10-17-08 More than Half of Hurricane Ike Claims Closed; Deployment Will Continue Until the Job is Done
As we monitor the progress of storms Omar and Odile in the Atlantic and the fires that erupted in Los Angeles this week, we don’t want to lose site of the fact that dedicated claims employees are still focused on dealing with our customers’ losses related to Ike.

The bus and customer care vehicles (CCVs) have officially left the area, but adjusters will remain in Texas over the next three weeks to continue working on claims.

“We are switching people in and out and we are trying to keep 135 - 150 adjusters there through the beginning of November,” says Dennis Squibb, assistant vice president, Claims. “We’re closing between 1,000 and 1,200 claims per day.”

A new deployment of 45 adjusters from both Foremost and Farmers will be on three-week assignments in Texas beginning October 15. In addition to the team on the ground, 20 Farmers claims employees arrived in Grand Rapids this week to assist the inside claims operation with tasks that would usually have been handled by the adjusters who are in Texas.
 “Half of Ike's property claims will be handled by the inside operation and the other 50% will be handled by either one of our field representatives or the independent adjusting firm we've hired,” says Squibb.

10-10-08 Claims is Answering Ike’s Call; Volunteers Return with Renewed Energy
Ike is moving farther from today’s news each day. As Gustav claims wrap up, our Claims staff is working to close over 40,000 claims received since the storm on September 13.

Volunteers Return and are Deployed Again
The storm made landfall, but the clean-up continues for many of our customers and will continue over the next few months.  Non-claims volunteers deployed after Ike hit are returning from storm duty, and in some cases, volunteering again because of their positive experiences. Tammy Bell, Quality Assurance analyst, was stationed in Cleveland and Friendwood, Texas on a customer care vehicle (CCV).

Bell recalls the highlight of her trip being the reactions she’d get from customers she helped; the looks of relief, the hugs and the tears. The mobile units and volunteers were there to help, feeding between 1,200 – 1,500 hungry Ike victims in a single afternoon. Bell goes on to say the agency force in Dallas showed up at the CCV to cook and stock supplies like diapers, baby clothes and food, flashlights and batteries.

“If you really like working with people and making a difference, it is very rewarding,” says Bell.

John Gonthier, Business Resource analyst, was in Beaumont at a mobile claims bus location. Gonthier recalls a situation he had where he struck up a conversation with an older gentleman who wore a fishing hat with a hook hanging from the rim. In talking with this man, he realized they shared a common interest of fishing. Before leaving after he’d been helped, the man reached up and gave Gonthier the hook from his hat.

“I was touched by the fact that even though this man had lost everything, he gave away his treasure. Even though people had lost everything and they had to wait in long lines battling heat, they kept their cool. They were in good spirits,” says Gonthier.

As Ike winds down and we work to close claims and put this catastrophe behind us, we can be proud of the incredible job employees from many areas of Foremost have done to respond to our customers.

10-10-08 Customer Care Vehicles Provide Much Needed Assistance
In addition to two 45-foot self-sustaining buses, a fleet of 35 Customer Care Vehicles (CCVs) were introduced into the claims response during the California wildfires last fall.

Each CCV consists of a tow vehicle and “toy hauler”-style trailer.  Each trailer has 15 feet of cargo space, is capable of holding 102 gallons of fresh water and is custom-equipped with a generator, gas stove, refrigerator, bathroom and flat-panel TV/DVD monitor with a satellite TV system. The trailer is stocked with all the items needed to run a makeshift claims service center, completely mobile, wherever disaster strikes.

The CCVs are not just for catastrophes. They are also used year-round at community events like March of Dimes fundraisers, or state fairs and expos.

The buses and CCVs are a key part of our claims response. When storms and disasters strip areas of essential utilities the buses and CCVs are already on the move to help our customers, and provide adjusters the tools to begin handling claims immediately.

A Foremost Employee Relays the Sights and Challenges of Storm Duty, Volunteered to Return

Dawn Kellogg, Specialty Lines supervisor recently spoke with Sharon Willett, communications specialist, about her voluntary storm duty in Beaumont.  Kellogg was redeployed on October 1 for another tour of storm duty in Texas and was more than happy to return to help our customers.

