Equita Final Expense Services: Beware the FINE PRINT!

[0b1kanobee]

Your questions are reasonable however you may be making some assumtions in some areas. Expample: The $34 cost per mail card is not a bad deal especially in tennessee. I have tried numerous varieties and the current average is just over 5% response. If you did this on your onw at $350 per 1000, that amounts to $63.63 per lead card based on average 5.5% returns.

Yeah but if he has terminated or been terminated and does not have a release and is signed up with all these companies through EFES he has worthless $34 leads because he can't write business. At least that is how I understand it.

 

[notfonzy]

Anyone know a guy named Todd D with EFES? He is one of their big managers, I 'm told, and I just heard today he recently left them to do something different? Any truth to this? Couldn't get any more info.

Call him and ask him. I'm sure he'd be happy to tell you.

Todd A Daviso
Daviso Insurance Group, LLC
800-246-6853

 

[jdeasy]

Yeah but if he has terminated or been terminated and does not have a release and is signed up with all these companies through EFES he has worthless $34 leads because he can't write business. At least that is how I understand it.

Why couldn't he write business with companies outside of the EFES umbrella?

 

[0b1kanobee]

Why couldn't he write business with companies outside of the EFES umbrella?

Well he could providing he has access to them. What companies are outside the EFES umbrella?

 

[jdeasy]

Well he could providing he has access to them. What companies are outside the EFES umbrella?

There are more FE companies outside than they have to offer. I have many companies to write thru EFES, but, if I left there tomorrow there would be no shortage of companies for me to write.

Now, if I were looking for an excuse to not work I could probably find one.
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For those of you thinking of the Final Expense business as your Insurance focus, beware of the Fine Print of some of these marketing groups.
Been looking at Lead Marketing Companies and found several seemingly decent groups to work through. Once I got into some of the contractual paperwork I found out quickly that getting in is very easy but getting out might be very costly. Some of the language in the paperwork like that of the Equita group from Dallas states that you have a moving target on lead cost based on your production, some formula based on premium generated per lead and leads could run up to $34 a lead. Also, I believe it is this same group that states that if you ever want to leave or end your lead program with them that you must give at least 2 weeks notice in writing but that you will pay $32 or $34 a lead on any mail that comes in that was sent out for you. The potential fine print trap there is how the heck do you know how much mail was actually sent out for you and how many future lead returns will you be actually on the hook for. So, if you want out and they say you owe them for another 60 or 80 leads then you will get a nice bill for $2500.00 +! Is it just me or does this seem like a very large gray area and potentially a very costly one?
I also heard through some other sources that they will never let you out of a Carrier Contract if you decide to leave and that your only recourse is to find new carriers to work with or sit out the carrier's defined sit out period.
Any of you have any experiences about trying to leave this group and are there any other marketing groups with more reasonable separation terms?

Looks like the Final Expense business is a good one but just want to ensure I know all the facts before wading in.

Still Looking.

You can keep looking. You won't find a better deal than EFES if you want to be a fulltime FE agent and you need leads.

Nor is what you read in the fine print. It's a contract. They protect your area and you agree to work the leads. The PPl is a good thing. It allows you to lower your lead costs by producing. What a concept!!

I pay $11 per lead. Yes, if I wanted to leave EFES tomorrow I would need to give them a two week notice so that they can stop mailing for me and, yes, I would be responsible for the leads that come in from mailers they have already done for me.

I know they did a 5500 piece mailer for me a couple of weeks ago. Do you think I shouldn't be responsible for those leads that come in from that mailer?

None of this seems like a "gray" area to me. Maybe it is just you?

What you should do is your own mailers and not mess with a marketing company. Send you out a 3000 pice mailer and you will be on the hook for $1200 no matter how pieces come back. No gray area there and it works like a charm for everybody. That's why companies like EFES and Securus just can't get agents to sign up. It's just way too damn easy to do it yourself.

 

[Jim Jenkins]

Yeah but if he has terminated or been terminated and does not have a release and is signed up with all these companies through EFES he has worthless $34 leads because he can't write business. At least that is how I understand it.[/quote

Everyone knows EFES is the only way to go. Theres no "grey area " in the fine print. Maybe the grey shade of lipstick that comes with the leads could be an issue.

 

[JimmyUt]

Yeah but if he has terminated or been terminated and does not have a release and is signed up with all these companies through EFES he has worthless $34 leads because he can't write business. At least that is how I understand it.[/quote

Everyone knows EFES is the only way to go. Theres no "grey area " in the fine print. Maybe the grey shade of lipstick that comes with the leads could be an issue.

It has always been the only way to go, didn't your mom call and tell you that??

 

[0b1kanobee]

I'm not saying it is or isn't the way to go as I have never tried it so I would not be able to offer an opinion other than being the Devil's advocate. All I have to go on which seems good enough is what JD has said and what others have either said or not said to him who have been around here for a while.

Now we are talking contracts, getting down to brass tacks. The contract says that ONCE YOU TERMINATE OR GET TERMINATED YOU HAVE TO BUY THE LEADS FOR THE NEXT TWO WEEKS. OBVIOUSLY YOU CAN'T WRITE ANY BUSINESS FROM THESE LEADS THROUGH EFES BECAUSE YOU WERE TERMINATED (makes sense and contract doesn't say otherwise). HOW ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO SELL THESE LEADS? ONLY WAY I WOULD KNOW HOW IS TO HAVE A FEW CARRIERS IN MY POCKET OUTSIDE OF EFES UMBRELLA. WHAT THOSE ONES ARE, I WOULDN'T KNOW. JD ISN'T WORRIED ABOUT IT BECAUSE HE ISN'T LEAVING ANYTIME SOON AND IF HE RECEIVED TWO WEEKS OF LEADS IF HE DID HE PROBABLY HAS THE SPARE DOUGH TO PAY FOR IT........TAX WRITE-OFF FOR HIM.

EFES sounds like a good deal for someone who wants to do FE full time. Part time, not so good. If I were going to try and do it full time, I would go with EFES.

 

[jdeasy]

It has always been the only way to go, didn't your mom call and tell you that??

You wouldn't ever try to stir up any shat, would you?

Keep living the life!!

 

[Rearden]

If you're a closer, then it won't be a problem.