If you place group life insurance, you have witnessed a freefall in competitive rates per thousand dollars of covered volume—a Race to Zero. People are living longer and actuarial professionals have taken this into account. This is good news and I’m all for saving money, especially in this economic climate.

But what does the race to zero say about attitudes toward group life? Some brokers and agents treat group life as a simple commodity, buying solely on price and disregarding the service, tools, and other ways carriers add value to employers, policyholders, and beneficiaries.  And this “you die, we pay” approach is short-sighted.

My dad died of a sudden heart attack years ago. He was a great Dad and I miss him terribly. As a group rep that started in this business in my early 20s I shared the “you die, we pay” mentality as well. It was not until I sat at the kitchen table with my mom and my dad’s agent that I learned that while on paper my mom was a beneficiary—in real life she was part of a large family working through a loss. Having someone there to answer our questions and to walk us through the process helped immensely.

Learning the value-proposition in a carrier’s approach to group life just might uncover some meaningful differences beyond pennies per thousand coverage quotes.

I would propose some questions brokers should ask their group life representatives regarding customer service to better understand the value clients and their employees get from their group life program:

• Does the carrier work directly with the employer/client when an insured dies?
• Who from the carrier reaches out to my client?
• How does the carrier support family members of the insured?
• What support services does your carrier offer HR departments?
• Does your carrier measure satisfaction of beneficiaries and employers?
• What are references likely to say about their experiences with your group life carrier?
• Does the carrier integrate all of the components of life, disability, and leave to reduce paperwork and points of contact?

In short, does your carrier offer personalized case management and work one-on-one with employers and beneficiaries through every step of the claim process?  And do you do a good job of understanding and highlighting this value to your group life clients?

Comparing AD&D provisions, waiver of premium, accelerated benefits, travel assistance, portability, conversion, guarantee issue amounts, and administrative capabilities are not nearly as exciting as dialing 1-800-CHEAP-LIFE, but this is the only way to be sure the protection provided to the employees of your clients adds true value.

Because with group life, it is never just a paper loss—there is an employee or beneficiary in grief.

Jim Kilbride is a Fairfax, Va.-based executive sales consultant for Liberty Mutual. He may be contacted at James.Kilbride@LibertyMutual.com