Kellogg’s job was to make customers as comfortable as possible during their wait at the mobile claims center (MCC). She assisted with a triage operation to determine whether the customer was from Foremost or Farmers, this included looking up information and giving out lots of hugs to people who lost everything.

Despite hot temperatures, long lines and stress, Kellogg reported that people in Houston and Beaumont were very nice. Local business owners opened early and stayed open a little later to accommodate storm volunteers who needed something to eat before and after their 2-hour commute into Beaumont. A strict curfew of 9 p.m. was enforced for everyone in the area after the storm.

The most difficult experiences for Kellogg were the long hours and seeing the pain of others trying to make it through a loss. Volunteers were up by 4 a.m. to get on site in Beaumont by 7:30 to set up for 8. Even then there were lines, people sleeping in vans, sometimes with babies wrapped up in their arms. There was also a 70 -year-old man who had lost everything and was not able to get his medical treatment because the hospital had run out of it.

An unexpected experience that no one fully got used to was the smell caused by dead, decaying animals and fish - only exacerbated by the heat.

A bright spot of the experience was seeing a Foremost customer, Clair Hughes, enjoying a piece of cake on her birthday. Hughes stopped by the MCC a few times after her claim was filed just to have coffee with “her family.” Read more about Hughes and how happy she was with her Foremost
service.

“But even the challenges fade in her memory when Dawn recalls helping Clair who hadn’t eaten for two days and was so grateful for a doughnut and water. Dawn saw her cry when she was handed her check, and cried again when they celebrated her birthday by singing to her and giving her some cake. Hearing that same woman call the staff and volunteers her “family” and seeing her return day after day just to spend time with them, made Dawn’s experience worthwhile,” says Willett.

Kellogg’s advice to anyone contemplating volunteering for storm duty? Be ready for unexpected changes. 

When asked if she would do it again Kellogg responded, “In a heartbeat! I’m leaving again tomorrow morning.”

10-06-08 Employees Support Ike Adjusters with Time-Saving Service

As you’ve been reading, employees from all areas of the company are going the extra mile to help our claims team assist Ike victims. One employee saw a service need when she was in Houston working at a mobile claims center (MCC) location taking new claims and helping our customers.

Jessica Holmes, ForemostSTAR® help desk analyst, volunteered for storm duty and was part of the first group deployed just after Ike made landfall on September 13.  Holmes noticed the long hold times, the sometimes limited access for agents to report a claim on ForemostSTAR.com, or the inability to reach an agent at all due to power outages. She saw this created added stress for customers trying to file a claim at the MCC locations and move forward after their loss.

Holmes brought this concern to her supervisor Tim Howard and to Sue Boyd, Customer Service business manager, who took action with the help of our colleagues in Kansas City.

In a matter of days, the result was a small call center devoted to pulling up policy information over the phone for the employee working at the MCC location with the customer. This allowed  them to start the claim and speed up the process. The Foremost Express team in Kansas City staffed the call center.

“With high call volumes, this was a way to speed the process for our customers who waited in line in the hot sun to file their claim,” says Holmes.

Foremost is committed to helping our customers. Employees from many areas of the company have volunteered their time and have made victims of Hurricane Ike their first priority after disaster struck.

10-03-08 Have you heard about the latest dance craze? It’s called the Foremost Dance.

The Priest Insurance Agency in Lumberton, Texas had a dance in their office – it was actually one particular customer who was so thrilled with his claim service he couldn’t sit still.

After Ike, they drove around to each of their clients’ homes to check on them and see how they weathered the hurricane. One particular customer chose to stay in his mobile home in Lumberton and brave the storm.

Daniel from the agency relays the conversation he had with his customer.

“As he told the story, loss of power in the middle of the night, limbs crashing, trees breaking and watching the structures in his yard literally flying away, he began to cry. He went on about what it was like that night riding out the storm in what I assure you is the home he put his heart and soul into.”

Daniel didn’t hear anything back from this customer until a few days later when he arrived at the agency accompanied by his wife. They were both exuberant.

