Many people are familiar with different types of insurances such as life, health and/or property insurances but there is one which is not as common as those mentioned, the so-called casualty insurance. This is probably because this type is loosely defined and used term in the area of insurance.

Casualty insurance is sometimes considered as liability insurance and is not necessarily concerned with life, health, or even property insurances. It usually covers damage to property and individuals or organizations. Moreover, it may also include property insurance for aviation, boiler and machinery, glass and crime, and marine insurance for shipwrecks, as well as terrorism and political risk insurances. Earthquakes are also covered by this type of insurance but not fires or floods since the two need to be insured separately.

This type is considered to be very useful to businesses since it ensures the owners of compensation after purchasing a policy. The policy usually covers replacement of items lost when there is robbery. One of the most important type is called workers’ compensation insurance wherein business owners are protected from liabilities which may arise when accidents happen on site and employees are injured. Fidelity insurance, also known as surety bonds is meant to protect people from results of fraud. There is also a specific type of casualty insurance which protects people from identity theft and internet fraud, which is very rampant nowadays.

One disadvantage of this type is that it is too specific at times that there are certain aspects which might not be covered of the policy. So, it is always important to read the terms of the policy first to avoid being faced with problems when claiming benefits later on.

Casualty insurance is very helpful not only for individuals but also for businesses. There are those insurance companies which only cater to this type of insurance and some of them also offers customized insurances to suit your needs.

Owning the best insurance coverage happens to be indispensible if you are the owner of rental dwelling. Not only does your insurance company take on the threat for indemnity to your apartment, however it in addition covers a person aligned with any injuries or accidents to other people that might occur nearby.

The kind of insurance plan property managers want to have falls under the catch-all term property and casualty insurance, which can something other than life and health. Know that, there does not exist such thing as a property and casualty plan. One can buy auto insurance, homeowners insurance, and in the case of property managers, property manager protector insurance, also known as property manager protection insurance.

While a property manager protector insurance certificate appears on paper to be just like the standard homeowners insurance certificate, there is a sizeable difference concerning the two. Homeowners insurance principally includes coverage for the belongings of the residence, while property manager protector insurance has significantly less coverage for belongings. Its focus is harm to the dwelling and liability for injury. Property manager protector insurance forms are created on a building that has 4 units or less. Everything above that turns into a commercial risk, which will require a commercial policy known as a habitational policy.

The certificate is created as a package policy, which means that it covers most of what insurance companies call perils. These are causes of loss, like fire, theft, tornado, hurricane, wind, and water. The notion of risk is covered under the named insured, which is the property manager. This is an tremendously imperative point since when a claim is filed, a evaluation is made as to who is liable for the destruction. For instance, if a fire broke out in the building because of of faulty wiring, then the property manager would be responsible, and their insurance would recompense for repairs and the replacement of any of the occupant’s goods that were destroyed. Know that, if the fire was caused because the renter fell asleep with a lit cigar, then the renter is liable not only for their own property, but for the destruction to the building as well.

Another key part to property manager protector insurance is coverage for loss of money while the apartment is being fixed. As long as the destruction was caused by a covered loss, property managers are reimbursed because the property is not in a livable condition.

In addition to the dwelling itself, part B of the property manager protector plan covers any detached structure on the grounds like a guest house or a storage shed. These structures are covered for ten percent of the quantity of coverage on the building.

In terms of coverage limitations, there are 2 main things to remember. With fire damage, which is a covered danger, the property manager’s belongings would be covered, but not the occupant’s.

Second, with loss caused by theft, an alternative covered peril, it is imperative to study the coverage limitations in the policy. Many of these agreements have a 00.00 limitation on stolen jewels. If you do not a have a floater on your policy, which means a type of insurance that provides additional coverage above the policy limit for property that is easily transportable, you will have to agree to the 0,000 no matter what your actual loss is.

