Alex Timm

The insurance industry in Illinois has been exceptionally strong for decades. Insurers have been attracted to Illinois for a wide range of reasons. A healthy and stable marketplace are the driving factors that draw insurers to the state. Legislation that will destabilize the marketplace and drive-up costs for consumers is not the answer. HB 4611 will have an adverse effect on senior citizens as the average senior will see an increase in their automobile rates by $303. Illinois consumers have benefited significantly from auto insurance rates in Illinois, as Illinois is ranked 31st in affordability while being the 7th largest state. Auto insurance rates in Illinois are 23% lower than the national average.  The best and most fair way to price policies is to use a wide variety of actuarially sound and predictive driving and non-driving rating variables. This leads to the most accurate pricing and assures that no single rating variable has a disproportionate impact on an individual’s premium. When insurers can accurately and responsibly underwrite and price policies, consumers benefit with lower rates overall, more choices, and greater market and price stability, which we have seen in Illinois for years. We urge you to proactively contact your local legislators to Vote NO on HB 4611 and any legislation restricting the use of actuarially sound underwriting practices.

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What's your company's GLP-1 strategy? Insurers are removing coverage, and roughly 60% of self-insured employers don't cover them. They help people with #diabetes - but at a cost of $12k to $15k / year. Need help? We have #realworld solutions cutting that cost in half. #workingsmarter #ssgmi #pbm #glp1problems #benefitspend #benefits #benefitbroker https://lnkd.in/eQw4ZQyQ

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It's no coincidence that #BlackFriday Chicago will be hosted at the historic Wrigley Field. Just as underrepresented communities have shaped the #insuranceindustry, they've also played a significant role in the growth and development of baseball as America's favorite pastime. Baseball's journey began officially in 1846 with the first game played in Hoboken, New Jersey. However, it wasn't until over a century later that the presence and impact of Asian Americans in the sport were formally documented. In 1956, Bobby Balcena, a Filipino American, became the first Asian American to play in the league. Balcena's entry into Major League Baseball (MLB) marked the continuation of an important shift in the public mindset that gained momentum when Jackie Robinson broke MLB’s color barrier on April 15, 1942: the realization that anyone, regardless of their heritage, could play at the highest level. Many may not realize that baseball has long been a beloved pastime for Japanese Americans, dating back to the first-generation Issei immigrants. For them, baseball served as a means to integrate into their new communities and stay connected with other immigrants. As early as the 1920s, leagues composed of Japanese immigrant players emerged in the western United States. One of the most notable issei players was Kenichi Zenimura, The Father of Japanese American Baseball. Zenimura, born in Hiroshima, Japan, was a pioneer in the development of Japanese American baseball. He was key in organizing leagues, games, and even barnstorming tours of Japan, including the Philadelphia Royal Black Giants’ (Negro League) tour of Japan in 1927 and Babe Ruth’s tour of the country in 1934. In recognition of #May as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, it's important to acknowledge the legacy of Asian Americans in "America’s Pastime" and other aspects of American society, including the #insuranceindustry. Asian Americans constitute 7% of the United States’ population, with 24 million of them among the 334 million Americans. But only represent 1.3% of insurance agency owners based on the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America's Agency Universe Study. As the demographics of our society continue to shift we must equip our Agents and Agency Owners of Color with the tools and resources to respond. That is why The Black Friday Network and Ako Insurance Consulting, LLC are proud to partner with the Asian American Insurance Network (AAIN) and the NAAIA Chicago Chapter to host #BlackFriday Chicago! If you are an Agent or Agency Owner of Color join us in less than two weeks for networking, carrier appointments, and so much more! Registration Link below: https://lnkd.in/eYQb3nCu 📆: Friday, May 10, 2024 🕘: 9:00 am TO 5:30 pm EST 📍: Wrigley Field, 1101 W Waveland Ave F2, Chicago, IL 60613 #insurance #BlackFriday #insuranceindustry #insuranceprofessionals #agentsofcolor #insuranceagent #AAIN #AAPI #equitableopportunities #americaspasttime #baseball

