NAPAA - National Association of Professional Allstate Agents, Inc.

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I’m so busy trying to make money as an Allstate EFS, I don’t have time to write a lengthy letter, but I wanted to thank you for the last “Observations and Opinions” article written by “the Andy Rooney of NAPAA.” His points were well-stated, well-balanced and reinforce what I’ve been hearing here in the NW Region. I would like to suggest that his next article cover the asinine compensation of Tom Wilson and his henchmen. I think there is a lot of material available he could research, such as the Forbes list of CEO compensation. There is a feeling here in the field that Mr. Wilson is out of touch with the hard-working rank and file. . . . . . . . . . . . . . In the new, reinvented world of Tom Wilson, where employees and customers bring up the rear on his priority list, we see he has succeeded in transforming Allstate New Jersey into his own image. The New Jersey company was #1 or #2 in the number of vehicles insured for years, but under his stewardship it has dropped to #3 and is sinking fast. I’ll give him credit for one thing, though; of the top five writers of car insurance, Allstate is now #1 in insurance department complaints – and not just by a little. To date, Allstate is all alone out in front of the pack with 44 complaints; the sum total of the other four companies combined is just 31. Why Because the company reached into its bag of really dirty tricks and found a New Jersey statute that allows a company to cancel a policy if a customer doesn’t answer a renewal questionnaire regarding usage of the vehicles, annual mileage, etc. One might ask why a company would want to get rid of loyal, 30, 40 and 50 year customers. Well, as we all know, as drivers grow older, their concentration and coordination deteriorates, as does their reaction time. Hence, they are much more likely to get into an accident. But why would a fine, upstanding company like Allstate want to cancel customers who have had relatively few claims and who have never been insured by any other letters to NAPAA company Or why would drivers with low liability limits and one car suddenly be considered undesirable risks Or why should late-payers, whose financial fortunes may have changed in this down economy, also be exterminated Oops, does this sound like Nazi Germany It’s clear that Tom Wilson and company want customer loyalty, but have no intention of giving their customers any loyalty in return. Instead, they use underhanded methods to rid the company of its most loyal customers, especially those in the old Allstate company who have guaranteed renewable policies. But now we have seen their plan backfire because too many people actually answered the questionnaire, which means the company wasn’t meeting its “expected results” (note the terminology). What should a fine, upstanding company do to make sure it gets what it wants Well, it just decides that if the agent does not verify that he/she has actually received the questionnaire and documented it in the policy notes, it is considered never received, allowing Allstate New Jersey to continue the loyal policyholder extermination process. Yes, a company must look to insure and retain the best risks possible so it is able to earn a profit and maintain competitive rates. But in an industry where reputation is of paramount importance, it is critical to use ethics and discretion when implementing programs that adversely affect large numbers of policyholders. This was not done in New Jersey and word is spreading. But then this is the new, reinvented world of Tom Wilson, where only a selfserving few determine the fate of our policyholders and where there are no more senior managers chosen from within the company. Instead, he chooses to go outside the company to find like-minded managers whose loyalty and obedience to the Führer (Wilson) are a prerequisite for a top management position. P.S.: Why can’t our fearless Führer meet his Expected Results And how come he’s managed to earn $20.26 million over the past 4 years with subpar results . . . . . . . . . . . . . The best way to win our battle to survive is to cut off the flow of new agents. I started my insurance career in 1983 with Combined Insurance selling accident policies business-to-business. The agent turnover rate was around 120%, so each year we had to hire five agents to replace the four we started with. The difference between Combined Insurance then and Allstate now is that Combined did not expect you to invest your life savings with them before you washed out. With them, you gave it your best shot and if it worked out, great, if not, you did something else. I have no idea what the 5-year survival rate is in my state for new Allstate agents. The company doesn’t exactly make it easy to find out, but I have heard the fail rate for scratch agencies may be as high as 90%. The bottom line is that current Allstate leadership is not going to have some miraculous ethical epiphany that stops their unconscionable propensity to pick the pockets of unsuspecting rookies, and then throw them back on the street after sucking every last nickel from them. In my opinion, the focal point of NAPAA’s message is misplaced. No new agent starting in 2011 expects to be sitting on a book that they service and not have to write new business. So instead of selling that message, we should concentrate on getting out the word on how unlikely it is that new agents will succeed. If any franchise had a wash out rate as high as Allstate, nobody would buy in. It is only when Allstate can no longer find new recruits due to their punitive, unilateral dealings with their agency force, that will they be forced to change . . . . . . . . . . . . . We are so lucky and fortunate to have Jim and Nancy Fish to rely on to give us the real facts and information we need to conduct our business. I recently re- 10 — Exclusivefocus Summer 2011
