The Travelers High Achiever award is designed to recognize insurance agency employees who display superior levels of customer service, demonstrate leadership skills, encourage team work among their peers and contribute to the overall success of their agencies.

Jennifer Duncan of the CoVerica Agency Alliance said, “Megan is an outstanding performer who contributes every day to the success of our alliance agencies and to the high level of personalized service we provide for our members. We’re proud that Megan has been recognized by Travelers and we appreciate her contributions to our organization.”

Mike Coffey of Travelers Insurance presents Megan Armstrong the High Achiever Award

“We’re not for everyone and we don’t want everyone. We’re looking for partners, not for agencies that need a place to place business.” -Jim Masiello Chairman, Strategic Insurance Agency Alliance

Why an agent would want to be an SIAA Member. They immediately gain access to well known, competitive markets. We give them an opportunity to compete against much larger agencies because now they are part of a larger regional agency. The smaller agencies don’t have the technical knowledge to write larger accounts, yet a lot of them have access to those accounts, so we provide placement assistance. So a $2 million agency can compete against a $40 million agency, that’s a distinct advantage. On the compensation side, the minute they sign with us, they receive the top tiered commission from the get go from the companies we provide them access to. And then another advantage is that we share profits with them with no minimum premium requirements, they just need to be profitable.

How SIAA is doing in a challenging economy. We had the best year we’ve ever had in 2010, it was a great year. The model works whether it be hard or soft markets, good or bad economies, we do very well under any circumstances. In 2010 we wrote in excess of $750 million of new premium to our network. For the second year in a row we added over 400 new member agencies and 269 of those were direct writer captives and agency producers. We ended 2010 with 3,594 partner agencies. We have created over 1600 brand new independent insurance agencies that come from direct writers, captives. When you look at our numbers, it was an absolute banner year and every single year we’ve improved upon our numbers.

The ranking is based on Insurance Journal’s Top 100 annual survey conducted in the spring and early summer each year.

“As much as anything else, this demonstrates what we mean when we tell prospective members that they will become Instantly Big if they join one of our Master Agency alliances.” said Masiello.

The highest ranked SIAA Master Agency on the list is The Satellite Agency Network Group, Inc. (SAN Group) of Hampton, NH, at number 17 with $426 million in 2010 P & C Premium Written. “SAN is the largest group of its kind in the northeast and is the original concept for the SIAA model. It’s rewarding to see so many other SIAA member Master Agencies succeed by following the same model,” Masiello commented.

The other 7 Master Agencies on the list (and their rankings) are:

#60 – SIA Group Inc., Jacksonville, NC

#79 – AssureAlliance, Inc. Spartanburg, SC

#83 – North Florida Agents Network, Tallahassee, FL

#87 – Oklahoma Agents Alliance, Oklahoma City, OK

#89 – SAN of Florida, St. Petersburg, FL

#94 – SIA of the Great Lakes, Green Bay, WI

#100 – Agents Helping Agents, Louisville, KY

Since it’s inception in 1995, SIAA has signed over 3,800 new member agencies.

SIAA is dedicated to the creation, retention and growth of the Independent Insurance Agency distribution system. SIAA provides independent agencies with the company access necessary to become instantly BIG. For more information on SIAA visit www.siaa.net.

The National Insurance Agency Alliance

For additional information, contact James Lane, Senior Marketing Manager, at jamesl@siaa.net (phone 603-601-1216) or Doug Coombs, Chief Marketing Officer at dougc@siaa.net (phone 603-601-1220).

Non-compete agreements are illegal in California.

“Many companies are unaware of this fact, especially since non-compete agreements are legal in virtually all other states. However, there are two exceptions in California. Non-compete agreements are enforceable for partnerships and when someone is selling their ownership interest in a company. A related topic is the protection of trade secrets. A company can prevent the use of its trade secrets, but it cannot prevent fair competition.”

Embrace the future. Consider writing your contracts as if you found yourself in California.

When you write an employment agreement for your agents allow for a sellable or buyable equity within the agreement. Have the agreement clearly state the terms and obligations for agents to own some equity in their book of business. It’s not just smart business; it’s the right thing to do.

New Minimum Auto Limits Effective Jan. 1


Legislative provisions increasing minimum auto liability limits to $30,000 for bodily injury or death to one person in one accident, $60,000 for bodily injury to or death of two or more people in one accident and $25,000 for damage to or destruction of others in one accident, take effect for policies issued or renewed on and after Jan. 1, 2011. (Limits do not have to be increased on existing policies until they renew.)

Senate Bill 502, which passed into law in 2007, initially increased minimum auto limits to 25/50/25 but included provisions to further raise the limits to 30/60/25 effective Jan. 1, 2011. The change in minimum limits will affect both the private passenger auto policy and business auto policy. Agents should expect to see carriers begin to make the changes on auto policies with a Jan. 1 renewal date.

You have probably received a call from one of your insured’s who is, at that moment, standing at a car rental counter and they ask you the following question:

Do I need to purchase the Damage Waiver from the rental car company or will my personal auto policy extend coverage? Be careful about giving them a quick yes, read more to find out why.

While the insured’s auto policy may provide them with some coverage when renting a vehicle, most rental agreements hold them responsible for things that may not be covered such as loss of use for the days they are unable to rent the vehicle due to damage or repairs being made, the administrative fee charged for processing the loss and diminutive value, we suggest that you recommend the insured purchase the Damage Waiver, or as it is often referred to, collision damage waiver (CDW) or loss damage waiver (LDW) advising them to be sure to read and comply with the contractual requirements regarding drivers, prohibited uses and responsibilities.

What to discuss with your Clients when faced with the question of whether or not they need to purchase a damage waiver:

• Administrative fees charged by the rental car company associated with the loss
• Daily rental rate for days vehicle cannot be rented (downtime-loss of use)
• Depreciated value (diminished/diminutive value) – Very simply, Depreciated Value is the difference in value between a vehicle with an accident history and the same vehicle without an accident history
• LDW (Loss Damage Waiver)/CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) – The rental company’s damage waiver normally covers accidental damage and towing a damaged vehicle, as long as the renter complies with the rental contract (such as authorized drivers, locations, no racing). Waivers may also cover theft, vandalism, loss of use, and liability. The renter often has a choice among different coverages for different fees. Contract stipulations apply to Damage Waivers, and may leave the renter responsible for major gaps in coverage, including deductibles or excess liability payments beyond the limits paid for. So it is very important that they read and comply with all of the contractual requirements.

Source: Scott A. Treen -The National Alliance www.scic.com