This Florida agency eats challenges for breakfast
and thrives on solving complex problems
By Elisabeth Boone, CPCU
Rudolph (Rudy) V. Howard is president of R.V. Howard & Associates, Inc., in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Here he visits with agency client Underwater Engineering.
In today's business environment, office attire runs the gamut from old-school-tie conservatism to far-out faddish. In most insurance agency offices, business casual is about as funky as it gets ... but if you follow Florida agency owner Rudy Howard on a client call, you're just as likely to see him in yellow diving gear as in suit and tie. At R.V. Howard & Associates, Inc., in the coastal city of Port St. Lucie, going the extra mile is what it's all about, whether it's into the briny deep (the agency insures an underwater engineering company) or up, up, and away (another client owns a fleet of aircraft). On terra firma, of course, are more conventional risks--contractors, restaurants, garages, and personal auto and homeowners--but whether located on land, sea, or air, every client of R.V. Howard & Associates receives the kind of star treatment that builds volume, profits, and retention.
Incorporated in 1996, R.V. Howard & Associates began operating in 1997 as a one-man shop. "I started out on my own, selling commercial lines," Howard says. "I had brochures printed up and went from door to door trying to drum up business. About a year later I hired my first employee, and things took off from there. I specialized exclusively in commercial insurance until about
18 months ago, when I began to offer personal auto and homeowners. Some of my commercial clients were pressuring me to move into the personal lines area so they could do all their business with my agency." Also in response to his clients' wishes, Howard has initiated discussions with a life insurance producer who would join the agency and offer life, health, and benefits products.
Although he built his agency from scratch, Howard was anything but a neophyte; his nearly 30-year insurance career encompasses experience in claims, training, and brokerage for Sentry Insurance, General Accident (now CGU), Crum & Forster, and Tri City Insurance Brokers in New York City.
Today R.V. Howard & Associates employs a full-time customer service representative for personal lines, a secretary/receptionist, and Howard's wife, Brenda Howard, CPCU, who works part time. The agency's premium volume stands at about
$2 million, of which 85% is commercial lines and 15% is personal lines. Lead carriers for commercial business are Travelers Property Casualty and Zurich Insurance Services; homeowners is written through New America Insurance Company in Tarpon Springs, Florida. Howard also works with a number of specialty wholesalers.
Appetite for tough risks
The agency is located in St. Lucie County and serves the neighboring counties of Martin and Indian River, and its reach extends as far south as Miami and as far north as Fellsmere. "The business I've developed outside the area has come mostly through word of mouth," Howard says, "and occasionally a prospect will visit our Web site and then call us." Over the years, he adds with a chuckle, "I've gotten a reputation among my fellow agents that if a risk is weird and difficult to place, send it to Rudy because he'll find a way to handle it. My employees ask me, 'What do you enjoy working on the most?' I like the complicated, difficult risk. I like to unbundle the information and figure out how to handle it; I find that really challenging and stimulating."
How about an example? "The risk I've found most challenging is arranging workers compensation coverage for an underwater engineering company," he responds. "They do underwater construction, and what makes them unique is that they developed a technique for cleaning out waste tanks for nuclear plants. There's a special kind of water that is put into the tanks, and every so often the tanks need to be drained to clean out the sludge and scrub the walls of the nuclear reactor. My client sends divers into the tanks to clean out the sludge without having to drain the water. That's resulted in an enormous savings for nuclear plant operators."
Rudy suits up in diving gear.
In trying to arrange coverage for this risk, Howard understandably encountered some resistance from carriers. "They wanted to classify the risk as an underwater diving operation for the nuclear waste tank cleanout process," he says. "I pointed out that this is not a typical underwater operation in a natural body of water; it's more like a pool. I really had to fight to convince the underwriters that this operation should be classified as a pool risk rather than as an underwater risk, and eventually they agreed. There's a significant difference between the underwater rates and the pool rates, and by getting our client classified as a pool risk, we were able to save him about $40 per $100."
