Better Than Any Commission Check

When they ask, I tell people I am driven, not by money, but by a strong desire to help people.

So, would I do it for free?

If I could, I would, but the folks I owe money to might not feel the same way.

I got a renewal letter on a small employer that has been a group health insurance client for almost 2 years. This employer was a bit of a pain at first, and I almost walked away from it.

Their prior agent had lied, or was simply mistaken, and had promised that certain medical conditions would be paid by the carrier.

As it turned out, that simply was not the case.

The result was, it cost the owner of the company over $10,000 to pay a claim he felt should have been the carrier responsibility. The agent who made these promises was a long time friend and I was a total stranger to the owner.

Still, I made my presentation which received (to put it mildly) a cool reception. The owner put me through the ringer, asking for financial information on the carrier, a copy of the policy and other things that are out of the ordinary.

After reviewing the information he asked what Blue Cross would charge for a similar plan. He was comfortable with the "brand" and felt he would be better served by a big company vs. the one I suggested.

I gave him a copy of the Blue proposal and pointed out their rates were about 40% higher for essentially the same benefit, but if he insisted, I had no problem using Blue.

He finally agreed to apply for coverage with the carrier I recommended.

Last years renewal went well but there was some resistance.

This year is a different story.

They are facing a 34% rate increase.

I received an advance copy of the renewal letter. A summary of the financial's follows.

Total premiums paid to date, $25,114.

Total claims paid to date, $83,546 (including $22,818 in Rx claims).

Total claims denied, $0.

This is what insurance is all about.

This is what drives me.

Finding ways to make coverage more affordable and delivering on a promise to pay.