Marc Cuniberti Changes have occurred at the California Fair Plan (CFP) and they couldn’t have come at a worse time.
The changes at CFP have actually been ongoing but the major one occurred last year when they changed the portal that insurance agents use to quote and place fire policies. CFP, if you are a homeowner and have been on vacation for the last five years or so, is the last resort for fire insurance in at-risk topography.
I have covered the workings of CFP in past articles so I won’t do it again here, but the changes, like the portal change, will affect people who have their insurance there.
The new portal is called DUCK CREEK.
No joke but trust me, there have been a few puns that I cannot mention here being a family show.
I am not the most knowledgeable about the new agent portal as I am not sure many are, but why CFP would do such a thing is maddening. I suppose they had their reasons as the old site was a bit clunky and crashed a lot. It was also what I deemed as not very user-friendly. I guess compared to the new DUCK CREEK however, I would love to have it back. The old site still works but we can’t access current information on it for the most part.
So just a note on the changes that you may want to know. Your policy number has been changed.
Ya, I know.
That is causing a few headaches as customers try to pay online using their old policy numbers, not knowing any better, and get the infamous “no results” tab.
This means unless you have your renewal offer which contains your new policy number, you are S.O.O luck. Even if you have the renewal, since you hit the floor when you saw your new rate, you probably didn’t notice you HAD a new number. If you did notice, you probably thought “Hey, this isn’t my policy” as there is no note in there telling you it’s new. Those folks making periodic payments who did not receive a renewal notice may not be able to pay the current payment because they got tripped up on the number change issue.
That one is not set in stone but trust me, the system is a mess right now and I don’t think there would be many agents that would argue that one.
Renewal offers may also be late in coming on occasion. I’ve seen that one too many times to count. Panicked homeowners seeing half the state now on fire might want to be sure they are insured by making payments early.
Wham. Head on into the “new system glitch” wall they go.
Topping that off, when entering your old policy numbers, you would leave out the CFP letters on the front of the old numbers. One of my agents stumbled on the fact one now needs to enter CFP and then a space when entering the new number.
GAAH!
Agents can no longer print a copy of policies on the site. We used to be able to see the whole policy and print it to view specifics. Now I am told we need to send them an email to get a copy.
We can call of course, and you can if you want. Just make sure you have a speakerphone so your neck doesn’t cramp up on hold while you wait.
Wait times can be hours so I am told. And yes, I personally try to avoid the phone thing myself. My patience just isn’t what it used to be.
The new agent site is also nothing like the old site, so bouncing up on how to use it is another additional chore we have, not to mention everyone is shopping which means we get lots of phone calls. The calls either are from folks without insurance, trying to renew insurance, trying to get better pricing (an exercise in futility), or just not being able to pay the bill, or not even getting a bill.
Heck, I have had the wrong name in the subject line of emails from CFP only to find another name on the policy. I recently had a policy renewal come in with the mailing address in the insured property line on policies where people had a different address for mail.
I sent CFP a note on that one and they sent me an email back saying the problem was fixed.
Lo and behold, the renewal offer showed up with the mailing address STILL as the insured address.
All of this clustering in the midst of the hottest summer going and now half the state is ablaze and the real fires historically start in late summer and fall.
I know the folks over at CFP are trying their best, but holy smoke, it’s a mess out there so be nice to your agent!
“Watching the markets so you don’t have to”
This article expresses the opinion of Marc Cuniberti and is not meant as investment advice, or a recommendation to buy or sell any securities, nor represents the opinion of any bank, investment firm or RIA, nor this media outlet, its staff, members or underwriters. Mr. Cuniberti holds a B.A. in Economics with honors, 1979, and California Insurance License #0L34249 His insurance agency is BAP INC. insurance services. Email: [email protected]
