A CASH-FLOW BUDGET FOR AN INSURANCE AGENCY by Zachary Berhau Some agencies show a paper profit year in and year out. Suddenly one day, they're in financial difficulty. How can an agency makin...

ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE Dear (Customer Name): Can you imagine sending the following letter to all your customers? 'Dear Customer: Last weekend an explosion destroyed all our accounts receivable recor...

ADDING VALUE TO A FAMILY BUSINESS by Pegi Flahault A long time ago, agencies thrived by simply writing enough policies, attending enough meetings, making enough contacts, and re...

Here's a letter I received recently:
Dear Dave:
I am the manager of a four-person Life/Benefits department of a P/C agency. The agency is set up with profit centers such as Personal Lines, Commercial Lines, Surety, and Life/Benefits. Each profit center shares in the common overhead of the agency office supplies, salaries, etc.
I have no problem having my department pay for what it uses.

ANALYZING EMPLOYEE BENEFIT LEVELS by John Jaques Many agency managers spend a great deal of time reviewing and setting staff and producer compensation levels, but often underst...

Dear (Customer Name): HOW MANY HATS DO YOU WEAR? Many apartment owners find themselves saddled with more work than they bargained for...

AUTO INSURANCE Dear (Customer Name), Isn't it worth a few moments of your time to learn whether you're paying more than you need to for Automobile insurance? (Your Agency Name) will answer that ...

AUTO-RENTAL REIMBURSEMENT Dear (Customer Name): What would happen if, due to an accident, you lost the use of your car for a few days? While it's being repaired, how are you going to get around? Wa...

BUILDING YOUR CAPITAL by Brian Burke Everything seemed to get better around here when we stopped worrying so much about taxes, Agency CEO Are you trying to build a...

Agents who’ve experienced a hard market know that claims are often scrutinized much more closely than they are in a soft market. Unfortunately, circumstances sometimes lead to the denial of claims that are covered regardless of market conditions. This document by the Virtual University faculty provides an example of what you might see more of in the months to come.