NAPAA - National Association of Professional Allstate Agents, Inc.

category. Together, our combined years of service is 85 years and so long as the requirements remain the same for acquiring an
agency, there will be few, if any, others of us willing or able to meet them. In other words, Allstate is fast becoming a lily-white
organization in my part of the country. I have not mentioned my actions to these agents, so this is not a civil-rights movement that
I am attempting to form. I will not be in a press conference with Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton singing “We shall overcome,” but
I can assure you that our treatment will make the rounds and that it will definitely have an impression on others who would think
of doing business with Allstate.
Tom, I know that the pressures of running this giant corporation are humongous and the plight of one or two people or even 50
or a 100, is the least of your problems, but let me remind you that these kinds of actions by our company have a tremendous affect
on the lives of individuals and I urge you to stop and consider that for one minute. Certainly, you have a minute to give. If you have
taken the time to read this, I thank you for doing so.
Sincerely,
Colin T. Bent
Allstate agent 76835
From: Scott A Mattingly
Sent: Tuesday, April 05, 2011 2:39 PM
To: twilson@allstate.com
Cc: eharvey@allstate.com; bwehrly@allstate.com
Subject: You asked how I felt.
Tom,
I did not want to break the chain of command, so I cc’d both the FSL and TSL. I wanted to keep it in the family. I wanted all
three of you to know that you could not have paid me enough to do what was done to me a week ago. I was working my last 48
hours (sold my agency) when I received a call from my FSL Bret Wehrly, to inform me that he and TSL Eric Harvey were in the
area and wished to stop by. Of course, nothing was mentioned about what was in store for me, but I knew it was not an “attaboy.”
After all, I was selling my “BOB,” and 6 months earlier, I had been warned (nothing official, nothing on paper, just a phone call)
that I had better be breaking some sales records or I was likely on the chopping block.
It did not matter that for the last 10 plus years, I had loss ratios in the 30s and 40s. It did not matter that I had the best ALI score
in the area (at least that’s what my FSL said). It did not matter that I had 97% persistency on over 300 life accounts. And it did not
even matter that my P&C retention was still above ERs, especially given that my customers had to endure 5 years of double-digit
rate increases that reduced my book from $2 million to $1.7 million. Rates were the only issue. All my managers for the last 10 years
acknowledged that they did not know why my territory was being punished. We had always been profitable, unlike the company
under its current management.
Bret had called and said he and Eric wanted to stop by; I just assumed that after 30 years with Allstate, it was a complimentary
good luck and good-bye. So after about 5 minutes of “how’s it going,” and “we wish you all the luck in the world,” and God Blessing
me several times, knowing all the while the agency was sold, Eric stated, “there is no easy way to do this, but I have to.” He
slid two pages stapled together across my desk and I saw the words “termination effective 07/01/2011.” The letter found its way to
the shredder without my reading it. At the split second of realizing what had just occurred, I just sort of sat there stunned, but not
really surprised, given this management’s true concern for agents. The bottom line is that they knew the agency was sold, the office
was already half moved to the new agent’s office and I was within 48 hours of walking off into an unsure future for a 55-year-old,
overweight person with very little hair and the fourth child still in college. Then, I was asked the $64,000 question by my FSL Bret.
His words exactly were, “how do you feel about all this.” I was admittedly stunned for a few seconds, then I responded the only way
I knew how. The question reminded me of the news story that opens showing a house burned to the ground and the newsperson
walks up, sticks a microphone in the person’s face, who is still in their PJs and disheveled hair, and asks “how do you feel” I said,
“Well, Bret, you’re looking at a fat, balding, 55-year-old man on three medications and a child still in college; it sucks! Other than
that, I guess I’m OK.” I really did not think it was a serious question, but it sure was, and now I guess I am really not surprised.
Now that I have had some time to ponder what’s occurred over the past 6 months. I wanted to share something with you. I know
Bret and Eric have heard me say this before, but I truly feel it deserves to be said again. After 30 years of my life given to Allstate, I
just wanted to reiterate that “I kept every promise that I ever made to Allstate, but Allstate broke every promise that it made to me.”
I truly worry about the agents and people who make up the everyday experience at Allstate. I know you will flee with your golden
parachute and I hope you receive all you truly deserve.
Regards,
Scott A Mattingly
Kentucky Location B42
Agent #064988
Summer 2011 Exclusivefocus — 19