I just spent the last week working with a gentleman who had applied for life insurance through Selectquote and was approved, but wanted a second opinion on what products were available to him.
Over the course of a week I presented multiple options to accomplish what he thought he wanted to do, something he said Selectquote had not done for him. I also responded quickly to his questions and provided straightforward answers, something he said Selectquote had not done. I also provided him with the best price for the product he finally decided was appropriate, and this was something Selectquote had not done. They had, go figure, quoted and had him apply for the 6th best rate available.
This policy was already approved and Selectquote was pushing to get the check to put it in force. I apparently presented a bit of a wrinkle in sheets. Over the course of one day Selectquote gave him three different prices in an effort to get him to pull the trigger and put the coverage in force. One of those was the correct price. One was backdated to lower the premium, but was still higher than what he qualified for through another company, and one was a price that came from left field on Mars. It had no basis in earthly reality.
Saying all that, understand that Selectquote and the other big on line agencies do two things that set them apart from independent agents such as myself. Because they do huge volume, they have contracts or agreements with certain companies to push their products whether it is the best for the customer or not. Based on their level of production at the end of the year, this devotion turns into a large bonus.
The other thing they do is do and say whatever is necessary to consummate the deal. As evidenced by their agents frantic misquoting when it looked as if the deal was going south, they will do whatever it takes, including misleading the client, to get the check and move on to the next customer.
Bottom line. There must be a purpose on earth for these mega agencies, but that purpose is not service. They want your business. They want it quick. They want it done and then they don’t want to talk to you ever again. Overall I would say that used car dealers offer better service.
My 20 years of experience give me the knowledge and leverage to find reasonably-priced life insurance for people who have been declined or are paying more than they need to.
Ed,
I am the founder of AccuQuote. It’s a fact that consumers would rather deal with their local agent. Therefore, we need to make sure we provide that level of service in order to get their business.
To your point about bonueses….you’re right, we do receive bonuses at the end of the year based on the amount we sell (as do agents, like yourself). However, what good is it going to do me to quote the 6th best rate when I know that the minute the person gets off the phone with me, they’re going to go online and do research or call someone else like yourself? It does me no good because I’ll ultimately loose their business. I am pleased to say that not all companies do business the way you described.
Byron,
Get a grip. I didn’t say Accuquote. It was Selectquote that did this fine piece of work and unless you have merged or jumped into bed with them, there was nothing aimed at you. If you are defending Selectquote these days, then you have truly taken a fall down the integrity ladder.
Ed,
I am the founder of Insure.com. We’ve sold almost 250,000 term life policies over the years and have competed with SelectQuote many times. There is no valid reason for SelectQuote to have submitted this application at a higher rate than you, unless their telephone interview of the applicant revealed more health history than you might have uncovered. The front-end quotes may vary from agency to agency, but the final quotes after underwriting is complete, will not vary by one penny.
Secondly, why do you keep repeating the name of SelectQuote so many times in your blog? Is this done for search engine exposure?
Lastly, how on earth would you know that the mega agencies like Insure.com talk to their in-force customers?
Bob,
I couldn’t agree with you more. There is no valid reason for them to have done that. We both quoted best rate class and the client qualified, so post underwriting is not the issue.
When the client found out he could get the insurance for $95 per year less, $905 with Prudential and $1000 with Reliastar, the Selectquote agent told the client that they had made a mistake on the quote and tha Reliastar would only be $920. When I pointed out to the client that the new (corrected?) quote was just a backdated (4 months) quote, he asked them about it and they said it wasn’t backdated. After I sent him a spreadsheet showing current and backdated quotes he was finally able to get them to admit that it was backdated.
I mention Selectquote because I have a very low regard for their advertising practices and their customers have a very low regard for their service during and after the sale. I don’t care about search engine exposure. I do care about honesty and good service.
Lastly, I’ve worked for a mega agency, I have customers that at one time or another were with every mega agency you can think of, and I’ve talked with owners and agents of plenty of mega agencies (obviously not you, but then I have never mentioned Insure.com). The bottom line is that they are too big to provide personal service after the sale. If that shoe doesn’t fit you, good, don’t wear it.