“He began doing what he called the “Foremost Dance.” After that, they stayed and talked to me for a good long while with nothing but smiles on their faces. We had put him in a position to put his life back in order. I don’t think he will stay if we have another storm, but according to him, he is our customer for life. I assure you he is spreading the news with his Dance.”

10-02-08 It’s ‘All in the Family’ for One Foremost Customer

Many Foremost employees working Ike storm duty have encountered Caribell “Clair” Hughes of Beaumont, Texas. Clair has two Foremost policies, one for her home and one for a rental property. In addition to having a loss from Ike, Foremost helped her when she had damage from Hurricane Rita in 2005. She was so happy with the service she received from Foremost after Ike, she spread the word that she now considers Foremost “her family.”

As Hughes was filing her claim, she mentioned it was her birthday. Coincidentally an agent was dropping off cakes at the mobile customer care (MCC) location – and it turned into an impromptu birthday party.

Bob Mancino, MCC supervisor, discovered the party as he was making a routine visit to the Beaumont site.
 
“I was trying to get around to the buses to see how everything was going. When I arrived at the Beaumont bus on Sunday, this lady came up to me and looked at me and said ‘Hey it’s my birthday today.’ I wished her a happy birthday. She saw my logo shirt, and kind of got a tear in her eye and said ‘Foremost is like family to me.’ She hugged me and I said ‘Well that’s wonderful, I’m glad that we were here to help you.’ She looked at me and said ‘You know, you may think you have insurance, but if you don’t have Foremost, you don’t have insurance.’ And I’m telling you that the way she said it, you could just tell that she was as proud of Foremost as you could ever imagine being. I thanked her again, and her eyes welled up again because we were able to help her.”

MCC operator Dee Caldwell recalls her interaction with Hughes.

 “This lady came up to the bus and I greeted her. She said she already had filed a claim but had just come from Wal-Mart and had bought a phone so the adjuster could get in touch with her. She was very hungry, so I took her over to the food table. I also got her new number and went over to one of the Foremost adjusters to have them input the info. While she was still eating, her phone rang. I said not to get her hopes up because they had just finished putting her new number in the system. But…you guessed it! It was her adjuster already calling her. It brought tears to my eyes.” 

Hughes came back to visit the Foremost crew often to check in with the company that helped her when she needed it.

Dawn Kellogg, contact supervisor, saw Hughes the next day. “She came back in the morning because we’re her family and she came to get coffee. And she said ‘I’m telling everybody that you guys are the best people.’”

Hughes received a check for her rental property claim and was overjoyed.

 “If it wasn’t for y’all, I wouldn’t have anything. Thank you so much for everything.”

Clair Hughes is a customer that makes it all worthwhile when you are working storm duty. Another example of how our Claims team has stepped up to help in a time of disaster.

09-30-08 A Day in the Life on Storm Duty
Brianne Frucci Tucker, communications specialist, traveled to Texas post-Ike to ride along with adjusters to document what goes into post-hurricane clean-up, and reaching out to our customers to begin the claim process. This in turn will help us market our superior claims service throughout the country – regardless if the area is disaster prone or not. Read about a typical day on Ike storm duty.

One of my goals when I traveled to Houston was to experience a full day in the field with an adjuster. I followed Andy Bedell, a special property claim representative who normally works in Detroit and Don Krafjack, a field supervisor from Columbus, Ohio for one day as they responded to claims in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike. Andy is working in Liberty County and Don is Andy’s team leader.

Bright and Early to Get the Most of the Daylight
The day started bright and early with a 5 a.m. alarm. Adjusters are dependant on the daylight to work in the field, so it’s important that they arrive at their first appointment by daybreak. We had an hour drive to the city of Cleveland, Texas, that morning, which required a 6:15 a.m. departure time.

We arrived at the first appointment to find a manufactured home speared by the top of a tree. Even though we were able to assess the damage, it still took over an hour to inspect the home and document the findings. Sometimes an inspection may take over two hours.

The next three appointments took a lot longer. We climbed up on roofs, inspected under skirting and took measurements to create an estimate of how much it would cost to fix each home. Adjusters tell our customers that appointments will take two hours, and a couple of ours that day took longer. The sun was setting as we got back on the highway.

