No matter who you chose you win. Once again, after we bring a competitive insurance program to compete with the associations, prices are lowered, fees are reduced! They still can not provide the coverage or the lower premiums that Cossio Insurance Agency provides but they are feverously trying!

A quote with us only takes 3 minutes to see how much you can save. 864-688-0121

Now the MIC association dues have been lowered from $150 to $25. The APL is not charging association dues, they are charging “administration fees” of $100, and of course this is on top of MIC “administration dues”. How can you charge $100 to forward an application to the insurance company? You are the one that completes the application and they charge you??? And receive commission on top of that? WOW, only in America.

Now some of you have seen the recent post by MIC about Mr. Snow, a partner of Mr. Sturgeon. Nobody knows who he is and he apparently has not been involved in the paintball industry or you would have heard his name previously. But he does have awesome credentials. Folks let me tell you, that CPCU designation is like a Masters in insurance, you are the Mac Daddy, you are knowledgeable of the laws, insurance coverages, etc. It is great to see someone so knowledgeable involved with MIC.

As a matter of fact this is what their post included:

In order to achieve this prestigious designation, insurance professionals must meet certain requirements in the following areas: A) Education�CPCUs pass national exams on topics including insurance law, accounting, risk management, and ethics.

So if he does have that designation, and is knowledgeable, why are they allowing and participating in illegal activity by accepting business from agents that are not licensed in that state? This is clearly against insurance law and part of the insurance code that he studied to get that designation. Maybe you just have to have a driver’s license to write insurance now. Hmmm.

Now the next line in this post is equally interesting:

B) Ethics-CPCU's promise to abide by a Code of Professional Ethics, placing their clients� needs before their own.

Ethics, hmmm. That last one is an interesting one. Let’s see, I have a copy of an invoice for a field for accident medical insurance, where they are charged association dues by MIC, MIC’s own association AASA, same address as MIC, phone number answered by same etc. Then they also are charged dues for the general liability policy. So there are two association dues to belong to the same association, one for each policy? Wow membership has its advantages. And THEN they charge you a $100 administration charge on top of it all!!!! Don’t forget then the next association follows suit and adds on their $100 administration charge. This is all for discounts with FTD florists….

If you ask me, the word ethical does not come to my mind when I read this. Looks like a reason to extract additional money from customers for services that do not exist. Then for Mr. Snow to knowingly allow their MIC insurance brokerage agency, and partners, to illegally accept business from unlicensed agents, knowing that the insurance code specifically addresses this issue as illegal and with fines for all involved, does not seem ethical to me. Does it to you? So if you have this CPCU designation, do you actually stand behind what it is supposed to mean or do you just put it into your letterhead. If you want to talk the talk then walk the walk and do what is right, legal, ethical and moral. Place your clients’ needs in front of your own as the CPCU Code Of Ethics states.

1. Bill sits on the Board of Directors of the Professional Independent Insurance Agents Association of Illinois (PIIAI), one of the largest independent agents associations in the country. Bill is also Chairman of the Education Committee for PIIAI, overseeing all statewide education programs, as well as developing new topics and programs.

Does the PIIAI Board of Directors promote board members operating knowingly with illegal procedures such as accepting applications from unlicensed agents? In my opinion, if you hold this designation, and you are a leader in the insurance industry, and on the board of directors, seems like you would not allow this to happen or stop it immediately.

Now I could post that I know someone that is a CPCU but that will not impress anyone in the paintball industry.

Now I must admit, I do not have the CPCU designation, nor do I act like I do.

What I will say is that I do have the correct licenses in each state to transact insurance. What I can say is that we provide a better policy with better coverages with insurance companies that have higher reserves and ratings, with lower premiums and savings for paintball field operators.

Paintball field owners, it is time to vote with your money. If you are sick and tired of being taken advantage of with multiple stacked so called “association dues”, “administration fees” and high rates for the last 5 years, switch the name on that check to Cossio Insurance Agency. You now have a choice. You have the option to send a message to these people that have enjoyed hundreds of thousands of dollars of association dues each year, over a million dollars thrown away!

If you want a quote to see how much money you can save, call me. If you hate paperwork just to get a quote, call us. It takes 3 minutes. If you have already completed an application with one of the other guys, send it to us. We will use it to quote. Of course if you wish to have coverage and take advantage of these minimum $500-1000 savings you will have to complete our application and send a check. Your March 1 renewal date is two weeks away; do not wait until the last minute!

Larry Cossio
Just a licensed insurance broker

www.paintballinsurance.com for online application
larry@paintballinsurance.com for email
864-688-0121 ext. 100 for phone calls