letters to NAPAA tired and sold my agency. I called Nancy and explained the problems I was facing. She advised me about the pitfalls I might incur. I thought I had a reputable buyer and a trustworthy Sales Leader who would help me facilitate the sale. Boy, was I wrong on both counts. The Sales Leader “interviewed” each buyer candidate to “evaluate” them. In every case, the Sales Leader ruined my sale by advising them that they could become an Allstate agent without buying a book of business because the company would give them 749 policies at no cost. Well, I finally found a buyer who ignored the Sales Leader and he gave me an acceptable offer. I hired an attorney and we used the buyer’s contract with some modifications and the sale was consummated. The buyer gave me a substantial down payment and I agreed to hold a note on the rest, the payments for which I would get at certain intervals. But the buyer must have listened to advice from the Sales Leader or someone else within the company and he decided not to pay me the full amount. Legal battles ensued, money was spent, time elapsed, and lawsuits were filed. Needless to say, I was confounded and crestfallen. Enter Nancy Fish. She asked for some documents pertaining to the sale and reviewed them. She was unbelievably helpful. She analyzed the contract, the counter offer, and the other documents. She explained to my attorney what was really going on and how to analyze the Allstate reports and information. Nancy was instrumental in helping me and my attorney move forward in this predicament. The final chapter is far from written, but without her help, I would feel totally lost in trying to get a fair and reasonable settlement. I feel pretty good right now and I’m glad I am a NAPAA member; it is the best asset and resource that Allstate agents have. One thing is for certain, Allstate management is not looking out for you. They only care about themselves, their bonuses, and their careers. Jim and Nancy Fish really do care about the agents. Support the work they do by joining NAPAA. Remember, it is your agency and you need to do everything you can to protect it. Anonymously, A very retired and happy former Allstate agent . . . . . . . . . . . . . You guys are what I call “A Spotlight Duet at Carnegie Hall.” You both belong in the NAPAA Hall of Fame! By the way, I sent my 4th letter to the Allstate Board of Directors, pleading with them to “retire” Tom Wilson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . I have only been an Allstate agent for 20 months. My RFG was 8.9 in 2010. Early this year, I got a call from HR saying I needed to meet with corporate security. They asked me about some policies I rewrote from one company to another (APC to AFCIC) and line 19 to line 10. I was told that I did not process them correctly. Well, on April 28th I was visited by my TSL and received a termination letter for improperly processing policies. The termination was effective immediately. They told me that I would not get paid for 90 days and that my TPP would not start until September. Can this be right NAPAA response: When Allstate terminates an agent for “cause”, they generally close your office immediately and you have 90 days to try to sell your agency, or you can elect to receive the TPP. Because you are closed, you will not receive commissions for that 90-day period. You will receive one final commission payment on the regular May payday; this is for business written and renewed through April 28. If you elect to accept the TPP, you may do so right away and the TPP payments will be calculated as of April 30 and will begin in June. If you try to sell, you will get nothing more from Allstate, unless you are unable to sell and at the end of 90 days elect the TPP, which would begin in August. By the way, if you wish to use NAPAA as a resource for additional consultation, you will need to become a member. . . . . . . . . . . . . . I have sold my agency so you can remove my “for sale” listing. I sold to an agent who has been around for about 5 years and has bought several other agencies. I will be working for him during the transition period and maybe longer. I will continue to be a member so I can keep up with all the latest news and the Letters to NAPAA, which I always enjoy reading in DirectExpress each Wednesday. . . . . . . . . . . . . . After 31 years with the company, I sold my agency. You guessed it right; I was one of the “targeted agents,” even after doing $68,000 in AFS in 2010. In fact, management congratulated me on my outstanding performance… you know the drill. But it’s not going to end here because I’m contacting the attorney in Pennsylvania who is suing Allstate for the “hostile takeover” of an Allstate agency. I was in management before buying an agency 11 years ago. I earned many awards as a manager and as an agent… you guys know how it goes. I appreciate all that NAPAA does for the agency force. WE need you guys.... and I mean “WE,” even though I have sold my agency. Thanks also for the kind words about NAPAA. And good luck with the PA attorney. We hope that she has discovered a new and valid cause of action for the harm this company has caused so many people. Keep us posted. . . . . . . . . . . . . . I picked up a recent issue of Scientific American’s Mind magazine and read an article about American psychiatrist Douglas M. Kelley and the captured World War II Nazi, Hermann Goering. Kelley in- Summer 2011 Exclusivefocus — 11
Page 1 and 2: Exclusivefocus Summer 2011 An Offic
Page 3 and 4: L APPROVAL We’re lending to Allst
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NAPAA - National Association of Professional Allstate Agents, Inc.

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