Intensive, Emotional Work and Long Hours to Make Good on Our Promise
On the ride back to Houston, I asked Don if what I had witnessed, four appointments in a day, was typical. He replied, “Here in Houston, with the drive time that’s involved, anyone who’s able to take care of four customers in a day is doing yeoman’s work, because almost everyone has an hour-plus commute to their first loss site. If they make it to five, they’re probably taking their last photos as the sun’s going down and then driving back to Houston, and enjoying a cold fast food meal in a chair in their hotel room. They then finish all their paperwork and if they’re lucky, they get to bed by 12:30 a.m.”

I don’t know how long it took Andy to finish his paperwork at the end of the day, but I helped Don with his as we sat in standstill traffic. As a team leader, Don follows up with all group members every day, making sure they made their contacts, sometimes helping them with the more severe claims and organizes team meetings. These meetings can happen at anytime and anyplace. It gives the employees in the field the opportunity to talk about what they’ve seen, ask questions and just decompress.  

On my first night there, I witnessed one of these meetings. I was having a discussion with Rob Teves, Chris Dyer, Al Viola, Bob Mancino and Don, and I was asking questions about our adjusters. Bob Mancino put it best when he turned around and pointed at a group of people who were having a team meeting. “There’s the heart of our response,” he said. “It’s 11:30 at night and a team leader is over there meeting with her team, talking about the claims they’ve responded to and what’s upcoming for the weekend.”  

09-29-08 What They Say is True – Everything is Bigger in Texas
Foremost Corporate Communications Specialist, Brianne Frucci Tucker was in Texas post-Ike. The following story is based on one of her many observations.

You're probably aware of some of the challenges our claims employees are facing in Texas while helping customers affected by Hurricane Ike. The heat and humidity have been oppressive - but did you know that some of our field employees are having run-ins with large reptiles?

Jeff Bowlan, a branch claims supervisor from New England was out with one of his team members in Orange County near the Louisiana border, when they encountered a three-foot alligator in someone's yard. Thankfully, no one was injured in the encounter.

Although alligators may not be the norm, there are a number of dangers that people need to be conscious of when working in the field.

According to Chris Dyer, CAT coordinator, those dangers include “snakes, fire ants, downed power lines and turn around, don't drown.” In other words, be safe when you go into situations with standing water, and don’t take chances.

But even common bugs can become major problems. All the areas of standing water left in the wake of Hurricane Ike have caused the mosquito population to swell in the area. I can personally attest to the biting prowess of a type called the "tiger mosquito.” Tiger mosquitoes are large and have white stripes on their legs, and they don't discriminate as to the time of day they like to be out. After one day in the field, the bites on my legs resembled chicken pox. Bug repellant that contains DEET is a necessary supply for employees in the field, as well as a tube of anti-itch cream.

09-25-08 An Ike Volunteer Works Storm Duty Amid Hot Temperatures and Emotions

Elizabeth O’Donnell, a former claims employee now working in Marketing Research, volunteered to work Ike storm duty and has been in the Houston area since Sept. 19. O’Donnell is working at a customer care site answering questions, starting claims and providing ALE funds so customers can get much needed, basic items.

Despite the hot and humid temperatures and wait time, there has been a steady stream of people coming to the site for help – all with a variety of emotions.

“Many people I’ve talked with have been upset, and several have cried. It’s easy to understand when you find out that some people are going on 12 days without power, and the heat is something else. It just wears you out.”

One customer was so happy with his experience with Foremost that he brought back food for the claims group working the site.

“He went to a nearby Kentucky Fried Chicken and brought back a bucket of chicken with all the fixings. I cried then! I couldn’t believe how nice that was to think of us. That's why storm duty is so satisfying because you see the good and generous side of people.  It makes me proud to work for Foremost,” says O’Donnell.

All in a day’s work on storm duty. Especially at this time of great need for so many of our customers, it’s heartwarming to see the generosity and goodwill.

