Corporate Solutions

Client Expectations

Expectations - What should you expect from your agent and their agency? 

Simple; what are you paying them?

• Companies with 5 or less employees are expensive to any agency.  However these are the companies that need the most direction, they do not have a dedicated benefits person with in the company.  Expectations should be renewal recommendations, competitive market analysis and help with claims resolution, changes in laws applicable to the company and information concerning the changing health insurance environment.

• Companies with 5 to 10 employees are generally not profitable to the agent if the client requires a great deal of time.  Expectations should be much like the ‘baby’ group; renewal recommendations, competitive market analysis at renewal and help with claims resolution, changes in laws applicable to the company and information concerning the changing health insurance environment.

• Companies with 10 to 20 employees on their health insurance plan with the potential to grow are good clients for the average size agency.  We would expect these companies to receive guidance from the agent relative to the market as well as keeping the company informed of changes in related laws.

• Companies with 20 to 30 employees on their health insurance plan, are also good clients for the average size agency.  In addition to services provided to smaller clients, we would expect these companies to receive COBRA guidance, market information, legal updates, wrap documents and a limited long-term strategy.

• Companies employing 30 to 100 employees should receive the items listed above including creating a long-term strategy to control future premium increases plus employee communication pieces relative to the strategy.

• Companies over 50 are also required to offer employees FMLA (Family Medical Leave).  Your agent should be knowledgeable about this subject and able to give clients direction on setting policies, what to consider when writing the policy and how to coordinate COBRA and FMLA.

• Employers with 100 to 300 employees have a great deal more flexibility in plan design.  Groups under 100 are generally limited by State filed plans, where groups over 100 have the freedom to consider greater options and are able to mold these options around their long-term strategy, employee demographics and claims information.  Once a group has 100 employees they are subject to filing a 5500 annually.  The 100 mark also allows employers to receive claims data, large claims report, and prescription drug use.  Over 100 lives, the company will automatically receive a report on what the agent/agency is paid by each carrier.

In addition agents are paid a commission for all products offered by the company.  This would include dental, disability, voluntary products and sometimes Section 125 and Flexible Spending account documentation.

If you are paying your agent $500 a month, are you getting $6,000 a year in service?

The "new" agent is about creating solutions.  It is about moving the employee population from a treatment oriented to a preventive oriented healthcare model.

Just like your CPA and attorney are trusted advisors and a member of your executive team, so should your employee benefit agent.  How else are you going to manage the second largest and fastest growing line item in your budget?