Asbestos, and Metal, and Unprotected....OH MY!!

You see the oddest things walking the streets of New York City. Two weeks ago, I found myself in NYC for a few days. In theory, we were there to watch the Yankees beat up the Red Sox. My wife is a huge fan. Sure, I was there for the baseball, but also for the food and the people-watching, which is always spectacular there. Have you ever watched a dog walker untangling himself and eight dogs from a street sign on a busy sidewalk, with a doorman telling him to move along from the front of the building? It is something to behold. After lunch, we took a walk through Central Park West while I enjoyed a nice cigar. Sitting on a bench for a while, soaking in the sunshine in the patch of nature amongst the tall buildings and traffic, we counted all the blue, red, pink, and orange hair walking by. It was fun. Watching people walking and texting on their phones added excitement, waiting for one of them to walk into another person, tree, or bench. As we emerged from the park, I stopped to buy a Dr. Pepper from a street cart vendor. He got rather annoyed when I said, "You joking? Five bucks for a soda?" He barked, "YEAH... do ya wan' it?" I thought, "If you're going to bend me over, shouldn't I at least get a kiss?" This got me thinking about how crazy expensive everything is these days, including insurance. I did a quick check recently and found that there were over 115 double-digit rate increases averaging 19.8% filed for 2023. There have been another 162 double-digit rate increases averaging 19.2% filed for 2024, many of which were from the same companies that filed those 2023 rate increases. That averages to an increase of 43% in two years. Ouch! That hurts! Where's the kiss for you and your customers? I can't imagine how much frustration your customers are facing with these price increases. Sadly, I'm sure a lot of their frustration is taken out on you. You and your team are working harder than ever to help your frustrated or angry customers… searching for a lower price, a lower deductible, or coverage at all. While you may not be feeling the love from your other carriers, we would like to send some your way. We THANK YOU very much! We really appreciate all your efforts. We've been truly lucky. Our strategy of picking our spots and sticking to it has worked well. We have NOT increased our rates in a couple of years, while we are growing nicely, thanks to our agency partners' support. While agents in the greater DFW and Harris County areas don't appreciate our strategy of renters-only in those areas, it has allowed us to be profitable in the rest of the state, where we do write all of our products. So, we continue to stick with our plan with those agents who brought us to the dance. We hope that we are able to help you and your team with your customers' needs. We strive to provide you with great, friendly, and prompt service. We are here to help you succeed. Please feel free to contact anyone on our team with any questions or issues that you may have. You can reach underwriting at 512-494-4161… Matt ext. 12, Ramy ext. 16, and Operations… Debra ext. 10. Again, we thank you for all the hard work that you do. We hope that we can be of help to you and your team!

You must love older houses as much as we do! Why? Because, 1972 was the average age of the houses that we wrote new in December making December 2022 our biggest new business December since 2015! Since the average age of the houses last month was 50, we are taking that as proof that 50 is the new 20. Just saying it makes me feel younger! So, a Big Thank You for helping us end the year in a great way!! With fewer markets writing older homes and everyone (except us) raising rates, we reminded you last month that we love to write older, smaller, in town, or rural homes and dwellings. And boy oh boy, you all crushed it by writing a whole bunch of them! Heck, December was also our biggest over all new business month since September of 2017. We write all ages of homes, rental dwellings, and mobile homes. We write a lot of homes in large cities and towns, but we also have a large chunk of our book in small towns, and very rural areas around the state. We use AAIS fire protection codes, not ISO, because AAIS puts more emphasis on the distance to a fire hydrant and the fire station (regardless of volunteer or paid). This often helps lower the sometimes large difference for properties out of town, or in smaller towns vs those in larger towns. Here is summary information of the new policies that we wrote in December.

