I bought a policy through Liberty National Life Insurance company 1/20/09. I then researched the company when I got home and was appalled by the things that I read here and on the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. I read that in the last 12 months there had been 38 complaints lodged against this company.
I decided to cancel my policy. I called my sales rep this morning and informed her that I did not want to do business with this company and why I didn't want to do business with them
She said she would have to talk to her manager and call me back. So I waited.
A couple hours later her and her manager call me and her unit manager starts to tell me that I was misinformed and that I had not properly researched the company and that I need to research it through the Dept. of Financial Regulations if I wanted an accurate picture of the stability of the company. I explained to her that alot of the complaints had been customer service issues and that finances had nothing to do with customer service.
I told her I didn't want to do business with a company that I had any doubts about and to cancel my policy. She started to agrue with me about how misinformed I was, at which point I told her I was not changing my mind and she told me no worries and hung up on me.
Which only confirms the customer service issues. I called my sales rep back and informed her that I needed something in writing pertaining to the cancellation and that my account would not be charged. She did fax me what I requested.
Later this afternoon I was called by the Regional Manager who started yelling at me about the fact that I got my info from this website and it wasn't posted by their customers but by their competors. I told him at that point that even if it was wrong that he and the other manager where trying to bully me into keeping a policy I do not want and that the company as a whole was leaving a bad taste in my mouth.
Everyone should beware of this company and I should have investigated before signing any paperwork. Which I of course told the sales people I wanted to do before buying the health insurance and they offered to bring up the torchmark web page for me.
This Liberty National office lures potential sales reps in by telling them they will give you free leads. When pressed on it, the manager told me he would send out postcards and I would get the responses and follow up on them. THAT IS TOTALLY NOT TRUE!!!
After I had gone through training and started asking about the leads, I was given a list of people turning 65 and was told I needed to go door to door, pass out "Free Gifts" and try to get appointments to get business. When I asked what happened to the postcards, I was told that they were not available until after I started submitting policies and then they may consider it. In the meantime, they want you to knock on 100 doors min. per week off their list.
Just to make it clear so you don't have the same problem, even if the manager doesn't tell you, if you do med supps, you will be required to go door to door off of their "Turning 65 list". If you do the business side, you will be required to call business's and go door to door.
If that is what you are looking for, it may not be a bad deal, but it would be nice if instead of being sneaky and misleading upfront, they would tell you the truth. Quite frankly, after I found he lied about that, I wasn't going to stick around and find out what else he was lieing about.
Their creed is the following and appears in there literature
Since its organization in 1900 "The Guiding principle of Liberty National Life Insurance Company has been to achieve sucess by deserving it, to protect its policyholders with a fair unselfish contract and to serve them faithfully,adequately,honestly and economically"
"Every decision considered at Liberty National must benefit the customer,the agent and the commpany."
Each is equal in importance,and if any one of them is missing we simply won't do it
IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING JOINING LIBERTY, DO NOT BELIEVE this propaganda for a minute.Check the history of this company withs regards to its cancer exchange program lawsuits.This company will also allow you to pay more into a policy than you can recieve.
I personaly have seen 2 policies recently where the insureds had paid in two times what the beneficiarys are going to recieve.
The company cares about one thing and one thing only and that is maximizing the earnings for the shareholders and the analyst.
Liberty is a 100 year old company and its management team has hundreds of combined years of expeirence.
You have to ask yourself how did the company lose 30% of their agents in 2004 and 50% in 2009
Ask the person interviewing you to show you a copy of the recent AM Best report
If you really want to see how Liberty is performing you can read about them in the annual reports which are on line.The comments from the President are a "broken record" of comments ."We are turning the corner at Liberty or I am optimistic that the next quarter will be better"
How is that this company with all of its changes and management leadership in the past 10 years has not made the company grow.In fact since 1998 inforce life premium has declined.Compare this record to their competitors.
Branch managers recruited 60,000 applicants last year and less than 300 agents will make it past their 1st anniversary.(Mgrs are required to recruit 10 prospective agents per week.Multiply this times 160 offices at 40 weeks a year)
The company promotes their agent position as an "Opportunity of a Lifetime"
If this was such an opportunity why are agents and managers leaving as fast as they come in ?