09-24-08 Online Claims Reporting Triples After Ike
Agents are turning to ForemostSTAR^® to report claims now more than ever

In the wake of Hurricane Ike, agents are using ForemostSTAR to report a claim rather than calling them in via phone. Agents use the ForemostSTAR Loss Notice function to work with the customer and report the claim.

”In August, only 20% of our claims were set up on ForemostSTAR,” says Jim Blair, Claims System Business Manager. “Following Ike, 65% of claims are being set up online. Using the ForemostSTAR Loss Notice shortens the training period so it allows temporary employees to begin taking loss reports much more quickly.”

The ForemostSTAR Loss Notice interacts with the system Foremost claims adjusters use to log and process claims, and triggers next steps in the claim process once the loss is reported, such as a follow-up phone call or inspection from a field adjuster for a larger loss.

Call volumes spiked after Ike made landfall September 13 and the claims call centers set all time highs for daily calls. The record went from a daily high of 27,000 calls to 46,000 calls in one day from three locations combined.

09-24-08 Debit Cards Successful with Ike Victims
Customers are responding positively to the use of VISA check cards. Issuing check cards was part of a project piloted last July in Kansas City and Atlanta, and has now been rolled out officially to our customers in Texas who’ve been affected by Ike. Customers can use these cards to buy much needed items like clothing, food, lodging and generators, for example. The added ease of not having to cash a check brings some comfort to customers who are dealing with damaged homes and property, or a total loss of their home.

Just another way Foremost is on top of the latest technology to make the claim process more streamlined for our agents and customers.

09-22-08 Claims Volunteers Have Stepped Up; Lodging is an Issue
Foremost Claims CAT coordinators, supervisors and team leaders continue delivering excellent customer service to our customers who had losses from Ike. At this point, we’re getting volunteers from all areas of the company to help with storm duty, but are having problems finding suitable lodging locally because of widespread power outages.

“We’re pulling people from every functional unit in the company. We have more resources to draw on; we just don’t have places for them to stay, says Chris Dyer, CAT manager.

Adjusters are logging in the travel time to get to our customers who are spread out in the Beaumont, Houston and Bridge City areas, because of the vast damage Ike caused spanning a wide radius.

“For the first four days of the response, I’ve driven 380 miles round trip from the southeast side of Houston to Beaumont…but I’d go wherever the customer needs me to go,” says Don Krafjack, field supervisor. Krafjack is working in the Beaumont area, but staying in Houston.

Despite lodging issues, Claims will continue to deliver on our promise to customers. We will be there when they need us.

09-20-08 What the Claims Team is Doing for Our Texas Customers
Clean up continues for Texans after Ike ravaged Galveston, Houston, Beaumont and surrounding areas September 13. Foremost adjusters, managers and team leads are on the ground helping our customers file claims and dig out from under storm debris. We have about 1,000 employees from all over the country deployed to ten customer care sites in affected areas. Based upon claim volumes and people needing assistance, more team members will be sent in waves to help.

From the Frontlines
The feeling from the claims team on the frontline is of camaraderie and teamwork – working together to make good on our commitment to be there for our customers when they need us.

Chris Dyer, CAT coordinator, says he hasn’t seen this kind of response in his history with the company.  

"This is the most significant single response event I have been involved with within my 12 years,” says Dyer.

Employees are working to ensure that people needing help are getting assistance with basic needs as well as getting the claims process underway for our customers.

Bob Mancino, MCC- CCV coordinator and corporate trainer, notes the commitment he sees to be there for our customers.

“It's about helping people.  It's my mission to make a customers life better.  There's a moment  when you look someone in the eye who has experienced devastation and realize that you made a difference.  That really makes my day."

Rob Teves, western claims manager, is thankful for the support he gets from those working with him.

"My whole team down here are people I'd want to have in a foxhole with me."

Our field adjusters and team leaders are committed to helping our customers, despite the aftermath of a very powerful storm.

The Backdrop
Many areas are still without power and the roadways in Houston show Ike’s wrath as it whipped through the city. What’s left of billboards along the highway are mere metal frames and debris is strewn across the road. Crews work to clean up as several lanes of traffic move to give them space causing widespread congestion.

