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ABATE of Colorado
ABATE of Colorado was recently forwarded an e-mail concerning insurance issued by American Income Life Insurance Company (AIL). This insurance for Accidental Death and Dismemberment is being issued free to participating SMROs. There is a document (the e-mail we received) attached to this e-mail that provides detailed information. You might want to read it now before you read the rest of this e-mail. (if you can't open it, e-mail me, and I'll copy it into my response.
Spent part of Monday researching the websites of the SMROs mentioned in the e-mail to see if there was anything on them mentioning this insurance as a benefit. I could find nothing. However, I did check the State of Colorado and this company is licensed to operate here and has had no complaints filed against it as of 2006.
I sent an e-mail to Warren asking if he truly originated the e-mail and explained, “One reason that I'm questioning this is that in my initial research I found no reference to this kind of insurance on any of the websites for the organizations referenced (ABATE of Florida and ABATE of California.) I was surprised since we would HEAVILY advertise it!” I also e-mailed “Doc” Reichenback who is the President of ABATE of Florida to get his input. Warren e-mailed me back, and Doc called.
Warren started his e-mail with, “Yeah, it's for real.” He also pointed out that, “California does not have the policy at this time (although they are in process of getting it also). They used to have a similar policy years ago but it was one that cost them money. That's the one I was referring to in the article.”
When I spoke with Doc, he couldn’t say enough about this policy. Apparently they have had AIL for about two years and have had about a dozen opportunities to “test” it. The company has paid out every time, no problems (to the tune of about $50,000 so far.) Since Florida renewed for a second year, their insurance has been bumped up to $4,000. No bad for just stuffing envelopes! In fact, Doc said that when they send out the insurance mailing each year (to get it to the new members, and to remind those who already have it,) and they stick another flyer in the envelope advertising an ABATE of Florida event, too. Since AIL is paying for the mailing anyway…
Using Florida as an example, if a member has an accidental death or dismemberment (at any time – not just associated with motorcycles,) and ABATE finds out about it, ABATE will contact AIL, confirm that the member was in good standing, and a check goes out. If a family member goes to AIL directly then AIL will contact ABATE to confirm membership, and a check goes out.
I mentioned to Doc that I didn’t see it on his website, and he confessed that he never thought about putting it there as a recruiting tool!!! When I pointed out the same to Warren, he said, “We are not advertising ours yet because we are still in the final stages. Just waiting for the letters from AIL to get printed so we can mail them out.”
Doc mentioned a problem they had, and Warren’s e-mail mentioned the same thing, so I’ll let Warren tell you about it: “Anyway, all (Washington and one of the Dakotas and maybe Illinois) said they were pleased with AIL. One, I think Washington, and I know they had the same problem in Fla., said one of the AIL reps that visited was being overzealous (hard selling) and they got complaints but the complaints were heard (by AIL) and the agent did not repeat the offense. The thing is, as I pointed out, one does not have to have a visit with the agent in order to get the coverage. That's only if they want to hear about other, non-free policies, and if they want whatever free incentives AIL might be offering in your state. We have stressed that here with our members and will do so again before the mailing goes out - that they are covered whether they respond to the mailing or not.”
Okay, bottom line – after communicating with these guys (and if the Districts concur) I believe that we should contact AIL. This sounds like the "real-deal" and looks like an EXCELLENT benefit for our members and a marketing tool, and should gain us some members. Like Doc said, Life Members of ABATE will have it the rest of their lives and will never have to think about it. This will also spur our current members to keep their memberships up-to-date. Now when someone asks, “What do I get for my ABATE membership?” we’ll have a ready answer.
Cheers,
Don
Don Creamer
ABATE of Colorado Legislative Affairs Specialist
ABATE of Colorado exists to preserve freedom of the road, to unite motorcyclists, to promote fair legislation, safety, and rider education and to provide a network for communication on issues affecting motorcyclists.
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Contact: Jeff Hennie, Vice President of Government Relations
Email: jeff@mrf.org March 14, 2008 WASHINGTON DC UPDATE - Winter on its way out of town here in Washington can only mean one thing. No, not cherry blossoms, but the other springtime spectacle - biker lobby season. The past month has brought motorcyclists from all over the country to DC. ABATE of Colorado, ABATE of Ohio, ABATE of Iowa and ABATE of Wisconsin have all been to DC so far this year to meet with their federal delegations, as did the St. Croix Valley Riders who did double time and represented both Minnesota and Wisconsin. All of the groups that sent folks to DC should be proud of the teams they sent and of the work they accomplished. The issues being discussed in one-on-one meetings with Members of Congress, Senators and their staffs included closing the HIPAA loophole, DOT Secretary Mary Peters' proposed legislation, the right to repair bill, and the highway bill which will begin to take shape next year. Of importance to note is the widespread, uniformly negative response coming from individual Members of Congress and Senators to Mary Peters' proposed legislation to gut the 2010 grant program language and trump the funding for rider ed and awareness campaigns in favor of helmet use promotion. Most Members of Congress are content to leave the program intact and continue to fund only education and awareness campaigns through the life of the program. Mary Peters, however, is standing by her desire to push for helmet use and helmet laws, as evidenced by her testimony in a Senate committee hearing on March 6. Combating proposed legislation through a call to action can be confusing to Capitol Hill, which is why it's best to handle proposals like this one through face-to-face conversations with your elected officials. So if you really want to be effective in stopping her proposal, plan now to visit with your federal elected officials either in Washington or back in your home state. Congress will stand in adjournment from March 17 through 30, and chances are there will be an opportunity to meet with your lawmakers back home. It's also not too late to plan that trip to DC to meet with your legislators on Capitol Hill. Contact the MRF office if you need any assistance planning such a trip. SEE YOU IN PEABODY? - BEAST of the East is just outside Boston this year and is also just around the next corner of the calendar. April 18-20, the MRF will take the show on the road, and it promises to be a weekend packed with lots of information, networking and good clean fun. Who knows, maybe some of those guys who enjoy the breeze between the knees will make an appearance... you know who I'm talking about. Hope to see you there.
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