It's that kind of determination and persistence that make Howard a go-to agent for difficult risks. Here's another example. "Just recently, on a referral, I got a call from someone who builds reefs in the ocean. He said, 'Somebody told me to call you and you'd figure out a way to do it.' I said, 'I haven't handled a risk like this yet, but I think I can get it done.' So I found a market that was willing to write it." Among other non-mainstream risks on Howard's client roster are an importer of toys from Hong Kong, a manufacturer of kites for surfboards, and commercial barges.
Moving into personal lines
As mentioned earlier, Howard's commercial lines clients were eager to bring him their auto and homeowners business. As anyone who's done business in Florida knows, finding a stable personal lines market is definitely not a walk in the park. How did Howard accomplish it? "I met the people from New America Insurance at a Florida Association of Independent Agents conference, and that was right about the point at which I was considering entering the personal lines business. As the saying goes, timing is everything, and New America was looking for someone in my area to represent it, so we had a marriage. Today New America writes about 60% of my homeowners business. They appreciate our loyalty to them and the business we send them, and they've been very good to us in terms of being flexible and helping us do what it takes to remain a viable homeowners market."
R.V. Howard & Associates staff: (From left, standing) Carla Schalip, commercial lines CSR; Sabrina Bouchillon (personal lines CSR); Brenda Howard and (seated) Rudy Howard.
New America also operates an MGA for commercial lines; as it happens, Howard already represents the carriers with which New America MGA places business. "They've told me they're considering adding other carriers, and if they did, I'd certainly do business with them, because I feel very comfortable about the relationship I have with them."
Hard market challenges
Like every other independent agency in the country, R.V. Howard & Associates is keenly feeling the impact of today's constricted market for property and casualty coverage. On the positive side, higher premiums mean higher commission income for the agency; the downside is having to deliver the bad news to clients. "It's been very painful," Howard comments. "When we get a renewal and we have to tell the client that the premium has gone up 50% or more, it becomes a credibility issue. One of my clients was paying $13,000 last year, and this year it's $35,000. We're seeing some huge rate increases, and we have to convince our clients that we've done everything we could to get them a reasonable premium. I've had to remarket accounts that normally would have rolled over, and as a result our workload has almost doubled."
Market conditions aside, Howard is acutely aware of the importance of providing top-notch service after the sale. "We try to go beyond just servicing accounts and create an atmosphere of friendly service," he says. "Our corporate motto is, 'We treat our customers like friends.' When people call, we try to show them we're happy to hear from them and help them. We never want customers to feel like they're putting us out. I think our positive approach to service has been a key factor in growing our business."
Educating and informing
In addition to arranging coverage and providing service, R.V. Howard & Associates also acts as an educational resource for prospects and clients. "Because this area is experiencing such tremendous growth, I get a lot of calls from people who are starting businesses," Howard says. "The more established agencies often don't want to be bothered with these people. I spend time with them, explaining the things they need to understand as they start their business and describing the kinds of insurance protection they'll need. I also work with the Indian River Community College's Entrepreneurial Institute, which offers a 12-week program for people who are interested in starting their own business. For the last few years I've been the insurance guest speaker for that program. I tell the students about the various kinds of insurance they may need and explain how to go about finding an agent; what's the difference between an independent agent and a direct writer and why that difference is important."
Looking ahead
As his agency's volume grows, Howard is cognizant of the need to augment his staff. In addition to bringing on a life producer, he plans to add another service position. "In Port St. Lucie, we're experiencing tremendous growth in housing on the west side of town, and I'm considering opening a branch office there in 2004 so I can capitalize on the personal lines opportunities that are emerging," Howard says.
With his reputation as a problem solver for difficult risks, his focus on keeping customers happy, and his commitment to measured growth, Rudy Howard clearly has what it takes to thrive in a market where challenges abound. *