My doctor knows that I am in the insurance business. This can be a bad thing. So, the normal displeasure of visiting a doctor was added to by his ranting about how lousy his insurance company was. It turns out that he had a major power surge at his house which blew out most of his electronics. Plus, being a gadget guy, he has a "SMART" house with electronics controlling cameras, lights, windows, doors, appliances, toilets and other such silliness. He thought that his insurance company was lousy because they told him that power surges were NOT covered. They were denying his claim. Although I was born at night, I wasn't born last night. So, I decided it would be best to wait for him to take off the rubber glove before telling him the unfortunate truth. Sorry Doc, I said. Most insurance policies don't cover damage caused by a power surge. However, if you had Personal Equipment Breakdown coverage, it would be covered. With power surges being the number one cause of appliance failure, and fluctuating power grid issues plaguing Texas, this is great coverage that you should have. I explained that we automatically include Personal Equipment Breakdown coverage in all of our homeowners, dwelling, and mobile home policies. Coverage is provided for insureds' appliances and equipment such as air conditioners, stoves, microwave ovens, refrigerators, washers, dryers, televisions, computers, water heaters, riding mowers, well pumps, pool filter pumps, and even those fancy self flushing toilets of yours. Personal Equipment Breakdown covers appliances and equipment when a power surge fries them, or they suffer a mechanical issue such as seizing and ruptures. With a tear in his eye, he asked if we could insure his house. I politely tucked in my shirt and said, sorry Doc, but we write mostly smaller older homes, rental properties, and mobile homes. Plus, we only write through independent agencies, but I can get you in touch with a good agent who can help. So, the moral of the story is that standard insurance policies rarely provide coverage for these events and most insureds are stuck with large repair bills. A burnt out well pump could cost $2,000 to repair. A seized air conditioner compressor could cost another $2,500 to fix. Fortunately, we have automatically added Personal Equipment Breakdown coverage that provides up to $100,000 in coverage with a low $500 deductible to all of our homeowners, dwelling, and mobile home policies. Personal equipment breakdown is a coverage enhancement that your clients will really appreciate when the inevitable appliance failure happens. Don't leave your customer crying like my doctor. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions. Thank you for your support!

As Jimmy Buffett says "Math Suks", but it is an unavoidable challenge for every insurance agent. Today's math problem is that inflation has hit the cost of materials and labor per square foot of construction hard which equals higher limits needed for your clients' homes, rental houses, and mobile homes. Help is Here! Effective today, we are INCREASING our limits for Homeowners, Dwellings, and Mobile Homes as follows. Homeowners (including HOA) can now be written with Section A limits up to $550,000. Dwellings (including TDP1) can now be written with Section A limits up to $400,000. Mobile Homes can now be written with Section A limits up to $150,000. Every day, I see us decline quotes because one of our agents need an HOA on a $400,000 house or TDP1 on $360,000 rental house, or a $130,000 mobile home. So, we are happy to be able to offer higher limits to help you provide the limits that your clients need. Plus, we still automatically include personal equipment breakdown in all of these products. So, while our competitors are raising rates, reducing commissions, cutting back on eligibility, and generally making your life more difficult, we are trying to make it even easier to work with us. We have more product improvements coming soon to help you in this very hard insurance market. So, keep an eye out for more emails from us. If you haven't quoted us in a while, please give us a try. It is quick and easy to quote and bind a policy with us. If you have any questions or need any help, please reach out to us at (512) 494-4164 or through our Contact Page .

I heard from my old agent friend Joe today. He said Rob, I haven't seen the market this bad in a long time, maybe never this bad. We are having to shop every renewal, and I'm down in the dumps. Joe's comments made me think of Roxie. I'm lucky to have a friend like Roxie. When I get down, she will offer me encouragement in the way that only the young can do. The young know that it will be fun again soon, bad times don't last forever, and the cookie is never too far down the road. So I said, Joe, you and I have seen this crap many times before, and it always turns. We're definitely in some very tough times. However, even in this market, we are working on a bunch of changes to our products to lower the prices, and expand our eligibilities. We'll be announcing these very soon. Listen Buddy, I know that you can't remember what you had for breakfast, but don't forget all the things that we already offer to help you sell our policies. We offer a multi-policy discount...I was about to get on a roll when Joe interrupted..... Now wait, you don't write auto. So, how does your multi-policy discount work? Your customer just needs to have another policy with your agency, I said. It doesn't need to be a policy with us to qualify. Don't tell me that you don't have another policy for most of your customers somewhere in your agency. Just remember to answer Yes to the Multi-Policy Discount Applies question towards the end of the quote. I continued.....not only do we NOT run credit scores but..... We are fine if your customer has had a lapse in coverage. We don't do those silly satellite inspections that don't tell much about the risk. We don't penalize for volunteer fire departments and..... We write protection classes 8, 9, and 10 all day long. We cross sell all of our clients, and hit on most of them, Joe said. I'll make sure to tell my folks to remember those points and the multi-policy discount. Thanks buddy, let's grab a beer next week...and he hung up. I sat back happy to catch up with my old buddy. You were right Roxie, I said. When we get those new changes programmed, we are going to make a lot of people happy. I lit my cigar, picked up her ball, and gave it throw. Off she ran wagging her tail jumping in excitement to bring it back to me for another throw. Oh! I forgot to tell you. Here's a picture of Roxie, our 10 month old Boykin Spaniel. She's a kick and wise for her age.

