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    Open Enrollment Creates an Opportunity to Expand and Promote Your Benefit Package

    3 November 2023
    Julie Couglin
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    Categories: Uncategorized

    While employers already invest significant time and resources researching and designing their benefits plans, many feel like there is still work to be done to ensure benefits are impactful to workers. In fact, research has found that only 30% of HR leaders believe their company does a good job of improving benefits utilization. Fortunately, open enrollment season encourages organizations to assess their benefits challenges and develop a plan to tackle them.

    Organizational challenges will vary, but here are some of the top priorities and perceived challenges from survey respondents:

    • Prioritizing preventive care and chronic illness management programs to help lower employees’ medical costs.
    • Increasing employee communication and adopting various communication methods.
    • Making more thoughtful decisions through better expert guidance from brokers.
    • Finding cost savings with benefits during open enrollment.

    Benefits leaders continue to be challenged to provide valuable offerings that appeal to a diverse workforce, all while offering benefits cost savings for the organization.

    Employer Takeaways

    Open enrollment is a crucial period for both employers and employees. It’s when employees can make important decisions about their benefits and an opportunity for employers to engage with their workforce and highlight the value of employer-sponsored benefits.

    As organizations continue to adapt to evolving workforce needs and changing regulations in 2024, open enrollment is more critical than ever. Surveyed employers who said they’re effective at driving benefits utilization shared the following strategies:

    • Track benefits usage through participant rates and employee surveys.
    • Take specific actions to drive benefits usage, such as customizing a benefits website portal based on each employee’s unique needs and offering a concierge to personalize employee care.
    • Promote and encourage preventive care, screenings and wellness.
    • Leverage various benefits-related communication methods (e.g., email, digital benefits tools, employee resource groups and employee champions).
    • Communicate in advance—as early as six months ahead of time—and often about open enrollment throughout the year.

    During open enrollment season and beyond, employers should monitor employee benefits trends, utilization, and spending.

    To see how Dimond Bros Insurance can assist you with your Open Enrollment, please reach out Mike Holley, Vice President of Life and Health at mike.holley@dimondbros.com

    This article is not intended to be exhaustive, nor should any discussion or opinions be construed as legal advice. Readers should contact legal counsel or an insurance professional for appropriate advice.

    Take the “Hard” Out of the Hard Market: Tips and Strategies for Personal Lines Consumers

    20 October 2023
    Julie Couglin
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    Categories: Uncategorized

    From the Desk of Kellie Eastham – Vice President of Personal Lines, Dimond Bros. Insurance

    Have you heard that right now we are in a “Hard Insurance Market”? Do you know what it means? Are you tired of hearing about it? Do you wonder how it will impact you? As professionals in the industry, we spend time understanding the industry and market and how it will impact our customers (both current and future).

    A hard market is a term utilized in the insurance industry when there is any combination of the following: increased premium costs for insureds, stricter underwriting criteria, less capacity, restricted terms of coverage, and less competition among insurance carriers for new business. If you’ve received your renewal recently or are trying to quote your insurance, you are probably experiencing some of the above. This hard market is impacting nearly all lines of insurance.

    Personal lines of insurance typically cover individuals and families for things like auto, home, and personal liability. In a hard market, insurers are more selective about the risks they are willing to insure, and they charge higher premiums for coverage. This means that if you’re looking for personal lines coverage, you may be facing higher rates or reduced coverage options.

    So why is the personal lines insurance market currently hardening? There are a few key reasons. One is an increase in catastrophes like hurricanes, tornadoes, and wildfires, which has led to more claims and losses for insurers. Additionally, there have been legal and regulatory environment changes, such as new privacy regulations and increased scrutiny of insurers’ underwriting practices. Finally, economic conditions have played a role, with low interest rates and a soft market in recent years leading some insurers to underprice their policies.

    Now that we understand what a hard insurance market means for personal lines and why it’s happening, what can you do to navigate it? Here are a few tips:

    1. It can be tempting to shop around for a new personal lines insurance carrier when the market is tough. However, it may be in your best interest to stick with your current carrier. Not only do you already have an established relationship with them, but they may also be willing to offer discounts or loyalty incentives to keep you as a customer. Additionally, switching carriers can come with its own set of headaches and potential gaps in coverage. So before you make any hasty decisions, consider the benefits of staying put during a hard market.
    2. If you have multiple personal lines policies – like auto and home insurance – consider bundling them with one insurer. This can often lead to discounts on your premiums.
    3. Evaluate your risk management. Insurers are more selective about the risks they are willing to insure in a hard market. By improving your risk management practices – like installing a home security system or taking a defensive driving course – you can make yourself a more attractive risk for insurers.

    By understanding what the hard insurance market means and why it’s happening, you can take steps to protect yourself and mitigate your risks. If you are currently looking for an insurance partner to help you navigate these times, we would love the opportunity to review your needs. Our goal is to offer insurance solutions that simplify your life. Together, we’ll find relevant insurance options that protect you and what you care about. Please visit our Personal Lines page to request a quote or contact us to connect with one of our Personal Lines team members.

    To contact Kellie, email us at feedback@dimondbros.com

    This article is not intended to be exhaustive, nor should any discussion or opinions be construed as legal advice. Readers should contact legal counsel or an insurance professional for appropriate advice.

    Cybersecurity Awareness Month

    13 October 2023
    Julie Couglin
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    Categories: Uncategorized

    October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month.  During this annual event, government and cybersecurity leaders and the insurance community come together to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity.  Here are four simple steps you or employees can follow to help keep you and/or your business cybersecure.

    1. Use strong passwords and a password manager.

    Strong passwords are critical to protecting data. They are long, random and unique and include all four character types (uppercase, lowercase, numbers and symbols).  Password managers are a powerful tool to help employees create such passwords for their accounts.  Plus, they make storing passwords and user IDs easy.

    2. Turn on multifactor authentication (MFA).

    Employees need more than a password to protect their online accounts, and enabling MFA makes your organization significantly less likely to get hacked.  Enable MFA on all online accounts that offer it, especially email, social media and financial accounts, and use authentication apps and hardware tokens for added security.

    3. Recognize and report phishing.

    Phishing emails, texts and calls are the number one way data gets compromised.  Employees should be cautious of unsolicited emails, texts or calls asking for personal information.  They should not share sensitive information or credentials over the phone or email unless necessary and avoid clicking on links or opening attachments sent from unknown sources. They should also verify the authenticity of requests by contacting the individual or organization through a trusted channel and report phishing attempts to the appropriate authorities or IT department.

    4. Update software.

    Ensuring your organization’s software is up to date is the best way to make sure your organization has the latest security patches and updates on its devices.  Regularly check manually for updates if automatic updates are not available and keeping operating systems, antivirus software, web browsers and applications up to date.

    We are here to help.  Our goal is to offer insurance solutions that simplify your life.  Together, we’ll find relevant insurance options that protect you and what you care about.  Request a quote or contact us to connect with one of our Cyber Insurance team members.   Contact us today for more cybersecurity guidance and cyber insurance solutions. 

    To contact our team, email us at feedback@dimondbros.com

    This article is not intended to be exhaustive, nor should any discussion or opinions be construed as legal advice. Readers should contact legal counsel or an insurance professional for appropriate advice.