Elevate Your Pitch for Marketing Umbrella Policies

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Unfortunately, we live in a highly litigious society. Many people quickly sue for large amounts if they believe someone has wronged them.  Umbrella policies are designed to give you an extra layer of liability protection over and above a home, auto, boat, or other personal insurance policies. 

Despite the importance of a customer’s apparent need for an umbrella policy, brokers and agents often fail to offer one. This oversight can leave clients vastly underinsured. Elevating your pitch for umbrella policies will help you offer comprehensive coverage and earn your clients’ trust.

We’ll highlight below how to overcome objections to purchasing an umbrella policy, and help you identify the target market for these policies. We’ll also outline how to craft a strong umbrella pitch, share effective cross-selling strategies, and explain how screen-sharing can help you close the deal.

Shortcuts:

Understanding the Value of Umbrella Insurance

Overcoming Objections: I Don’t Need an Umbrella Policy

Target Market: Who Needs an Umbrella Policy?

Crafting a Strong Umbrella Pitch

Effective Cross-Selling Strategies

Utilizing Screen-Sharing to Demonstrate the Value of an Umbrella Policy

Leverage an Umbrella Policy to Build Long-Term Value and Loyalty

Understanding the Value of Umbrella Insurance

Drivers and homeowners who opt for higher than average limits often think they’re covered for any liability issue that may arise. Yet, it only takes one major accident to prove them wrong.

With an umbrella policy, the underlying home, auto, boat, or other policy’s limits will pay first. The umbrella extends liability over and above the underlying limits. 

According to the Swiss Re Institute, liability claims in the United States increased by 57% over the last ten years. Swiss Re attributes social inflation (rising costs of insurance claims above economic inflation) as the main driver behind the increase in insurance payouts due to lawsuits. 

Here are some examples of home and auto claims with high payouts:

  • A child goes on a social media rant, bad-mouthing and naming other students and teachers
  • A teenager with a driving permit takes the family car and causes a 3-car accident
  • A customer hosts a party, an inebriated guest gets into an accident, and causes severe injuries to another driver
  • A customer’s dog bites a child visiting their home
  • A child drowns in a customer’s swimming pool
  • A guest in a customer’s home falls down the stairs, sustaining severe injuries

These are just a few examples of claims you can share with customers to demonstrate how the average person can get caught without sufficient coverage to cover their liability. 

A good way to demonstrate how serious claims can be is by creating screen-sharing slides that show high-dollar payouts and the potential devastation of the family.

How valuable can an umbrella policy be? An article by Trusted Choice highlights the following facts about umbrella policies:

  • 13% of personal injury liability awards settled for $1 million or more.
  • About 20% of wealthy people don’t have an umbrella policy.
  • The average cost of an umbrella policy is approximately $380 per year for $1 to $2 million of excess liability coverage. 

For just a few hundred dollars, your customers can get a million or more of coverage to protect them against unforeseen future incidents. They’ll have to admit, it’s a lot of value for the money.

Overcoming Objections: I Don’t Need an Umbrella Policy

When a client says, “Thanks, I don’t need an umbrella policy,” or “I have enough liability coverage, thank you,” they are not likely considering all the facts. 

A quick review of what could happen when they don’t have sufficient liability insurance, a quick review of their assets, and the realization of the value an umbrella policy brings could change their mind.

Review of Their Assets

Clients may not fully appreciate how much could be taken from them in a lawsuit. A quick review of their assets may get them to reconsider the value an umbrella policy could bring to their lives. 

The first slide in your sales presentation may be an image of an umbrella that expands over images of a home and an auto.

Another slide that shows the following checklist may help them see that they have more to lose than they initially thought:

  • Bank accounts
  • Investments
  • A business
  • Real estate
  • Cars
  • Jewelry
  • Furniture
  • Antiques or collectibles

Risks of a Liability Lawsuit

Despite the extra cost, a client may better understand how critical it is to get an umbrella policy by pointing out what risks they may face if they get sued.

  • Out-of-pocket expenses beyond what their home or auto policy limits
  • Seizure of their personal assets
  • Wage garnishment
  • Liens on property
  • Driver’s license suspension

Any of these situations could put a client in dire financial distress. The risks hit differently when they see that bullet list on your sales presentation slides.

Assessing the Value of an Umbrella Policy

When you can help a client understand all they have to lose and the risks they could face in the event of a major lawsuit, it quickly becomes clear they need an umbrella policy. 

It won’t take much to convince a client that a million dollars of umbrella coverage provides vast peace of mind for the few hundred dollars it costs. 

Target Market: Who Needs an Umbrella Policy?

The notion that only wealthy families need an umbrella policy is a myth. Anyone who has assets, high risks, a public profile, or owns a business needs an umbrella policy. You can’t know who is a candidate for an umbrella policy without asking questions and learning more about their financial situations. 

While most people may benefit from an umbrella policy, we’re highlighting several classifications of people you may want to target for excess liability coverage and why it is a must-have in their insurance portfolio.

High Net-Worth

Simply put, high-net-worth clients have more to lose than lower and middle-class people. Standard home and auto insurance policies don’t typically have enough liability coverage to protect against a lawsuit.

Additionally, a potential litigant may sue for more when they’re against someone with notable wealth or assets. 

An umbrella policy can help safeguard their wealth and preserve their lifestyle and legacy.

High Risks

Your clients may not be aware of hazards that may put them at higher risk in a lawsuit. 

