SIAA Alliance for Independent Insurance Agents

[scooter33]

I don't get it. Earlier, you stated that you don't mind the fees they charge. Now you are complaining about writing $2k checks per month? I thought about that before I signed up, and even though I am not at that point yet, I will be ok with it, because I will be making good commission due to being with them. Serious question...please answer honestly. If you started out on your own, with no book to roll over, what do you think your premium would be now? You mentioned that most of your business is with only a few carriers. Would you be able to get appointed with those same carriers without being a part of SIAA? This seems like a recurring theme...agencies get big enough quickly that they feel they don't need the cluster/aggregator, but without them, they never would have been able to come close to the production because they wouldn't have access to good preferred carriers. You want SIAA to have skin in the game for you when you start out to make it fair? That's ridiculous, you must be a liberal!

First of all, I am a registered republican, not that it matters. Your are a moron. Being a liberal or conservative has nothing to do with my concerns with how these clusters are setup.

As I said many many times...clusters are great for agencies like yours, you will max out at around a million and be content with that,

To answer your question... Sure, my book maybe a bit smaller, however I also would be saving over 2k per month in fees so it probably would even out. You do understand you pay them 25% in the back end?

You mentioned your book is small, you work from home, no staff, etc. you have no chance of getting a direct appointment, so need a cluster to get access.

 

[HealthGuy]

the problem with this entire industry..especially P and C is that you need the cluster to begin with...who cares how small a producer you are production is production...the cluster is the parasite and YOU the agent are their host. Its a joke...little producers makin the master agency millionaires. Classic multilevel marketing ponzi scheme..any way you slice it.

 

[BlockO]

You mentioned your book is small, you work from home, no staff, etc. you have no chance of getting a direct appointment, so need a cluster to get access.

not always true. My book is small, I work from home and have no staff..... I've gone from 2 carriers to 10 in four years. But it does make it more difficult. And I still need preferred carriers like I mentioned earlier.

 

[Soundadvisor]

As insurance agents, it’s nearly impossible to be all things to all people. But we all can be honest with our clients. If someone else can do a better job with certain things, say so. At least you will be respected for your honesty and you may be able to do some other things for the client that the competing company or agent is not willing or able to do.

Like it or not, insurance carriers are going to do what is good for them as long as they can get away with it. If insurance brokers are comfortable feeding these insurance companies business through these intermediaries, paying monthly fees and splitting commissions and insurance buyers don’t have a problem with it, there is not much anyone can do about it.

On the other hand, since the aggregators seek the most profitable lines, the insurance buyer often winds up with their most attractive coverage with the aggregators and the balance of their program with excess-surplus line carriers. Discovering technical weaknesses overlooked by a less attentive agent can lead to forming long-term relationships, not ones based solely on price. Those are the ones you build an agency on.

I do know this, I have never seen an insurance program that couldn’t be improved and I’ve never seen one without a significant technical flaw. So the opportunities are there. The issue is how do we discover and respond to them.

 

[Tylerstc]

First of all, I am a registered republican, not that it matters. Your are a moron. Being a liberal or conservative has nothing to do with my concerns with how these clusters are setup.

As I said many many times...clusters are great for agencies like yours, you will max out at around a million and be content with that,

To answer your question... Sure, my book maybe a bit smaller, however I also would be saving over 2k per month in fees so it probably would even out. You do understand you pay them 25% in the back end?

You mentioned your book is small, you work from home, no staff, etc. you have no chance of getting a direct appointment, so need a cluster to get access.

You still didn't answer my question. Do you think you would be in a better place right now without SIAA? You think your book would only be 10% smaller without being appointed with good carriers you have had (probably since day 1)?

I work from home, have no staff, etc. by design. I am just now in my 13th month, there is no point in having excess overhead at this time. The money that I am saving on an office right now more than makes up for the fee that I pay SIAA. That wouldn't be an option if I weren't with them. First off, preferred carriers would not even look at me without having a book to roll over, and definitely wouldn't allow me to work from home.

You can go ahead and make assumptions about my Agency, but after my first 12 months I am about $550k in premium. Nothing great, but not too bad either. I know for a fact, if I were not with them, I would not even be at half the book I have now. If you don't have good competitive markets, how are you going to place the business?

I am not stating people should join SIAA or an aggregator if they have an established agency...no one is saying that. But if you are wanting to start an agency with no book to roll over, then it can be a great option.