The good news for heavy hit Galveston residents is that business will soon start getting back to normal. Schools will reopen next week pending if the building has power, and residents will be allowed to return within the next seven days depending on their proximity to the seawall.

The Ease of Check Cards
A new option for Foremost customers is a check card for ALE (Additional Living Expense) funds. Our customers have immediate access to funds so they can go right from a mobile claims center to a store (a majority of the CCVs are parked in Walmart parking lots) and get basic items. Most banks are closed making it difficult to cash a check. Banks may also put a hold on funds. Check cards are making it a bit easier for our customers affected by the devastation of the storm to get the basic necessities and start to get their lives back in order.

"This has been a great inaugural usage of the check card system in a CAT,” says Dyer.

Rest assured our customers are getting the help they need as they, with the help of Foremost, continue to weather the storm.

09-19-08: A Message from the Field
Texas is not the only state in the midst of cleaning up after a hurricane. Their neighbors in Louisiana are still dealing with damage from Gustav. Trish Bump, senior district manager for South Louisiana recalls when Gustav hit her area.

“Baton Rouge received a lot of damage. We were personally without power for nine days. It was a struggle. It was just this past Monday that the entire city had power restored. I had agents that did not have power at their office or home at the same time. Others were sleeping at their offices if they had power and others were working at their homes if they had power there,” says Bump.

09-19-08: Foremost Adjusters Working Through Gustav Damage
Losses were large and concentrated around the Baton Rouge area. "We are making good progress and closing at the pace of three to four losses per claim adjuster," said Ron Vlasblom, eastern regional property manager.

09-19-08: Bob Woudstra Featured in Local Paper
Farmers President and COO, Bob Woudstra was featured in the Houston Chronicle along with Chief Claims Officer Bryan Murphy and Senior Vice President of Zone Operations Steve Feely. They received an update from Texas Governor Rick Perry and Texas Insurance Commissioner Mike Geeslin.

To read the story, click here.

09-19-08: How You Can Help
The Red Cross provides much needed meals and other relief for disaster victims. With recent power outages in Ike’s aftermath blood drives were cancelled. Blood supplies are already low and continue to drop.
To find out ways you can help from your area, visit redcross.org.

09-18-08: Ike Update - Foremost is on the Ground Helping Customers
With just six days since Ike’s landfall in Texas, the process of digging out after the storm and reaching out to our customers is well underway.

Foremost has over 100 claims professionals in the Houston area working with our customers to start the claims process and begin to answer questions and provide basic sundries. Power has been restored to some areas, but still remains out for cites like Conroe and Montgomery. This is where our Customer Care Vehicles (“CCV”) are invaluable because they are claims offices on wheels. One Foremost employee, senior district manager Steve Scholl is stationed in a CCV in the Woodlands, just north of Houston near his home.

“We’ve talked to about ten or so customers today,” says Scholl. Many areas don’t yet have power and people are trying to remove trees and debris from their property. Everyone down here is pitching in to help. We have a strong presence here.”

Scholl goes on to say there’s been a run on gas with people waiting in line for hours only to be told there is a shortage and they can’t fill up. Generators and tarps are in high demand as well.

On the call center front, we answered over 46,000 calls on September 16 between three claims call center locations. Before Ike, the one-day high was 27,000 calls.

Tracy Vogel, HelpPoint customer service manager in Grand Rapids, noted that employees are being pulled from all over the company and working overtime to assist with this incredible call volume. Grand Rapids has used every space possible to house representatives, using classroom and break areas to set up call center environments.

Foremost adjusters are being sent in waves to help with Ike, with about 60 adjusters still working Gustav claims in the Baton Rouge area. The next wave of Ike adjusters will probably arrive at the beginning of October, but dates have not been finalized.

“Deployment plans are very fluid right now and we are making sure our customers are getting their claims filed and the help they need,” says Chuck Fedewa, senior claims consultant. Fedewa is part of the Quality Assurance claim consultant team at Foremost.

All in a day’s work for the Foremost claims team. It’s part of our commitment to our customers. We’re proud of our claims team and our ability to serve our customers, especially at this time of need.