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Despite the potential for severe damage, only 22% of homeowners surveyed by Munich Re US and the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) believe they are at risk of flooding. Check out the latest Insurance Business America article hear from Tim Brockett about the critical gap between perceived and actual flood risk among US homeowners: https://ow.ly/pQCv50SqV7e #MunichReUS #FloodRisk

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Joshua Motta had some interesting insight on a post I made about unlimited reinstatement of limits. I wanted to share something really cool that we're able to do with Coalition, Inc. that solves a huge pain point for insureds. Coalition is one of the only markets that frequently writes $500k sublimits for funds transfer fraud cover when requested. $500k is a lot better than $250k in most cyber policies, but insureds often want even more, especially if they pay very large invoices. Here's what we're able to do with Coalition that allows insureds to get seamless access to $1.5M in funds transfer fraud coverage with Coalition: We quote the cyber policy with Coalition with two special requests. First, we request the $500k funds transfer fraud sublimit. Second, we request a primary non-contributory endorsement. This endorsement prevents us from running into other insurance challenges. Once we have the cyber quote with those two endorsements, we go to Coalition's executive risk team and quote stand alone Crime. We either strip the crime policy completely down to funds transfer fraud for a reduced premium or the insured just purchases the stand alone Crime as is if that's what they'd do anyways. We get a quote with the stand alone Crime at a $1m limit with a $500k retention. The language in the crime policy does not specify where losses have to come from in order to satisfy the self insured retention. As long as the funds transfer fraud loss meets both the cyber policy's definition of funds transfer fraud loss as well as the Crime's definition of funds transfer fraud loss then it's a covered claim on both policies AND the losses paid out by the cyber policy (siting primary) will satisfy the Crime's SIR. You read that right... If you had a covered $1.5m funds transfer loss this is what would happen: 1. The insured would satisfy their cyber policy SIR. 2. The cyber policy would pay out $500k. 3. The Crime policy would have its SIR satisfied by step 1 and 2 and cover the remaining losses up to $1m. With FTF frequency and severity at scary highs, this is the kind of solution that wins accounts! Shout out to Travis Kroger for being the brains behind this.

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Since when did health insurance companies received thier “MD’s”? This is a long article but a fascinating read. We wonder why healthcare costs continue to escalate and premiums are unaffordable? Well, when you have insurance companies being able to add diagnosis’s and conditions to a members healthcare record which allows them to receive more money for treatment - oh and by the way these members don’t have these illnesses…rocket science not needed here! While this seems like its a “Medicare” problem - it’s happening everywhere. In your commercial and group health plan too. Providers trying to charge patients for negotiated discounts, millions of dollars in fake billings, pharmacy rebates being used to increase insurance company profits versus going back to the companies footing these bills or the patients using the drugs. Insurance companies and the organizations that own physician groups and hospitals have figured out how to game the system to increase profits - not deliver better health outcomes. I do believe that there are a lot of great professionals in the medical field that honestly want to improve the lives of people that they treat - they unfortunately now mostly work for companies that don’t really care much about that.

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2023 has been a tough year for a lot of US-based insurers, especially those in the Homeowners space. InsurTech Hippo was no different in this regard, and President & CEO Rick McCathron and I dug into what drove that for the industry and for Hippo specifically at InsurTech Insights USA 2024. But he didn’t stop there. We talked about the shifting dynamics in the market, and how insurers should be thinking about product, CX and making proactive decisions to deliver a better customer experience and results. Catch Rick in Season 6, Episode 5 of The Future of Insurance at https://lnkd.in/estXy8NS #futureofinsurance #insurtech #insurance #podcast

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But some insurers are friendlier than others ... Brooke Masters' interesting piece in the FT today cites a number of large insurance companies that are seeking to build stronger customer relationships through "predict and prevent" interactions, powered by technology, to minimize losses. However it is often not the large carriers that are making the running in this space, but MGAs and MGUs. Exhibit A is the cyber market. Lexicon Associates' report, The MGA Revolution, has chapter and verse.