Branch and Unit Managers and former managers owe hundreds of thousands of dollars to the company due to lapsed policies which are a result of wholsale recruiting, poor training and mediocre products and ineffective leadership in the home office.
Thes managers are paid for the most part on newer agents ( less than 6 months in the business).If you can make it for 6 months the manager neither cares nor can afford to help becasue his # 1 job is to recruit and not manage
In fact he would he or she would prefer to see you leave and then the manager could give your accounts to a newer agent.
Liberty's niche is worksite and the middle income market.
Their focus is to specialize in writing insurance of $ 50,000 or less.In my opinion they have no regard for the well being of customers family, otherwise they would encourge agents to write more insurance and not penalize them when they do
Yes that is true, Liberty pays less commssion when you write bigger/larger face amount policies.
The true purpose of life insurance is to replace the economic value of the person
Liberty's agent for the most part are nothing more than "policy peddlers".
Before going to work for this company Do You Homework
Check the AM Best Report and other internet website comments
Ask the person or manager recruiting you the following
How many agents have you trained that are still in the business ?
The answer will shock you
Don't believe all of the hype
Only 200-300 agents are making any enough money.
Ask for the weekly bulletin and get the manager to explain in detail what it is and means.
In the last 3 years mgt has changed the compensation plan 7 times
Does this sound like a company that has it act together
Thank You Rip Off Report for allowing me to write this
The insurance business is a good career but this company, well let me just say this
Their record speaks for itself
No growth in the past 10 years
Lose 30 % of their agents in 2004 and then 50% in 2009
Consider the following if you are considering Liberty for employment.Per the company weekly reports only 300 agents out of 1700 are generating suffiicient premium enough money to pay their bills.The company lost 1500 agents out of appox 3400 agents in 2009 per mangement.Liberty has appox 140 districts.More than likely 70% of the premium and sales is being written by only 30% of the districts.(Similiar to the 80/20 rule)
According to AM Best the company is rated A+ with a negative outlook. AM Best is very concerned about Liberty National's ability to maintain and grow their field force.Liberty could be downgraded to A from A+ by losing 50% of its field force in the last 12 months.
In 2000, the company had $ 312 million of life premium in force.According to the latest annual report figures of 2008 the comapnay had $ 287 million dollars of premium in force.This figure alone should speak volumes about the management at Liberty National.
Liberty specializes in worksite marketing.They prefer small policies 10,15 and $ 25,000 policies.The company's niche has always been in the final expense market.Their cancer policy reduces considerably at age 65. Their current term insurance rates are 30-100% above "market rates".The more insurance you sell at Liberty the lower the commission you are paid.For example the company will pay you 65% commission on $50,000 Whole Life and 33% at $100,000.This also occurs with their term portfolio of poducts.
Mgt is constantly changing the pay plan.They open offices and then they close them.Former agents,unit managers and branch managers owe the company hundreds of thousand of dollars due to policys that were written and have now lapsed.(Persistency is below average at Liberty becasuse of its market niche).This is one of the reasons the company has to "over price" it products.
Their is the possibilty that the company could finally be realizing that its current philosophy is not working.Only time will tell.This sales job is for the very few.
If you are still interested, I would suggest having 3 months of living expenses set aside.Learn the business and and just know that 80% of agents who enter the business will be out of the business within 5 years according to the Life Insurance industry statistics.