There are reasons for loss that are not covered by property manager protector insurance, like floods, which make it a requirement for a separate policy. Earthquakes are another natural disaster that is not covered. By definition, a flood is precipitation that hits the ground before it comes into your dwelling. This is an significant distinction when the insurance company makes the determination if the cause of loss is going to be covered, because although a flood is not covered, water damage is. For instance, if the window blew out in a garden dwelling or a cellar apartment and water came into the apartment as a result of that broken window, then the destruction to the unit caused by that water would be covered.

There is the other issue of water damage caused by backup from sewers and drains. These types of water damage have specific coverage in a property manager protector policy, but there are limitations to that coverage.

When it comes to the question of whether or not all property managers should carry flood insurance, I believe that only those property managers who own property in the federally identified flood zones must carry it. Flood insurance is only written through the federal government’s National Flood Insurance program, but it is sold through insurance companies. That is why flood insurance policies are the same from insurer to insurer. You can learn more about the program, and check to see if you are in a high-risk area, at their website.

Buying property manager protector insurance can be costly. The reason for the high price is that a property manager does not have any control over the behavior of a renter. Because that implies a prominent element of risk, insurance companies charge a large premium. In spite of the elevated cost, property manager protector insurance might be made more reasonable through discounts for having security alarms, especially monitored ones, intruder alarms, padlock locks, and fire extinguishers.

While it is imperative to have the protection insurance provides it is just as imperative to reduce your dependency on it by following these steps.  I advocate:

1. Require that occupants buy renter’s insurance. The price for coverage is not that costly. To Make sure 200,000 -worth of liability coverage costs a little lessttle less 100 per year.

2. Make sure occupants have current fire extinguishers that are easily found, like in their kitchen. Most fires happen between 12:00 pm and 6:00 am, which is not a time frame when most people are aware enough to know where they put the fire extinguisher.

3. Teach your applicant in the best way to turn off the water main. The number 1 cause of damage is water.

4. Do a twice per yearproperty inspection to make sure you do not have any hazards, like floppy handrails or damaged boards on the patio that could lead to a liability lawsuit.

One ounce of prevention is worth one pound of cure; so remove the risk, and you will not have to file that claim.

Florida Property Insurance Bill Generates Controversy amongst Insurance Industry

Florida Governor Charlie Crist’s decision to veto an omnibus property insurance bill, SB 2044, has generated a considerable level of controversy after he was urged to sign it by homeowners insurance industry trade organizations, executives, and even Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty. Despite the recommendations of those who backed the bill, Gov. Crist, who has left the Republican Party to run as an independent for the U.S. Senate, expressed concern over potential Florida home insurance rate hikes that may have resulted from the bill. In his veto message, Gov Crist stated, “I am most concerned about the expansion of the current expedited rate filing procedure for property insurers that makes it easier to increase Floridians’ premiums.”

Although the bill was indeed expected to increase home owners insurance rates, supporters of the bill assert that the increased rates and reduced claims costs that the bill entailed were imperative to avoid massive financial risk associated with the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season and ensure future stability in the Florida homeowner insurance market. According to a statement issued by the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI), for example, “without the bill, we continue to confront the problem of a huge and growing financial risk that Floridians face from the next storm.” Others, such as current Florida Senate President Jeff Atwater, have taken a more personal approach to expressing outrage over Gov. Crist’s actions: “He yet again has found a way to mischaracterize the substance of legislation to advance his own political career,” said Sen. Atwater.

Most of the rationale for the Florida homeowners insurance industry’s overwhelming support for the bill has derived from recent increases in costs that have troubled property insurers. These costs have largely been a result of rising non-catastrophe and sinkhole claims, as well as claims from Hurricane Wilma that claims adjustors are now reopening. Among the industry officials disappointed with Gov. Crist’s veto is the Florida Property & Casualty Association, an organization of insurance companies and consultants, who said that SB 2044 would have made Florida home owners insurance more accessible and affordable to consumers as a result of decreased claims and fraud abuse. The group issued a statement, saying, “Unfortunately, it was erroneously portrayed by critics as a bill that would have raised rates without regulatory oversight. Nothing could be further from the truth. The veto of this bill will ultimately saddle all insurers with continued escalating losses resulting in less availability and higher rates.”

