photo credit: Care_SMC

After the seventh phone call Missy was about to give up. It was evident that

Mrs. C was suffering from memory loss and the phone calls kept coming.

Missy LeQuire, head of personal lines and a twenty year employee, had

called that morning in January to let our customer know that her homeowner

policy would cancel the next day. She knew that Mrs. C was a long time

customer, but not until she looked back in file that day did she realize that

she was 99 years old and had been a customer for over 30 years.

We had no contact information about other relations. Missy knew

that if the policy cancelled it would difficult for a ninety nine year old

to obtain a homeowners policy. Missy made the decision

to pay the $250.00 on line and worry about the payment later.

After much discussion with our insured Missy went out to the

insured’s home and collected the premium. Since January she

has returned to collect two additional premiums.

Forward four months to April and the massive hail storm that

hit Knoxville. Mrs. C called and said that someone had told her

she might have hail damage. The claim was turned in to Hartford

Insurance Company. With the thousands of claims that the companies were

handling we were concerned that this claim would be put aside after their

contact with the insured.

Several days later Hartford claim adjustor Pat Farster called the office and

said that she had been in touch with Mrs. C. She felt that under the

circumstances that it would be best that Hartford handle this claim

differently. So Hartford has hired a contractor and will replace the roof

without the insured having to be bothered with the contracting process.

Thank you Pat for evaluating the situation and making the professional

call.

This is who we are: An Independent Insurance Agency locally own

and operated by local professionals for 65 years who have a stake and love

of our community and people. It is not always about the Money.

GREAT JOB MIS AND PAT

Hail from 04/27/2011 Tornado and Hail Storm

As storm one ripped through Knoxville, TN my family and I braced for what sounded like a freight train coming through our house.  We were fortunate enough to be one of those with power and thanks to Todd Howell at wbir and the good ol’ Doppler readings we were able to target and plan to take cover if needed.  The real time Doppler forecast predicted the golf ball hail immediately and the skies opened up to produce a blanket of hail at least an inch deep on our deck.  My 3 year old daughter startled, scared, and curious said to my wife and me “Is that the tomato?”  Laughing, I reached down to hug her and say no its ice falling from the sky and everything is fine.  With power still in tact, the storm passed….and I became aware of what tomorrow would hold.  Through the entire night from 5:30 till 2 am I had facebook and twitter open; when I returned to my laptop; I decided it was time to assess the damage.  As I read the tweets and constant flourish of updates, I realized the social media component would serve as my tool to help John Bailey Company clients and others to get started with their claims and help answer questions.  So I started at 8:38 pm during the storms.

Within a few minutes I had folks messaging, texting, calling, tweeting, and emailing me.  Watching the Doppler I felt comfortable starting the claims process for them.  In what seemed to be the second wave of hail, we again took cover as round 2 of hail and heavy tornadoes began.  This time it was stronger and to be honest I was concerned a tornado would approach. We took cover in the closet with my wife, my daughter, a laptop, and 2 cell phones with Twitter/Facebook Apps, and the TV as loud as possible.  My wife was worried that we would lose power and not know what was going on…then I remembered through AT&T Uverse we had a battery pack that would keep our laptop power and internet signal if power was lost.  Within minutes, the TV turned off, the lights went out and we lost power.  From there we reviewed WBIR and WVLT online, as well as facebook, and twitter on our phones.  Getting updates by the second, the noise became worse as the hail pounded and shook the roof.  As the storm passed, we became worried as our cell phones would not pick up a signal and would not dial out….but don’t forget we had facebook and twitter.  Using those social media tools, we were able to check on loved ones by checking their updates.  Again I started to collect claim info and work into the night using AMS360, a Vertafore insurance agency management system.  Ten minutes later power was restored and the storm seemed to calm.  From there moving forward the 3^rd hail/tornado storm lost its steam..at least in my neighborhood and I continued to work into the night monitoring, noting, and preparing for the home, auto, and commercial insurance claims process the next day.