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Lessons from 50+ (prospective) client calls the past 90 days: These calls were nearly all with regional and mutual insurance companies. Our ideal customers. Mostly in the Midwest and Southeast. Not close to any financial hub, so their access to the top tier brokers is limited. We spoke to: ➝ CFOs ➝ GCs and legal pros ➝ And the random woman in Illinois that joked about her responsibilities buying the insurance They all mentioned“surface level,” challenges. Their comments and concerns… “Not sure my broker really understands us, our risks or our company’s culture.” “Not 100% sure we have the right coverage.” “If we have a claim will the coverage work like it’s supposed to?” “When we have a claim, are the insurance companies going to partner with us or “will it be a dog fight,” said the woman in Illinois. Summary of our analysis: We used Otter.ai to sort through the transcripts and summarize their main concerns. The summary reminded us to listen to clients. (the way they describe these things, their words) Most importantly, it was a reminder of the fundamental needs of clients. We’re all guilty of trying to be the smartest person. When all our clients really want to know is: ➝ Do yall understand me? ➝ Am I lbuying the right dern thing? ➝ And do you promise to help me not look like an a$$ internally if this stuff doesn’t work! …If any of this sounds familiar, here are three ways we can help you: 1. Schedule a 1:1 call - learn about our white glove service 2. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter - 5 min hot takes on global insurance events 3. Like + comment “blueprint” - get a FREE 5-day D&O email course on coverage gaps / safeguarding your personal assets   Or follow Mark Flippen for more exclusive content…

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Four in 10 adults in the United States have medical debt, highlighting the pressing issue of healthcare affordability. Last Wednesday, the Ohio Senate took a step towards transparency by passing a bill mandating hospitals to publish the cost of their services for public access. If it takes a bill to be passed to require posting your prices, it suggests you don't want anyone to see them. Every hospital, urgent care, surgical center, etc., should be required to post their pricing on their website in a downloadable PDF. Why wouldn’t you? Do you order a steak without knowing the price? Do you buy a car without knowing the price? Do you buy a home without knowing the price? Every single item we own came with a transparent price tag. So, why is medical pricing so secretive? Because they want to charge you as much as they can get away with! Don't let them raise your premiums. Stop the unbundling, upcoding, and phantom charges, and put that money back into your employees' pockets! us-beacon.com Read more about this initiative here: https://lnkd.in/gw8QbxpQ

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In response to comments from Evan Greenberg from ITC about how InsurTechs are hype, Sean Harper, Co-Founder of Kin, cautions that we can’t just ignore the real issues that need solving in legacy insurers, like technical debt that holds these companies back from efficiency, customer experience gains and new ideas. We all need to have a more open mind to the pros of the other side rather than writing anyone off as hype. Watch the clip at https://lnkd.in/eznWWf2Y and catch the full episode at https://lnkd.in/eT8jGAaF #futureofinsurance #insurtech #insurance #podcast

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First principles thinking has given me more joy and gotten me into more mischief than anything else, really. Insurance organizations and insurtech entities, let's shake up the recruiting and hiring model. I welcome the opportunity to collaborate in new ways to deliver you the best strategic hiring solution for your particular need. Let’s do this together. BEST Search Inc. #insurancerecruiting #insurancetalent #insurtech #recruiting #strategichiring #GoodRecruitingChangesLives

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Very useful information/ guide for Life and health claims professionals.

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Creating new benefits tech is becoming a race against time. With each passing month, the difference between a mature technology solution and an in-house side project can separate winners from losers in the market. In most benefit finalist meetings, employers ask competing brokers to showcase technology that can help the employer make better decisions. We know because we are in these meetings. In many instances, technology ends up being the key tangible difference employers lean on to make their decision. While brokers almost universally claim to have technology, it is often a solution that is being developed in-house in some state of "partially built" and not integrated at all. Employers clearly see the difference. If you’ve been toiling away building your own platform, it's time to try something new. . . #EmployeeBenefits #InsuranceTech #BrokerageSolutions #DataAnalytics #BusinessGrowth #DigitalTransformation #TechInnovation #BrokerageTech #FinTech

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