Despite the urgings of the insurance industry, Gov. Crist viewed the bill as more detrimental than beneficial, explaining that “During these very difficult economic times, Florida’s consumers should not have to be concerned with an additional premium increase to their policy.”

GEICO vehicle insurance is an particulary well recognized vehicle insurance business and is an inspiration and resource of enthusiasm for many insurance companies. GEICO is well-known for their cute talking Gecko in their inspiring commercials and more recently included cavemen commercials. These two characters from the GEICO commercials would insure everything from automobiles, motorcycles and even boats.

About GEICO: GEICO stands for Government Employees Insurance Company is recognized as the leader in the vehicle insurance market and provides vehicle insurance to hundreds and thousands of people. If you are looking for a great vehicle insurance carrier, then GEICO vehicle insurance carrier would be a sensible decision. This vehicle insurance carrier was founded in the 1930s by Leo Goodwin and his wife Lillian Goodwin, which was during the great depression. This carrier soon surpassed their competition and became one of the finest vehicle insurance companies in the United States including numerous other countries.

Seperate from this, there are also a few other things that you should know about the company. GEICO vehicle insurance company is rated as the number one property casualty insurer. GEICO is rated third for first-rate customer satisfaction among the people of United States. They were also rated as a superior company by the consumers in the year 2007. The company also has a number of AAA’s across the board and they are also rated number one as the most respected insurer.

What does GEICO offer? GEICO vehicle insurance gives a number of discounts including multiple vehicle discounts, seatbelts, and discounts for cars with airbags and also includes discounts for a membership which is one of almost 300 organizations. Seperate from this fact, GEICO also offers great customer support. This includes 24/7 service through online staff, phone support and the claims settled very fast and fairly.

Auto insurance with GEICO: Overall, GEICO actually exceeds the principles set by other vehicle insurance carriers. You can acheive very low rates and even enjoy great customer service. If you need a great and reasonable vehicle insurance, then GEICO vehicle insurance is the best decision. However, you might also be very familiar with other insurance companies which also offer you good rates and great after-bond services, but you should know inside-out about the company and whether it is one to be respected. The budding recognition of GEICO through their educative and funny commercials actually lets you know that they can be trusted.

GEICO Auto Insurance and DUI Auto Insurance: DUI vehicle insurance is actually a important issue to those charged with drunk driving. The vehicle insurance companies including GEICO vehicle insurance would base their rates on numerous factors including the driving record. Drunk driving convictions often cause most of the vehicle insurance companies to even lose you as others might augment the rates of your insurance. In case of an accident due to drunk driving, it would also be very hard to negotiate with your auto insurance company and with the lawyer. Although most of the vehicle insurance companies will just ignore such an accident, if you have a GEICO vehicle insurance policy, then you can be guaranteed that the policy would cover the damage caused.

You can search online for other insurance companies. However, it would be a bit difficult to find a vehicle insurance policy that would offer you very low rates for the policy and great service than with GEICO.

The US P&C insurance industry is being battered on several fronts. Revenue is lower than it was before the financial crisis. The regulatory situation is becoming more burdensome. The 2010 hurricane season may be as active as 2005 when Hurricane Katrina hit. Moreover with the ongoing soft market, P&C insurers do not see any premium revenue lift in the immediate future.

Scope

*US Property & Casualty insurance industry

*This report covers opportunities for technology providers selling to the US P&C insurance industry

Highlights

The market forces impacting the US P&C insurance industry are intensifying. Finding profitable growth is the US P&C insurance industry’s greatest challenge.

Technology firms must have a truly differentiated value proposition to get the attention of P&C insurers who are, by nature, slow to replace existing providers or adopt new technology.