Texas hailstorms and cheap insurance policies are a very bad combination. Since so many companies apparently forgot this historically bad combo, we are in the midst of a very hard and strange insurance market where cheap insurance is a scarce commodity these days. To quote Bob Dylan, "The Times They are A-Changin'". We've seen most companies dramatically raising rates, increasing deductibles, and cutting back on various exposures. Some stopped writing new business, cut commissions, are cancelling agents, and even leaving the state. I never thought that I would see the two regional superheroes of Texas have to stop writing new business. That is truly a sign that the insurance market in Texas is in a world of hurt. We can help during this crazy tough insurance market. We love to write older, or smaller, or in town, or rural homes and dwellings. We write all ages of homes, rental dwellings, and mobile homes. We write a lot of homes in large cities and towns, but we also have a large chunk of our book in small towns, and very rural areas around the state. We also ditched ISO protection codes. Instead, we use AAIS fire protection codes that put more emphasis on the distance to a fire hydrant and the fire station (regardless of volunteer or paid). These can help lower the sometimes large difference for properties out of town, or in smaller towns vs those in larger towns. Fortunately, we only write renters business in the DFW area, and the first and second tier coastal counties. So, we have not needed to raise our rates in the last 2 years despite the hail. We have also added the following enhancements to our Home, Dwelling, and Mobile Home products. New First Responders and Military Personnel and Veterans Discount - 5%. New Pay in Full Discount - 5%. Increased our Multi-Policy Discount to 10%. People and Pets Coverage now optional for savings. Pandemic Deductible Buy Down now optional for savings. Reduced Policy Fee. No credit checks. 1%/$1,000 deductibles available statewide. Automatic $100,000 Personal Equipment Breakdown. Write 8, 9, 10 “unprotected” risks every day. Plus, we still pay 15% New and Renewal Commission. So, while our competitors are raising their rates, paying you less, and making your life more difficult, we are trying to make it even easier to work with us and save your clients money in tough times. If you haven't quoted us in a while, please give us a try. It is quick and easy to quote and bind a policy with us. If you have any questions or need any help, please reach out to us at (512) 494-4164 or through our Contact Page .

In a blinding glimpse of the obvious statement, the esteemed CEO of a national InsurTech said, "our biggest issue is hail in Texas". He was explaining the company's 178% Gross Loss Ratio for the 2nd Quarter of 2023, shutting down writing new business, and the company's very big concentration of risks in Texas. It was almost as if it was a surprise that there is bad hail in Texas which oddly was his same excuse in 2022 when the company lost over $200M, and in 2021 when they lost almost $400M. He followed that, saying "our definition of a place we are comfortable with is one that has significantly reduced volatility subject to weather." What does this mean for their oversized Texas book of business? I hoped that meant....if the company is going keep writing the cheap home insurance that they advertise, it would be in less severe weather areas. But NO.....two weeks ago this company made a big announcement about entering the Florida insurance market. This got me wondering, who gave this fruitcake the keys to the car? Apparently, that is the same question that many of you are asking about the leaders of several of your previous Go To markets. I know this because I have been talking to a lot of our agents and prospective agents lately. And I am often ask these 2 questions. Do you write a lot of business in the Dallas Ft Worth area? Answer - No Do you write a lot of business in and around Harris County? Answer - No Fortunately, when I'm asked these questions by agents in every other part of the state, the response is the same. It goes something like..."Good! I've seen so many companies get killed in those places, then shut down or raise our rates etc. etc." We do write a lot of renters business in those areas, but we do not write homeowners, dwellings, mobile homes, or vacant houses in those areas. We don't write in those areas for a very simple reason. Over the long term, it is very hard to charge the premium that we believe that we need to write profitable business in these very hostile weather areas. So, we made the choice many years ago to stay away. That is one of the big reasons why we haven't had to raise rates in 2 years, have no plans to raise rates now, and our carrier partners are really happy with our results. I don't think that it is a coincidence that Hochheim, Homeowners of America, Hippo, Germania, Kemper, National Summit etc. etc. all have large concentrations of homeowners business in these areas....and are no longer writing new business there....among their other actions. This was why it was so important for us to partner with a Texas based company and get out of the London Market where they demanded rate increases even where our results were good. The folks at Insurors understand the Texas market very well. We plan on sticking with our plan and growing and supporting agents in the other parts of the state with all of our products. We must be doing something right as we are seeing more and more agents binding policies with us every week. We love to write older, or smaller homes, in big and small towns, in cities, or rural area. We also write all ages of home, rental dwellings, and mobile homes in both protected and unprotected areas. So, while our competitors are raising their rates, paying you less, and/or shutting down in all, or parts of the state, we are trying to make it even easier to work with us and save your clients money in these tough times. If you haven't quoted us in a while, please give us a try. It is quick and easy to quote and bind a policy with us. If you have any questions or need any help, please reach out to us at (512) 494-4164 or through our Contact Page . Thank you for your support!

