Mike Duffy & Chip Merlin

An insurance agent has many responsibilities which to do correctly, requires a great amount of specific education and a lot of attention to detail. Insurance agents are important because they sell one of the most important financial products any of us can purchase. The entire purpose of the insurance product they sell protects us from financial calamity. Every now and then, a lack of attention to detail comes back to harm a customer.

Insurance agent educator, Bill Wilson, made an interesting note about colleagues in When Words Collide: Resolving Insurance Coverage and Claims Disputes:

There are many outstanding P& C insurance agents in the industry. These are people with an historical perspective of the industry, that understand that our industry’s primary mission is to assist consumers and organizations in minimizing their exposure to serious or catastrophic financial loss. These are men and women who engage in life-long, quality education and abide by the highest professional and ethical standards. They read and understand the insurance policies they sell and service. Sadly, they may represent a minority of agents.

Merlin Law Group attorneys Mike Duffy, Mike Poli, and Mike Ponzo were victorious in an agent negligence case last week in Phoenix. The insurance agent failed to include certain parties, either as insureds or loss payees, to the insurance contract. After approximately 50% comparative negligence, the net verdict was about $640,000.

Mike Duffy heads the Merlin Law Group trial division. No lawyer or law firm is going to obtain full settlements without the ability to obtain full trial verdicts. Insurance defense counsel and insurance company claims management make these assessments all the time. We are lucky to have such fine and experienced trail attorneys with Mike Duffy heading our efforts.

Thought For The Day

It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.
—John Wooden