Reasons to Purchase

*This research identifies opportunities for technology providers selling to the US P&C insurance industry

*This research provides a primer for technology salespeople unfamiliar with the US P&C insurance industry

Table Of Contents :

SUMMARY 2
Catalyst 2
Ovum View 2
Key Messages 2
THE US PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE INDUSTRY IS CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC 3
A high-level view of the multi-billion dollar US P&C insurance industry 3
P&C insurance is a multi-faceted product 5
P&C insurers discuss the retail and corporate markets in different terms than L&A insurers 6
Personal and commercial P&C insurance customers have similar reasons for purchasing coverage 7
Automobile insurance dominates the total P&C insurance market 9
P&C insurers generate revenue from customers and investments 10
P&C insurers use metrics focusing on losses and expenses to get a sense of profitability 11
The high-level strategic and operational aspects of the P&C insurance industry illustrate the essence of the industry 13
THE MARKET FORCES IMPACTING THE US P&C INSURANCE INDUSTRY ARE INTENSIFYING 14
P&C insurers are continually impacted by major market forces 14
FINDING PROFITABLE GROWTH IS THE P&C INSURANCE INDUSTRY’S GREATEST CHALLENGE 17
P&C insurance companies have traditionally focused on costs and compliance 17
The US P&C insurance industry market maps illustrating participants such as policyholders, prospects and producers provide sign posts to profitable growth 18
TECHNOLOGY IS THE ENGINE THAT ENABLES THE US P&C INSURANCE INDUSTRY 20
There are six major areas of business opportunities requiring technology support 20
Each of the business opportunities can be explored for potential technology applications 22
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TECHNOLOGY PROVIDERS 23
Have a truly differentiated value proposition 24
Realize the differences of the speed of change between the technology and P&C insurance industries 24
Demonstrate US P&C insurance industry business knowledge 25
Offer modular solutions or pilots 25
APPENDIX 26

To know more about this report & to buy a copy please visit :
http://www.visionshopsters.com/product/5947/2010-Guide-to-the-US-Property-Casualty-Industry-for-Technology-Providers-Industry-Dynamics-.html

Whether you own a home or a business, you will need New York property insurance to protect your assets. Not only will you need to protect your property against potential burglary and accidents, but you also need to consider the affects natural disasters such as snow storms or flooding can have on your property. There are many factors that will affect the rates you pay to insure your property, probably none more important than its location.

If you are a property owner that rents property to others, you will have different insurance needs than those who own their own homes. Likewise, a business owner will have different needs to protect his or her property than someone with a residential property. You will not only need to determine your individual needs but also find a policy that specializes in these needs. In this case, it may be best to work with a broker who understands this type of insurance to help you figure out what the best type of policy is to help you with your individual needs.

For example, if you are a homeowner, you will need to have New York property insurance that will cover you in case a burglar breaks in your home and steals your property as well as a storm blowing off the roof of your home. In addition, you may consider some type of liability insurance in case a guest injures himself or herself on your property. These instances are the reasons many New Yorkers decide upon some type of multi-peril policy to protect them from all kinds of disasters whether a man-made accident or natural such as a wind-storm or flood.

There are many different types of homeowners policies from which you can choose, so you will have to determine what you can afford to cover. A basic policy will generally cover some natural disasters such as lightning, accidents such as fire and smoke damage and burglary and theft among many other things such as civil judgements. However, this policy will cover a specific set of phenomena; other policies extend the list. If you rent property to another, you can find a policy protects you against damage to the apartment’s contents and personal liability. This is also offered for condominium coverage.

When you buy New York property insurance, you will need to estimate not only the value of the property but also how much it will cost to replace it if it were completely destroyed. You need to insure the property for its full value in order to be sure you will be able to replace or rebuild. Whether or not you work with a broker, you will need to look at as many quotes as possible.

Homeowner’s insurance, also called property insurance, protects you from damages to your:

Dwelling: A dwelling is the structure you live in. For coverage purposes, dwelling also includes any attached garages or units. A basic homeowner’s insurance policy may also cover damage to detached structures on your property such as a shed or swimming pool.

