EF summer 08.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ...

The following letter is being reprinted for the Allstate Board of Directors
An Unedited Letter to Tom Wilson
August 13, 2007
Tom Wilson, CEO
Allstate Insurance Company
2775 Sanders Rd
Northbrook, IL 60062
Dear Mr. Wilson,
In June 2002, as a baby boomer, I considered the purchase
of my current book of business to be my last and my best career
choice. As I start my 6 th year as an Allstate agent, my usual
cheerful enthusiasm and bright outlook is dampened by Allstate’s
inflexible, unfair policies and its’ unilateral interpretation
of what is a business relationship with me, an exclusive agent. I
am not alone in this.
I am proud of my role and of my abilities as an agent. I take
very seriously my obligation to protect the interests of Allstate,
as I am serious about my obligations to serve Allstate’s and my
client’s needs. With the utmost confidence and integrity, I consider
myself to be the consummate agent. I believe that my efforts
must benefit Allstate, its clients and me, but Allstate lacks the
soul to reciprocate in this sentiment. I have experienced Allstate’s
corporate indifferences and have witnessed its sole interest in
benefiting itself at the expense of the agent and the client. “Let
them eat cake” is apropos.
Business people understand the need for policies. We all
know they are needed. Policies, like traffic controls, provide order
where none would exist. However, in a business relationship,
policies written to benefit only those who write them usurp the
relationship, resulting in business servitude. I hope this is not
Allstate’s corporate strategy or vision and neither do I advocate
carte blanche for agents.
My agency is in Silver City, NM, a small, rural, copper
mining dependent community recovering from several years of
depressed economic conditions. Growth opportunities come
from taking market share from the competition and from “big
city” retirees relocating into the community. Growth from the
local populace is difficult at best since local school enrollment
it still below what it was four years ago. Local schools continue
to lose state funding because of shrinking enrollment. In
the spring of 2006, there were two exclusive agents and one
independent agency.
The other exclusive agent, unable to sell his BOB, terminated
his Allstate contract and closed his office on Friday May
26, 2006 following a one-year effort to sell his 700+ policies
BOB. Even the Phoenix regional office assisted in the sales efforts,
without success.
I was the only qualified, able and willing buyer but because
of Allstate’s policy regarding ‘points’, I did not qualify, therefore
I could not buy – no discussion, no exception. I then became the
non-compensated service provider to the same 700+ policy book
of business I was told I could not buy. No concern was shown nor
expressed for either the disenfranchised policyholders or for me,
an overwhelmed Allstate exclusive agent. Allstate’s indifference
and unfairness to our clients and me is incomprehensible. I was
reminded, however, that under my Allstate contract, I was obligated
to provide service to any Allstate customer.
There was no notice of closure given to the 700+ policyholders
and on Monday May 29, 2006, angry customers inundated
my office demanding to know why they were not notified. It
became my unpleasant task to soothe confused and angry clients
demanding service and demanding to know who their
agent would be, as if I or they had a choice. In a small, rural
town, other than my agency, they have nowhere else to go, and
certainly not the independent agency. Not surprisingly, Allstate
clients seem to prefer the services rendered by exclusive agents.
In Silver City, the nearest Allstate exclusive agents are in Las
Cruces, NM, a 2-hour drive. My spirit was broken and my resources
overrun but Allstate’s ironclad policy remained intact.
The inequities do not end here; Allstate rolls up the policy,
knocks you down and then kicks you. Other than closing my
own doors in protest, there was nothing I could do. No one in
Allstate has the authority or responsibility to care or act if an
agent is drowning, unless of course, the agent happens to be
drowning out of compliance or is not meeting ‘expected results.’
And if an agent does not meet ‘expected results’, Allstate reacts
with an unmistakable, unmitigated force of action.
In matters such as mine, Allstate’s regional management has
little, if any, authority; or they elect to do nothing, or they simply
do not care. During my most agonizing periods, the only
helping hand that I had was Eladio Muniz, NM TDL. I believe
that he tried to minimize Allstate’s inequities and only the efforts
of Mr. Muniz personified Allstate. I further believe that
Mr. Muniz had to ‘rock the boat’ to get even minor concessions
Summer 2008 Exclusivefocus — 49