I don't know about you, but watching the news makes me wonder what they are teaching in schools these days. Is real history still taught? As I watch folks jabber on about whatever protest is the flavor of the day, I scratch my head. I'm waiting for one of the college kids, younger politicians, or younger news reporters to say "Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Heck No!" as Bluto did in Animal House. And then for an older reporter to go Dean Wormer on them and tell them that, "fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life". But since that only happens in the movies and is unlikely to happen in real life, I figured that it would be best to turn off the news and watch the great movie that inspired those quotes, Animal House. A nice escape down the rabbit hole into some laughter and fun. Towards the end of the movie, things get very exciting with the master prank which happens to involve 10,000 marbles. Being an insurance geek, these darn marbles rattling around reminded me of hail, then insurance, and then the very tough insurance market that we are dealing with these days. I figured that I would let you know what we're doing to help you and your clients win in this rough market. Home, dwelling, mobile home, vacant and renters policies. Older, smaller homes, in-towns, cities, and rural areas, are right up our alley. 1%/$1,000 deductibles available state wide. No penalties for volunteer fire departments...we write 8s,9s, and 10s "unprotected risks" every day. Asbestos homes and metal roofs welcome. No credit checks. Automatic $100,000 Personal Equipment Breakdown coverage in home, dwelling, and mobile home policies. Many discounts available including retired, first responder, military, and multi-policy. AND.....NO rate increases needed since 2021 because we only write renters in the DFW area, and Tier 1 and 2 - No homes, dwellings, and mobile homes. We are growing and supporting agents in all other parts of the state. So, while our competitors are raising their rates, paying you less, and/or shutting down in all, or parts of the state, we are making it even easier to work with us and save your clients money in these tough times. So, if the news is getting you down, I would highly recommend watching Animal House, one of the greatest movies ever! If you haven't quoted us in a while, please give us a try. It is quick and easy to quote and bind a policy. As always, if you have any questions or need any help, please give us a holler at (512) 494-4161 , ext. 12, or reach out to us on our website here . Thanks for your support!

I don't buy cat food because I don't have a cat. That would be foolish. We're dog people. I try hard to not buy things that I don't need. Well, my wife might disagree with me on that one. She wonders when another box of cigars shows up in the mail, or when I smoke a whole brisket when only 6 folks are showing up for dinner. I try to explain the "need", but I'm pretty sure that she isn't buying it.... just tolerating it in a "you silly man and your toys" kind of way. However, when it comes to cat food, we both agree on that one for sure. We definitely don't need cat food and don't buy it. However, I see folks buying insurance coverage limits that I strongly suspect they don't need, but are automatic company standard percentages. With the turmoil in the current insurance market, we are seeing a surge of new business from both new and old agents. So, I look at a whole lot of quotes every day and have noticed a trend. A lot of quotes seem to be wanting to buy more contents, other structures, and loss of use coverage than the client needs. I totally get it. Most insurance companies typically automatically "give" customers 60% to 75% of the dwelling coverage in contents coverage, 10% to 20% for other structures and for loss of use. It is really tempting to just try to duplicate coverages from one carrier when moving to another carrier. But does that make practical sense? I've had this debate a couple of times with my insurance company. There is no way that I have 75% of my house value in contents. The answer is always the same....sorry sir, but that is our standard amount, and it can't be changed. The problem for me is that I am paying for that coverage that I don't need. The same thing is true for things like other structures. I've only got a fence in my back yard which certainly wouldn't cost the tens of thousands of other structures coverage that I'm paying for in my policy. So, I thought that it would be good to remind you that we tackled this standard insurance company silliness years ago. We give you a wide range of choices for contents, other structures, and loss of use to provide the limits that your clients actually need. For example, our homeowners policies offer the following. A Contents range from 0% to 75% of Coverage A. Other Structures range from 0% to 20% of Coverage A. Loss of Use range from 0% to 20% of Coverage A. So, if you want to try to save your customers money in these crazy premium times, ask them what coverage limits they really need. It could really save them money on their insurance which is much better than giving it to me for limits that don't exist. Do they even have any Other Structures? Do they really need $80,000 to rent a house while their house is being repaired? How do you fit $225,000 of contents into a 1,300 square foot house? OK, let's not get into my wife's expansive collection of shoes....that is a whole different story. It may be that the coverage limits that your clients currently have are just what they really need. It may also be that these limits were all just "given" to your customer as automatic limits by their previous insurance company giving you the chance to be a hero and save them money. If you haven't quoted us in a while, please give us a try. It is quick and easy to quote and bind a policy with us. If you have any questions or need any help, please reach out to us at (512) 494-4164 or through our Contact Page . In the mean time, if you have any ideas on how I can convince my wife that we NEED an 80 inch flat screen TV, please let me know! As always, we thank you very much for your support.