Personal property: Personal property includes furnishings and other belongings that you use, wear or collect. A basic policy insures these items from theft or peril-related damages. However, jewelry and other collectibles often require separate coverage.

Liability: Liability coverage pays for accidents that occur on your property for which you are held responsible. Liability includes a neighbor being hurt on your property or someone tripping on your child’s bike left on the sidewalk.

Living expenses: In case you have to live elsewhere while your home is being repaired for a claim, a basic homeowner’s insurance policy is likely to cover additional living expenses that you incur.

Like any other type of insurance, you pay a premium to buy a homeowner’s insurance policy. An insurance company bases your premiums on:

Claims in your area. An insurance company will look at the history of claims in your neighborhood to estimate a premium. For example, if your neighborhood has experienced a high rate of burglaries or wildfires, you will likely pay a higher premium.

Your claims history: If you are renewing a homeowner’s insurance policy and have made several claims, you should expect to pay a higher premium. In extreme cases, insurance companies may decide against renewing a policy.

Value of your home: You can obtain policy coverage for the replacement value of your home or its actual cash value. Replacement cost coverage protects you from inflation in home-repair costs. Actual cash value insures your home for its current value.

Actual cash value is likely to be lower than replacement-cost value for all but the newest homes since homes depreciate over time from age and use. Mortgage lenders generally require coverage for the replacement-cost value of your home.

Deductible: A deductible is the amount you pay before the insurer begins to pay your claim. By paying a higher deductible, you’re sharing the insurer’s risk of paying a claim on your home. As a result, the insurer is likely to offer a lower premium.

Safety measures: Installing fire detection, sprinkler and theft-deterrent systems can help you to lower your premiums. You can also take steps to reduce the possibility of an accident occurring on your property.

Be sure to read your policy carefully to see what perils are covered and what are excluded. Damage from storms, lightning, fire and smoke is generally covered in a basic homeowner’s insurance policy, but damage from earthquakes or floods is generally excluded. These perils, along with hurricane and tornado coverage, often need a separate policy or policy rider.

Together with auto insurance, homeowner’s insurance constitutes what is called property & casualty insurance. P&C is distinct from life and health insurance. Some insurers offer P&C insurance while others do not. You may find that your current auto insurer is willing to issue you a homeowner’s insurance policy.

Like all insurance in the U.S., homeowner’s insurance is regulated by state insurance commissions. The umbrella organization is the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The NAIC maintains a directory of state insurance commissions at its Web site.

If you have any questions concerning policy coverage, exclusions or limits, contact the insurance agent or company that sold you the policy or your mortgage lender.

For more articles on Home Insurance, please visit: http://www.bills.com/home-insurance-basics-article/

The State of Florida over the last twenty years, Public Adjusters (PA) have been very successful in helping policyholders recover all the money they are entitled to collect. Way too successful for the insurance companies’ liking. So, a major battle is looming in the State of Florida over the business practices of Public Adjusters.