It’s important to ask clients questions about their homes, drivers, and investment properties to help them uncover risks that may not be readily apparent. Lots of questions make for awesome virtual selling practices. 

Pro-tip: A video inserted into your sales presentation is a good way to ask and answer questions about who needs an umbrella policy and why it offers essential protection. In fact, this strategy may work nicely in video prospecting. 

This is especially important during virtual sales presentations, where you can’t see risks during an in-person appointment.

For example, you might ask the following questions:

  • Do you have a hot tub or swimming pool?
  • Do you have a trampoline? 
  • Do you have any pets?
  • Do you have teens who are or will become drivers?
  • Do you own any rental properties?
  • Do you have any guns in the house? 
  • Do your children use social media?
  • Do you serve on any boards of directors? 
  • Are you considered a public figure? 
  • Do you own a business? 
  • Do you regularly host parties? 

A yes answer to any of these questions signals the need for an umbrella policy.

Business Owners

Business owners face personal and professional risks that can easily exceed underlying limits of liability. 

An umbrella policy adds a layer of protection against large lawsuits that could threaten the business owner’s personal wealth and business assets. 

Depending on the risks, a personal or commercial umbrella policy (or both) may be appropriate. 

Public Profile

People in the public eye carry higher risks than everyday people, as they are more visible. Their visibility carries a higher liability exposure. 

While not all insurance companies will agree to insure people with a public profile, specialty brokers and agents often partner with companies that specialize in public profile risks.

Here are just some of the professions and public profiles that carry a high liability exposure:

  • Influencers
  • Authors
  • Executives
  • Politicians
  • Community leaders
  • Athletes
  • Entertainers

(This is another good bullet point list to present to clients with home or auto insurance sales.)  

An umbrella policy should cover these professions and any others that place someone under public scrutiny.

Crafting a Strong Umbrella Pitch

Most people are familiar with the benefits of home and auto insurance. That’s not so much the case with umbrella policies. A successful umbrella pitch resonates with customers. To craft your pitch, lead with risk, add relatable stories and hypotheticals, and close with an emotional and rational appeal. 

Assuming you’ve already established that a client needs an umbrella policy, here’s a step-by-step plan for crafting a strong umbrella pitch:

  1. Ask a question that gets them thinking about risks. When the wheels start turning, the customer will start to envision how a lawsuit could bring financial trouble to their families. For example, you might ask, “How would it affect your family if a tragic accident left you liable for hundreds of thousands of dollars?”
  2. Explain the risks. No one expects to be sued, but it’s always better to be prepared if they get named in a lawsuit. Call the litigious nature of our society to their attention. They risk losing all or most of what they have without the right amount of liability coverage. 
  3. Explain the benefits. In addition to liability coverage, umbrella policies also cover legal fees, false arrest, libel, and slander. In most cases, adding an umbrella policy will also give customers a discount for bundling their policies with one insurance company. 
  4. Play up the value an umbrella brings. Take the total premium and divide it by the number of days in a year to drive home the value that an umbrella provides. For example, a million-dollar umbrella policy with a $350 premium equals less than a dollar a day. 

Most everyone benefits from an umbrella policy, and it should be included in a comprehensive risk management plan.

Effective Cross-Selling Strategies

The three T’s are key to cross-selling umbrella policies effectively: timing, trust, and tailored conversations. 

Let’s take a look at them individually:

  • Timing: When you introduce an umbrella policy, it is just as important as how you pitch one. The best times are often during key life events: e.g. purchasing a home, adding a teen driver, or getting a significant income increase. 
  • Trust: Train your customer service representatives and account managers to plant the seed for adding an umbrella policy. Utilize your CRM to flag you when it’s time for policy reviews and future life events. 
  • Tailored conversations: Gain familiarity with your customer’s lifestyles and goals. Tailor your umbrella pitch to include personalized recommendations for when to buy an umbrella and how much coverage they should get. 

Utilizing Screen-Sharing to Demonstrate the Value of an Umbrella Policy

Seeing is believing, which is why screen-sharing is an essential tool for cross-selling umbrella policies. Images combined with facts tell a clear story about why a client needs excess liability coverage. 

An interactive approach builds trust and encourages engagement. Start brainstorming how you can sell your clients on the need for more liability. 

Here’s a list to get you started:

  • Email campaigns with real-life stories of people who needed their umbrella policies
  • Short-form video explainers for email campaigns and social media ads
  • A lunch-and-learn session on the danger of liability gaps
  • Walk through a real-life claim scenario
  • Depict coverage comparisons

Screen-sharing during these moments can help make complex information easy to understand by turning abstract scenarios into visible, relatable solutions. 

Leverage Umbrella Policies to Build Long-Term Value and Loyalty

Home and auto insurance policies with high limits offer a degree of protection against unforeseen risks. With your expertise, you can help them see that an umbrella policy protects them against accidents where someone accuses them of negligence or wrongdoing.

Cross-selling an umbrella policy positions you as more than an insurance salesperson. Your clients will begin to see what a trusted advisor and amazing salesperson you are.

Clients who learn to rely on your expertise won’t hesitate to provide word-of-mouth referrals, which will help you build your business even further. Nearly everyone needs protection against lawsuits, so be sure to integrate an umbrella quote into every sales conversation.

You can rely on CrankWheel’s screen-sharing tool to create a seamless screen-sharing experience for your customers. It’s a simple tool that lets you focus on the sale, rather than the technology. Try CrankWheel for free, today.