While growing and selling new business is important, an agent must stay in touch with existing policyholders throughout their policy term. Agencies may send holiday or birthday cards, newsletters, or testimonial requests, to clients to stay connected and build a stronger relationship. However, the greatest value from a client touchpoint can result from a pre-renewal email. There are various benefits to a pre-renewal email – let’s dive into how a pre-renewal email can create value.
Mitigating E&O Risk Agents can help reduce their E&O exposure by asking the client in a pre-renewal email if they have any changes in their exposure that may impact their insurance. It’s important to offer examples to remind the client of the variety of changes that could impact their insurance including adding or deleting drivers, improvements or acquisition of property, new ATV/snowmobile, etc. By proactively asking about changes in exposure, an agent allows the client to update the carrier on any changes they have. The agent can also document their attempts to update the client’s exposure information. A strong defense against a future E&O claim, regardless of whether the client responds.
Creates a Smooth and Standardized Renewal Experience After establishing a standard renewal process, agents can have at least one touchpoint with each policyholder before their renewal date. If the insured is looking to add coverage or shop their coverage, proactively reaching out with a pre-renewal touchpoint gives an agent enough time to maintain a smooth renewal without the time crunch. In addition, this touchpoint is from the agent/agency and not the carrier. Suppose an insured decides to shop their insurance at renewal. In that case, a separate touchpoint can help the insured realize they have options with other carriers but can stay with the same independent agent.
There are a variety of other benefits including, but not limited to, cross-selling and upselling opportunities, improved retention by showing the agency is thinking about their clients, time savings by reducing the likelihood of remarketing, and more. Now, you might think, “There is not enough time to reach out to every client at renewal. How can this be done?”. Technology is the answer. There are a variety of email automation platforms that can automate pre-renewal and renewal emails and even integrate with agency management systems. Some popular systems include: AgencyZoom, Levitate, ClientCircle, Agency Revolution and Applied Marketing Automation.
Looking for a sample pre-renewal letter? https://bit.ly/prerenewalemail
If an agency is already sending out a pre-renewal email, make sure it does not say, “We will renew as is” or “We will renew with the same terms and conditions,” as this could cause an issue in the event the carrier changes the coverage, terms or conditions in the renewal policy. Instead, an agency could say, “If we do not hear from you within [xx] days, we will proceed with your renewal with the information we have on file.”
If you are looking for additional guidance on creating standardized processes for renewals, please feel free to reach out to the experienced team at Virtual Agency Solutions. We aim to help agencies mitigate E&O risk by creating consistent processes, enhancing the customer experience, and driving efficiency throughout the organization.