Three insurance associations are supporting legislation to restrict how Public Adjusters operate. The Florida Insurance Council, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America and the Florida Property Casualty Association issued statements which criticize Public Adjusters…who represent homeowners in the professional preparation of insurance claims…accusing them of “inflating” claims, driving up costs for all policyholders.
But think about it for a moment, friends. The insurance companies enter into agreements with the PA and the policyholder to settle a claim. That means that “a buyer and a seller” agree on a price. Nothing forces the insurance companies to agree to a price they believe is too high. The insurance companies simply hate the fact that a policyholder goes into the marketplace and hires a claims professional to represent himself in the preparation of his claim. That is akin to the IRS getting mad at people for having their taxes prepared by an accountant.
State Senator Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, and Rep. Janet Long, D-Seminole filed new legislative bills in February. The bills (S2264 and H1181) seek to:
• Prevent Public Adjusters from soliciting customers either by phone or in person unless both parties had a prior knowledge of one another or were family members.
• Prevent PAs from sending mail to prospective clients in the first 30 days after a storm. Further, the bill seeks to force Pas to label their letters “ADVERTISEMENT” in 14-point font red letters.
• Prohibit PAs from informing a prospective client of their firm’s success record in obtaining claim settlements for policyholders.
• Cap fees for PA services at 10% for hurricane claims, and a 20% cap for all other property claims.¹
It is a criminal restraint of trade to suggest that a Public Adjuster cannot attempt to make contact with a prospective client for 30 days after a storm. After a major hurricane, communications systems are usually broken for a time. In most instances, the only way a PA can contact a prospective client in the days after a storm is through either a personal visit or mail delivery.
Insured with damages have immediate needs for emergency board-up, mitigation of damages, Living Expenses and other policy benefits. The insured will need this kind of help immediately, not 30 days after the storm.
There is no legislation that prevents a building contractor from soliciting business right after a storm. Same goes for a roofer, tree removal company, or a debris hauler. So, no restriction should be imposed on PAs either. You don’t see a restriction on accountants in tax season. You don’t see restrictions on Personal Injury attorneys after accidents. Why pick on PAs?
Think about this also. Hurricanes happen in hot weather. Damages from water quickly become mold damages. Mold left untreated for 30 days could render a building entirely useless and could require demolition. Further, the insurance companies have written ironclad Mold Exclusions that you can be sure they would invoke.
The state legislators wish to deny policyholders the timely assistance in preparation of their insurance claims, under the guise of protecting the policyholders of the State of Florida. But this effort to too transparent not to be seen for what it is…a desperate insurance industry trying to maximize its own profits at the expense of the policyholders of the State of Florida.
A recent state study found that in the past six years, the Division of Insurance Fraud received 937 complaints about public adjuster-related fraud from insurers and policyholders. It investigated only 269 of the complaints and made 31 arrests from 2004 to 2009. Curiously, the study did not say how many complaints it had received from policyholders about their own insurance companies’ claims practices. Nor did the study show how many hundreds of thousands of claims had been filed from 2004 to 2009. But we do know that SIX major hurricanes struck Florida in that time period.
They were:
Charlie – Category 4
Frances – Category 3
Jeanne – Category 3
Dennis – Category 4
Katrina – Category 3
Wilma – Category 4
Let’s run some numbers to show how deceptive this report is and give some perspective.
Let’s say that the total number of property claims filed for all the listed hurricanes together over six years was 1,000,000 claims. You already know that this number is ridiculously small, since tens of millions of property owners suffered repeated losses in the hurricanes. But at 1 million claims, 937 complaints is less than 0.0937% of all the claims filed. That is less than one percent of a purposefully low estimate of claims. And in only 31 cases was there enough evidence for even an arrest, much less a conviction.
And 31 arrests…not convictions…over six years is not enough illegal activity to cause legislators to pass additional laws restricting the business operations of ALL Public Adjusters. Looks to me like the Public Adjusters, taken as a group, are paragons of virtue. They should be praised, not pilloried…lauded, not legislated…decorated, not demagogue.
I wonder if Senator Mike Bennett and Rep. Janet Long would open up their financial records and disclose how much money they have received in contributions from insurance industry-related donors. My guess is that these Florida solons are bought and paid for by the insurance lobby.

If you own a business using commercial vehicles to operate of course you must have car insurance coverage for your rides just like with your personal vehicle. Also similar with your own car you must avoid as much as possible any involvement with any sort of accidents. However unlike dealing with just your personal car, your commercial vehicles are driven not by you personally thus monitoring driver’s behavior is out of the picture.

Luckily today, this is no longer a problem for an emerging technology called telematics can address this monitoring need. Every move of the driver can be observed with this newest technology.Pakistan InsuranceIt works much like the global positioning system where a device is connected to the car’s monitor. The device will then transmit information like a loose engine belt, the car’s location, and pressure on the breaks and other such information to the software operated in an office computer.  Using this technology coaching drivers on what to do can be done.

