Who's the Bodyguard for your Construction Company?
Posted by Robert Phelan on Tue, Apr 20, 2010 @ 07:54 AM
Returning from a business trip recently I was relaxing in the Delta Sky Club at Hartsfield International in Atlanta. As I sipped a soda and ate some pretzels, Hulk Hogan walked in with a small entourage. He looks the same in real life as on TV - as big as a mountain and a little older but the same guy, the same twelve-time world heavyweight champion. He's 56 years old but you wouldn't want to mess with him. He is still "winning" fights this year! Read about it on wikipedia
What does Hulk Hogan have to do with insurance for contractors? A lot, if you look at the world through my eyes.
If you ever needed a bodyguard, he's your man. Read his biography at the link above. He got in the ring with the biggest and the baddest and came out on top. He was the face of WWF(Now WWE). He is a winner and the world knows it. Hogan fought to the finish and intimidated other giants of the game. If I could choose a bodyguard, Hulk Hogan would be my first choice.
If you're a business owner, after protecting your life and family, your business would probably come next. For most construction company owners, their business is their most valuable asset. But surprisingly, I can almost guarantee, none of you know the biography of the person you have chosen to protect your business, your insurance agent or broker. Why is that? How could that be?
It's simple really. Contractors buy insurance the same way they operate in their own world - low bidders win. So instead of making insurance choices based on the capabilities of the people providing the service, they buy cheap insurance.
Do you really think there is no difference between a risk advisor with thirty years of experience and a trainee insurance agent with a cheap price? After all the hard work you've put into building your business, do you really want to entrust its protection to someone you've just met? Someone whose training and skills are unknown to you?
Insurance for contractors is as complex now as it has ever been. The risks you encounter can easily produce multi-million dollar liabilities. If your workers compensation claims aren't managed properly, your EMR (experience Mod Rate) can skyrocket and destroy your ability to compete.
Don't trust the protection of your business to just anyone. When you look across the desk the next time you make an insurance buying decision, ask yourself this: Is this the Hulk Hogan of insurance agents? If you have any doubt, reconsider. Your business depends on it.