Well like every one i was took by this company to.I was told i would may six figers and then about 100,000 the next year.Only to find out it was all a lie. I was told that i was not was calling or going to see enough people. Then when i was working with a girl in the office we were shareing work cause we both seen how things were and we had kids to feed. My bm call her in the office and said she want us to meet her at a daycare to do a payroll. So the next day my riding buddy { thats what we would call each other} showed up their and I was at the office wating for her. When she got back she asked were i was i told her here wating on you. We talk about what happen she said she was sorry cause i shared a payroll with her the week befor that i had got. I went up to talk to the bm about it and to see about what i heard about the 5k was true. cause i had just hit 5k and she was so mad got told me to shut the door so the new agents would not here. I said no cause if it was true they need to know befor they put all this money that i have in it. She told me to leave or she was calling the cops. I have not made no money after that. I have asked for help and all they said is your not calling orgoing to see enough people. so i was looking for some help online and come aross this web site. thank you all.I took all my stuff back up their and quit. I called the commissioner only to find i was they only one that has ever called about what was going on.So here is his number 404-656-2070 just maybe if all the people call we can stop the way they rope u in and hang you out to dry
Working for the company was one of the worst decisions that I could have made. This is a pyramid scheme in which the agent is urged to enroll family, friends and acquaintances. I now believe it was done that way because management knows the agent will not remain very long with the company. I was never told how much I would be paid for enrollments. When asked, the response was always the same "it varies. We will get to that later". I was always expecting the "bonus" that I was supposed to have reached that week but when it did not come, I always received some kind of justification. It was always "my fault". When asked what should I have done instead, it was always "we will be training about that. Training was promised but never materialized. There was a dread to go into the office to pick up your very, very small check each week....$20 at the most. You are asked to sit down; briefed about what you "need to do" (consistently under pressure to sell). Only after you have listened to the mental abuse are you handed your check. The office is so far away that you will have to put the change they said your earned into your gas tank. It was horrible. I never found out just how much I was to be paid. Looking for a $300 check and being handed and two figure check instead was very demeaning as well as insulting. And somehow you found yourself "owing the company" for sales you made, or didn't make or plans that they said "doesn't pay very much or charge backs. The only people I saw who made money was the branch manager. They make the money off their agents who leave all too soon because there is no incentive, you get fired, or healthy morale circulating and because you do not make money. You got threats to fire you rather than encouragement. I was all too shocked when I heard that when I decided to leave the company, I would owe them money and they would make me look bad to the insurance department. This is unfair. They should be the ones in which the insurance regulations department has a talk with. I'm not there anymore and I'm sorry I ever joined. It's been quite an experience to say the least. This was my first job as an independent agent. It has left me with a bitter taste in my mouth. I don't know that I can ever trust another company to do what it advertises.
I made an appointment for Group Insurance with a company that another agent went on the appointment. He signed up employees and I was to make 30% commission.
This appt. was on 9/24/09. I still haven't seen any payment for this.
Every week I ask for my check and it isn't there. I ask why and they have no answer.
I send emails and make phone calls as to why and get no response.
I really need my money. This is the only income I have.
This question is for anyone that cares at liberty national life insurance, particularly mr. Mcwhorter and mr. King.
Why do you attempt to recruit new agents when you do not attempt to participate in their success?
My response: isn't the new agent success, your success also. I see this as being a deceptive lie. I have researched your website for months, to evaluate your benefits and training. And admit on face value it looks good. But when i waste time and money to go after my insurance license in my state, and then sign up with liberty national. The fast track to success, that's promised, is apparently a deceptive lie. As i said i have researched your website and even now have a 3 ringed binder that lays out the training. But no one has attempted to give me structured training that's on your website or 3 ringed binder. The only thing that happened is a few blanks have been filled in as questions come to mind. And training material has been thrown at me and i am expected to understand what's been thrown at me. That is not a training program. It makes more sense to me to use your resources on the new agents since they show an interest in joining liberty national and have tooken time and money to going after there license. But apparently i must be foolish to take liberty national words at face value.
It like piecing together a puzzle you know that all the pieces are there, but it too time consuming to sit there an figure out if that piece goes here or there. That is not fast track to success.The full puzzle has to be connected/ completed to see the full scope of the plan.
I can assure you if i was branch manager, my new recruits would not have to worry about training, from the first hour they walk in the office, i would hold their hands for one week to one month, everyday, every hour. Till i helped them reach the $5,000.00. Instead of telling them to get the appointments 240 -24-15-5- and then show them what supposed to be done. This is a piece of the puzzle that either your forcing a piece to fit or can't find the right position/place to put it. You need to paint a picture of what supposed to occur, this is effective communication.