According to the study done by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute behavioral coaching combined with onboard safety monitor can reduce risky driving events. This significant reduce in risks taking is what property-casualty insurers and companies are after that is why they see this technology to be highly beneficial.

If you are one of the people who make use of several vehicles for business purposes having telematics can really serve some benefits.Pakistan InsuranceAside from being able to monitor your drivers’ behavior on the road and being able to guide them through “coaching” you can also earn discounts from auto insurers with installing telematics on your vehicles.

EAPs frequently deal with disgruntled employees. It’s a significant part of the job, but the benefit of this activity to the financial world doesn’t get a lot of play in the EAP literature. For many of us, well, it simply sounds too self-serving. This a big problem for many in the EAP field — it’s viewpoint.

Disgruntled employees are often seen as helpless malcontents, troubled, and expendable. Typically, stories in the EAP literature focus too much on how to help these employees be happy, healthy, and productive, while they omit the real story behind the story.

That story is how this helpful activity keeps employers’ financial butts out of the sling. EAPs don’t get the credit because we aren’t talking about it, and it is my argument that we should care a lot more about this side of the equation. Why?

There is a new twist in the 21st century that is leveling the playing field and giving an upper hand to disgruntled employees. It is making the importance of having an effective, proactive, well-in-cultured EAP critical and worth every cent it costs.

That new twist is the social media, especially Web 2.0 sites like YouTube.com. These are free, monstrous, broadcast media outlets that take no prisoners.

An EAP that is visible, known, trusted, and has a real face with it can attract employees who may turn to it with the goal of processing their frustrations, complaints about ethics, anger with supervisors, or tales of abuse and harassment.

Effective EAPs work with two hats in these situations empathizing with the employee, and protecting the company financially by helping the employee get their needs met in effective and appropriate ways.

Absent this level of easily accessible and visibly marketed support for employees, companies place themselves at financial risk. This is especially true if they try to get an EAP on the cheap. For most, this is a direct result of naivety or advice from misguided benefits consulting firms.

Employees who are angry and disgruntled have strong impulses to share their story and vent their frustrations. Starting with an empathic listening ear at the EAP is a better channel than YouTube. It would be better to have an employee’s story end up in the New York Times than on YouTube. YouTube is forever. A classic and recent example follows:

As I write this column, Bank of America has 300,000,000 shares of stock trading (Dec. 8th). But a YouTube.com video posted by a disgruntled employee only a week ago has received over 146,000 views and counting. This growth is the result of word-of-mouth advertising about this video. This is called “viral marketing”. It is a powerful force. To wit, mainstream media, without any qualification or fact-checking, has picked up on the video and is using it for its own economic purposes. I have provided the links below.

Not surprisingly, Bank of America’s stock price has nose-dived in the same week. It has lost millions.

Is Bank of America’s stock price drop the direct result of this video? No one can say for sure. But it is safe to say that it is not helping. And it is more likely that people are looking at this video than press releases about BAC’s financial future.

Do you see an argument for having an effective, humanly visible, and appropriately funded employee assistance program that can act as a stop-gap to helping an organization by dealing with and sincerely helping troubled or disgruntled employees?

Can you see the value in making an EAP a benefit to employees and a loss-prevention, management tool for business organizations?

The latter is under-appreciated and it is continually ignored. This is a direct result of a “reformulated” model of EAPs that has been promoted in the health benefits and managed care literature, and has been accelerated by being unchallenged in an organized way.

From the former supervisor referral of an employee who may soon lose their job over poor job performance, to simply being a program of attraction where employees head for coaching, wisdom, and direction, EAPs have unrecognized and unsung potential to be more vital to corporate America’s financial vitality than we are hearing about or seeing right now.

It is my belief that once the property casualty insurance industry (the real stakeholders) make this connection, that is seeing vibrant EAPs as loss prevention mechanisms, the EAP field will experience explosive growth in a new direction that will result in less violence in the workplace, few disasters like the one below, and of course, more helped employees.

To see the video, go to YouTube.com and Search “Why Bank America Fired Me”.

Media Promotion of This Video