Because of the social media component our agency was able to service our clients, getting a few of them in early the next morning to have windshield repairs to cars that would otherwise have owners who would be without transportation.  It also allowed for us to find out which homes needed immediate cleanup and restoration; as well as organize the claims process early and be ready to run a smooth ship in the morning.  One of my facebook post asked if power and Comcast internet was running smooth at our office location.  It was confirmed within 1 minute that it was working, and that was a big help because if it had not, then we may need a few laptops and internet access..maybe a satellite office.  That night we had 11 car claims, and I think around 8 to 9 home claims.  The next morning, we started answering the phones at 7:30 and had 150 claims turned in by noon.  I lost track after that but currently we have around 500 claims.

The social community in Knoxville, TN excites me, because they are just so helpful.  I received a text from a friend, who had a colleague with several inches of flood damage. I decided to post on facebook asking if a friend could borrow a generator to pump water out of a basement.  Two local businesses Misty River Campground and Event Rentals by Rothchild offered to help, but we were a few minutes late; as they had found a solution.  You could say that this time social media failed, but the reality was the size of the generators and manpower/truck needed to move the machines hindered our success. If only I had a truck…

In the days that followed, I had a few people contact me via direct message on twitter, one of these people was a friend of mine that needed some advice on how to handle an adjustor visit.  Twitter also allowed me to retweet information about our insurance companies, possible roofers and dent repair folks located in the Knoxville area, and other insurance pointers.

I was so impressed with the use of Twitter by @TRV_Insurance @TheHartford these guys helped my agency with a few issues and efficiencies in the claims process….as I had questions about the most efficient way to submit different types of catastrophic claims. I also received a phone call from one Hartford’s Southeastern Head Catastrophic managers.  She said they were monitoring twitter and asked if we needed anything.  With all of this information at our fingertips, and real time contact to our clients…there was no way I was shutting down facebook and twitter; I left it on all day.  The constant source of up to date information and communication was extremely beneficial to our agency.

The independent insurance agency model really came together with all of the new social media components.  Furthermore, we had companies coming in our office and checking in to see how they could help.  Safeco offered to bring us lunch and even bring some people to answer phones.  State Auto Insurance Company and Central Insurance Companies were in our office that morning and Auto Owners called to ask us how our families were and what they could do to help.

Our agency focuses on clients who want to succeed, we want to help our client achieve their goals;  social media is our new tool, and I think we truly understand it now.  As claims continue to come in, it is apparent to our agency that personal communication with your insurance agent is the number one reason to select an independent insurance agency.  These days personal communication seems to represent different things.  It’s not about just phone calls anymore; it’s about accessibility, being helpful, and being yourself…

Slay it!

Email me:  brandon@johnbaileyco.com

photo credit: turbona

Whitewater rafting season is approaching and many rafters in the Smokies are gearing up for a great year.  In turn, so are we.  Our Knoxville insurance agency has a unique rafting insurance program for Tennessee and North Carolina rafting companies.

Contact us here to see if your business qualifies for our specialized whitewater program.

photo credit: Micky.!

Cyber threats have definitely been making headlines in the news lately, here is the latest about The company who owns the Nasdaq Stock Market.

An attack can cripple a business, there are several cyber liability insurance companies out there.  To find out more about the coverages, contact us here.

photo credit: AnnieGreenSprings

Check out this story on someone attempting to take out disability benefits.

photo credit: chrisleishman

Just called and caught up with one of our RV Park owners out of East Tennessee. I hadn’t had the chance to talk to him in about 6 months as both of us have been busy. He caught me up on his family and how things have been going for the holidays. Its a pleasure & blessing working with RV Park Insurance so I can get the chance to have a friendship with these business owners which extends beyond agent/client.

photo credit: AnthonyMendezVO

Heard of product liability insurance all you creative minds out there? Basically the gist of it is this: if you invent/create a product that goes out on the open market, you need coverage in the event it malfunctions and there is a lawsuit involved. Our Knoxville, TN based insurance agency can provide this coverage across the country.

Products can be all kinds of different varieties. Medical devices, athletic equipment, etc.