name on mailing label.

✦ DOCIT FOR AGENTS. Align applicants with the right carrier early in the auto quoting process with DocIT for Agents’ online database of driver violation data.

✦ AGENCY REVENUE TOOLS. Boost personal lines sales by engaging in employee worksite marketing using your appointed markets at regular commission rates.

✦ AGENCY WEBSITES. Cutting-edge websites tailored specifically to insurance agents.

✦ PIA LOGO. Put the PIA logo on your business card, website, stationery and signage. Order items with the PIA logo in our online store.

✦ CONSUMER BROCHURES. Answer your customers’ questions with PIA’s attractive brochures.

INSURANCE PRODUCTS

✦ E&O INSURANCE. E&O coverage from PIAPRO (the PIA Professional Liability Insurance Company) and additional admitted and non-admitted markets with differing appetites. www.pianet.com/eando

✦ PIA AGENTS UMBRELLA PROGRAM. Excess insurance protection includes E&O and business liability coverage, with available endorsements for EPL and personal coverage.

✦ CYBER AND PRIVACY INSURANCE. PIA and U.S. Risk Brokers have introduced a robust program exclusively for PIA members.

✦ INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP INSURANCE PRODUCTS. Basic, voluntary and dependent term life; long/short term disability; AD&D; business overhead expense; and hospital income protection. www.piatrust.com

TOOLS FROM THE PIA PARTNERSHIP, PIA’S COMPANY COUNCIL

✦ SMALL BUSINESS INSURANCE & THE INTERNET — THE VOICE OF THE CL CUSTOMER: Stay ahead of online competition in commercial lines.

✦ CLOSING THE GAP—GROWTH & PROFIT. Plan for growth and profitability. Includes tools for improving retention, sales and account-rounding.

✦ AGENCY TOUCH POINTS—THE VOICE OF THE CUSTOMER. Give personal lines customers what they really want.

✦ REACHING GEN Y. Convert Gen Y age group insurance consumers into loyal agency customers.

✦ PERPETUATION CENTRAL. Guidance through the many phases of your agency’s lifecycle.

✦ PRACTICAL GUIDE TO SUCCESSFUL PLANNING. Plan for success within your own agency.

AGENCY MANAGEMENT TOOLS

✦ AGENCY AGREEMENT REVIEW SERVICE. Free to members and carriers, PIA recommends changes to carriers and highlights concerns for members.

✦ AGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND RECOVERY PLAN. The PIA guide to creating an agency-specific business contingency plan.

✦ EMPLOYEE PROFILING. Hire the right people with skills and personality testing from OMNIA.

✦ PRESCRIPTION DISCOUNTS. Save money on prescriptions not covered by insurance. Available to PIA members and their clients.

✦ Discounts on producer licensing, car rentals, shipping with UPS and calendars from Mines Press.

✦ Free subscriptions to industry publications.

LEGISLATIVE & REGULATORY OUTREACH

✦ GRASSROOTS ALERTS. Send pre-written, fully-editable letters directly to your elected officials. www.piagrassroots.com

✦ PIA FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE SUMMIT. Every spring, PIA members visit Capitol Hill to meet with their elected representatives. www.piafls.com

✦ DISTRICT LOBBYING DAY…CAPITOL HILL IN YOUR BACKYARD. Every August, PIA members meet with Members of Congress in their district offices. www.piadld.com

✦ PIA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (PIAPAC). PIAPAC contributes to the campaigns of candidates to federal office who share our pro-insurance, pro-business perspective and who support our issues. www.piapac.com

YOUR MEMBER BENEFITS FROM PIA NATIONAL

Learn more about these PIA National member benefits at www.pianet.com.



THE LAST WORD

PRIVATE MARKET FLOOD INSURANCE

By Teresa D. Miller Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner

AS INSURANCE AGENTS, YOU ARE COMMITTED TO HELPING your clients protect their families and properties. I encourage you to consider a product that has received little attention until recently but can help many of your clients—private market flood insurance.

Gov. Tom Wolf and I heard about homeowners facing rising premiums on National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policies. After this program fell $24 billion in debt, partly because of claims following Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy, Congress ordered an end to subsidies some high risk properties had received. At the same time, the Federal Emergency Management Agency re-mapped flood zones across the country. Homeowners, some who had never experi-enced flooding, were placed into what is known as a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) for the first time.

If these homeowners have a federal government-backed mortgage, this re-mapping brought a surprise in the form of a letter from their mortgage lender, saying the homeowner now needed flood insurance. We saw cases of homeowners forced to pay thousands of dollars a year, causing financial hardship and decreasing their home’s value.

There is good news, though, and this is where you as insurance agents come in. Gov. Wolf asked me to find ways to help these homeowners. We discovered higher NFIP

premiums and re-mapping of properties into flood zones were bringing more private insurers into the residential flood insurance market, some for the first time. We also found, in many cases, comparable private flood coverage was available at a significantly lower cost.

One man who owned his Hershey, Pennsylvania home since 1999 with no history of flooding, received a letter from his mortgage lender in 2012, informing him he needed flood insurance as his home was re-mapped into a SFHA. NFIP coverage would have cost $2,700 a year, but his agent referred him to a surplus lines producer, who provided comparable coverage for $718 a year.

We also recently learned of two small Pennsylvania towns, one in northeastern Pennsylvania and the other in the southwest, that were re-mapped into flood zones, despite no significant recent flood history.

Because the private flood insurance market is still small, and much of it is sold through the surplus lines market, it is very difficult for consumers to find whether a private policy may be available for them. To help in Pennsylvania, we set up a one-stop shop of licensed and surplus lines contacts, at the Flood icon at www.insurance.pa.gov.

I hope you will learn more about the private flood insurance market. By providing options we can help consumers get the protection they need at prices they can afford.

“I ENCOURAGE

YOU TO CONSIDER

A PRODUCT THAT

HAS RECEIVED

LITTLE ATTENTION

UNTIL RECENTLY

BUT CAN HELP

MANY OF YOUR

CLIENTS—PRIVATE

MARKET FLOOD

INSURANCE.”

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