 

[scooter33]

As insurance agents, it’s nearly impossible to be all things to all people. But we all can be honest with our clients. If someone else can do a better job with certain things, say so. At least you will be respected for your honesty and you may be able to do some other things for the client that the competing company or agent is not willing or able to do. Like it or not, insurance carriers are going to do what is good for them as long as they can get away with it. If insurance brokers are comfortable feeding these insurance companies business through these intermediaries, paying monthly fees and splitting commissions and insurance buyers don’t have a problem with it, there is not much anyone can do about it. On the other hand, since the aggregators seek the most profitable lines, the insurance buyer often winds up with their most attractive coverage with the aggregators and the balance of their program with excess-surplus line carriers. Discovering technical weaknesses overlooked by a less attentive agent can lead to forming long-term relationships, not ones based solely on price. Those are the ones you build an agency on. I do know this, I have never seen an insurance program that couldn’t be improved and I’ve never seen one without a significant technical flaw. So the opportunities are there. The issue is how do we discover and respond to them.

I concur... All carriers don't give a damn about us agents....prime example Allstate, owns esurance, encompass and an independent brokerage. How the hell you explain that one?

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not always true. My book is small, I work from home and have no staff..... I've gone from 2 carriers to 10 in four years. But it does make it more difficult. And I still need preferred carriers like I mentioned earlier.

How about getting a satellite office? Sub lease an office space for a $300-$500 a month. Perhaps carriers will be ok with that?

 

[F150]

funny how the people NOT part of clusters talk like they own and know EVERYTHING about the cluster.....

 

[Tylerstc]

not always true. My book is small, I work from home and have no staff..... I've gone from 2 carriers to 10 in four years. But it does make it more difficult. And I still need preferred carriers like I mentioned earlier.

This proves my point. If I remember it correctly, the agency has been around since 1989 and he still can't get preferred carriers. It's not that hard to get non-standard carriers...but if that's all you offer, that's mostly who you will insure. In your case, depending on the size of the book, it might not make sense to go with an aggregator, but it might. If you can roll over a lot of the book over to a preferred carrier it might be worth it. I will say this, my Preferred carriers pay 50% more commission on new business, and 88% more commission on renewals than Progressive. That's pretty valuable if you ask me.

I agree with Scooter, maybe you can get a really cheap office, but work from home and only have meetings with the occasional client and/or marketing rep from carriers there? I have been told that the marketing reps want to see an office and be able to meet you there, so if you don't actually work there but can meet them it might work. I always meet my reps at a local Starbucks...hasn't been an issue yet.

I would bet my middle nut that Scooter33 isn't actually with SIAA, with how bitter and irrational he is towards it. Otherwise, he must not be able to look at the whole picture and is only focused on the monthly fee, because he feels entitled now that his book is at a decent size...thanks to SIAA.

 

[scooter33]

This proves my point. If I remember it correctly, the agency has been around since 1989 and he still can't get preferred carriers. It's not that hard to get non-standard carriers...but if that's all you offer, that's mostly who you will insure. In your case, depending on the size of the book, it might not make sense to go with an aggregator, but it might. If you can roll over a lot of the book over to a preferred carrier it might be worth it. I will say this, my Preferred carriers pay 50% more commission on new business, and 88% more commission on renewals than Progressive. That's pretty valuable if you ask me. I agree with Scooter, maybe you can get a really cheap office, but work from home and only have meetings with the occasional client and/or marketing rep from carriers there? I have been told that the marketing reps want to see an office and be able to meet you there, so if you don't actually work there but can meet them it might work. I always meet my reps at a local Starbucks...hasn't been an issue yet. I would bet my middle nut that Scooter33 isn't actually with SIAA, with how bitter and irrational he is towards it. Otherwise, he must not be able to look at the whole picture and is only focused on the monthly fee, because he feels entitled now that his book is at a decent size...thanks to SIAA.

Ok little man, guess you just lost your nut. Once you grow your book, get in an office and start hiring staff... Than let's talk shop.

 

[insurance1822]

SIAA has been great for us BUT when realizing we can stand on our own we reviewed the contract to realize its disgustingly (and arguably highly unethical) with how strong armed we are.

Very hard to grow without them...basically IMPOSSIBLE to ever get out.

And NO...read the contract because when it comes down to selling or getting out YOU SURE AS HELL DON'T ***OWN*** it by any stretch of the word

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Great point... I would highly recommend to get the info from the source. It's important to do so, especially if you are making a decision for your business.

Patrick Zerarka
602-885-6115
[email protected]

Patrick...could you elaborate on the how many people stay with SIAA vs leaving? I'm sure it's an extremely small number who ever actually leave.