Syrians, Asians, Middle Easterners, Hispanics...

[insurance1822]

I'm sure you can all relate, but I have a handful of ethnic clients who speak fluently. They all refer their friends & family like crazy, but they all tend to act as proxy's / liaisons for these people. I've made the decision today that unless it's their PARENTS...I tell them I NEED to speak directly with them before setting anything up.

Obviously, they don't speak English so that's not possible. But that being said, surely it's not OK to setup policies through somebody else acting as a liaison right? I mean even if I get signed apps, how do I even know it's the real people signing them? I feel bad, but it just seems like a problem waiting to happen.

It's not shady situations either where people live out of state etc. Not to mention, down the road I'll have people calling in for service who don't speak a lick of English.

 

[indienoise]

I would totally rely on carrier service centers for English second language clients. They typically have staff to cater to such clients.
For the ones who hardly speak english, I'll work with the family member If they have the insured's ID. That's actually not uncommon. It's hard to believe it's not legit when they've got The ID and all the essential info. Probably more secure than phone bound business, too.
The way I see it, if you don't cater to them, someone else will. And like you mention, they are absolute machines for referrals. I'm not in a position yet to be able to turn that opportunity away.
3 years in, I've not had loss issues or anything.