Previously I posted about my customer service experience with 21st Century Insurance, and I sent an email to their executives demanding some reasoning [click here to read that post]. Then I wrote another post about my search for a new insurance carrier [click here to read that post]. And in Part 3 of this customer service story, I get a response from AIG, 21st's parent company

21st/AIG’s Response
A day before my imposed deadline, I got a call from someone at the executive offices of AIG (most likely not someone important, seeing as how their stock was in a 98% freefall, they surely have more important things to deal with). So he calls to apologize and explains that they’ve reviewed my information and they can reinstate my auto insurance policy. He also informed me that their system shows I had initiated the online payment, but did not complete it… confirming my suspicion that I got distracted (by something shiny most likely).

None the less, he still needed to confirm some information to reinstate my policy. I told him I’ve already started a new policy elsewhere, and I wouldn’t be interested unless they could offer me a better price for this term at least. He said he’d need to enter all my information and whatever the computer spits out is what the policy has to be, which I understand by their underwriting procedures, but really… how could they win me back when they’ve already proven to me that they are not willing to compete on price, they’re customer service is suspect, and their parent company is full of doom and gloom. Besides, their response to keeping me their customer is to make me jump through the same hoops of reapplying for a new policy again.

I still feel wronged by their lack of proactive steps before canceling my policy. His explanation did not make me feel any better and he didn’t offer any incentive to stay with them. This whole situation could have been averted if the first CSR I spoke with had empathized with my payment not being processed (and not setting blame on either party), and then putting me on hold for a minute while she got someone else to bring on the line that could reinstate me, or otherwise make it seem like I was being reinstated even if it was technically going to be a new policy. Here’s how that would go down:

CSR 1: Mr. Huang, I apologize that your payment hasn’t been processed, but give me just a moment while I get someone on the line to reinstate you.
Ray: Sure. [placed on hold for a minute or so]
CSR 1: Thanks for holding Mr. Huang, I’ve got Daniel on the line that will be able to help you out with that.
CSR Daniel: Hi Mr. Huang, so I just need to verify some information.

At this point, he could be signing me up for a new policy, and I wouldn’t know the difference, and then let me know that my rate has been adjusted by a few bucks if it has. That is something that I can tolerate, because I was willing to pay a late fee upfront anyway to be reinstated.

So the lesson to be learned is this – make sure your customer service is always top notch, and that your representatives have the authority to make necessary decisions to remedy situations. As soon as a customer walks out that door or hangs up that phone, the problem should be solved to the best of anyone’s reasonable ability. If you let that customer leave disgruntled, the repercussions could potentially be hugely damaging, especially with online tools available today like blogs, Yelp, Myspace, Facebook, and Twitter out there.

Labels: Customer Service

# posted by Ray Huang @ 10:17 PM
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Previously I posted about my customer service experience with 21st Century Insurance, and I sent an email to their executives demanding some reasoning [click here to read that post]. But before I sent that email, I looked for other auto insurance companies.

The Customer’s Actions
On my end, not wanting to be without insurance, I spent the next hour or so hunting down a new insurance carrier. Being a marketing guy, I sifted through the junk mail bin and saw an unopened letter from a local State Farm agent. My wife had State Farm before we got married, and had no problems or claims, so I gave the agent a call on a Saturday afternoon (this was about 15 minutes after hanging up with the 21st CSR). Unfortunately, it rang through to voicemail, and at that point I didn’t bother leaving a message. You snooze you lose. Perhaps that is a problem with their business model of having individual agents (though I’m sure their service is much better because of this).

Next I went online to probably the usual suspects. I knew I didn’t want to go through a broker, because my experience in the past is that I’ve ended up with some small-time company that may not be solvent enough or responsive enough in the event of a major claim. So I got quotes from Progressive, AllState, and Geico. Progressive and All-State were slightly lower than what I was previously paying at 21st, but within 10%. But with Geico, I really did save 15% or more on my car insurance! In fact I saved 35%. So I signed up and paid for a new policy. It was actually quite easy to switch.

What happened Next? Read Part 3...

Labels: Customer Service

# posted by Ray Huang @ 9:14 AM
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Auto insurance companies spend a lot of resources to acquire new customers; but as many professionals will attest, it is far more important to continue to satisfy your existing customers and do what you can to keep them YOUR customers, or they will defect to your competitors. I wanted to share my recent experience with 21st Century Insurance (who recently merged with the troubled insurance giant AIG) as a long time customer of 5+ years, as it relates to their customer service.

I received a renewal notice and bill with all my relevant auto insurance documentation a month before my expiration date. I went online soon after, started the online payment process and somewhere along the line it failed to be processed. In hindsight, I admit it may be an error on my part for not clicking all the way through or something else distracted me – these things happen. None the less, I am left with the impression that I had paid for the policy in full, while the 21st system says I have not.

Now, two weeks after my policy had officially expired and not been renewed, I get a notice in the mail that my policy has been canceled. Not "going to be cancelled" or "you have an outstanding payment due," but a "Cancellation Confirmation Notice." I had not had any letter, email, or phone call since the renewal bill had arrived 6 weeks earlier. But what's done is done, I figure I’d call in and catch up on the payment and get the insurance reinstated, right?

Wrong. I tell the CSR that I'm paying the policy in its entirety, plus whatever late fees. She tells me that she cannot reinstate my policy. However, she told me she would transfer me to another AIG auto insurance company to get a new policy. I get into it a little with the rep, but she still can't reinstate it. I ask to speak with a supervisor or manager about the subject, “Well you can, but he'll tell you the same thing, because the system won't let us reinstate you.” Well it sounds to me like there is something wrong with THE SYSTEM. Would I still like to be transferred to an AIG sales representative? No, I'll take my business elsewhere if I need to jump through these hoops again.

But I suppose I should thank them and the brilliant architects of THE SYSTEM for such blatant disregard for THEIR customers. For years, I had blindly been renewing my policy with them because I usually got good service, though I never filed a claim; so now I've been forced to look elsewhere, and managed to get a policy that was a 35% less expensive for similar coverage. Having slipped through the crack in their system - let me rephrase - Having been forced out of the hole in their system, I may have been spared from any future gaps and lapses in their customer care system, had a real problem arose.

I put this all in an email to their customer care team as well as 21st Insurance’s CEO and Senior VP of Customer Care (took a little digging to find them), and gave them until Wednesday to respond and see what they would do to try and resolve my experience complaint.

A disgruntled customer can be your worst enemy, and how a firm responds is critical in mitigating any further damage. My next post will be what comes of all this… [Read More]

Labels: Customer Service

# posted by Ray Huang @ 10:10 AM
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