I don't know who at fought, the corporate officers, regional directors, district managers, branch managers. All i can say is "it a shame to say words that give the impression of good faith and then it shows it face as a two-faced liar." this does not show integrity, character, or ethical manner of a professional.
But anyone that will listen to me i attempt to save them from the disappointment and time and money they will wasted and experience at liberty national.
Here are phone number i have found but done know if they lead anywhere. 205 325 2722 888 776 2500 888 244 7010 888 827 3704 800 333 0637
I loved Liberty National. I went from rookie to District Manager in 3 years. I was successful. Now, by my choice,...I'm gone.
LNL used to be a great company. They had been in business for 100 years and had the luxury of ethical, experienced, respected, senior management. Under the administration of such people as Tony McWhorter, Jack Kelley, and Hillary Carnley (to name a few), the company was well respected. Agents could become managers, managers could become district managers, and district managers could become RVP's. All this while utilizing one basic principal..."the only success in management is through the development of other people." This thought process all changed when Andy King took over leadership.
No more respect for senior leadership. If you weren't a "yes man" for Andy, guess what? You're now retired or fired.
No more hiring quality individuals with staying power.
No more truth in hiring practices.
What Andy and his buddies have done to LNL is shameful. But at least they all have made TONS of $$$$$.(sarcasm)
I started as an agent, finished near top 10 first year. Then became Sales Manager, finished number 1 in company. Then onto Unit Manager in which I finished in top 15. Andy King came aboard...I jumped ship.
Here's why...
I actually rec'd an email for the el Presidente' himself which said,"hire the masses, put'em in classes, and kick their asses." Andy wanted us to do seminar type recruiting in which we were to illustrate the "income potential" to potential new hires. Andy's intended presentation was completely unreal and misleading. I would not participate.
I would, however, like to thank the "old Liberty National" for giving me an education on how to write strong business, take care of customers, and hire/train successful agents. I made alot of money with the Old LNL and travelled quite a bit. However, the Old LNL is know gone. DO NOT fall for their crap! Look around at the quality of people in those offices, ask about their turnover rate, ask to privately interview the last 10 agents that got hired, ask random agents to see their paystubs. This will reveal the truth. Then you decide.
There are great opportunities for true sales people and managers in the insurance field. If you're currently at LNL, keep looking, there's life after Liberty National. If you're successful, it is because of YOU! Not anyone else. You can do it anywhere. Simply prospect, know your products, and do what's right for your customer at all cost. This is how I was taught.
When Great companies go wrong.... North Georgia, Georgia
I have worked for Torchmark (UA and Libnat) in various positions. Most recent, I was an agent employes by a branch in Texas. My BCBS Major Med had been in force since I was a manager with UA. I took a position with LibNat and they carried over my policy with my transfer. Months later, I scheduled a surgery I had been waiting VERY long to have. I notified my BM many times, verbally and in writing that I would be on leave. Two days after I was released from the hospital, I received a letter from LibNat that my MM was cancelled. The company was taking my premiums from my comission checks, however after some cancellations, there was nothing left. TDi advised that they had to give me a months notice, and send me a cetified letter detailing premiums, due dates, etc. Never got that! Once I did get hold of someone, she refused to re-instate my policy even if I paid the premiums. Two weeks later, they terminated my contract.
Although my sugery was approved by BCBS, becuase LibNat backdated and cancelled my policy, now my surgery is not covered. I have left several messages for one of the HR supervisors in Birmingham, and she has yet to return any of my calls. They did'nt bother to call me, my BM, or even send me a certified letter...this goes to show how poorly Liberty treats their employees. I have already contacted TDI, and my attourney. Both of whome state their actions were illegal. The worst thing about this, they ruined my Cobra eligibility. Sad but true. But this is the SAME company that terminated my girlfriend for non-production ( and she did produce, my life policy) while she was 7 mos pregnant...go figure.
My Mom purchased two small life insurance policies from Liberty National almost 30 years ago. Premiums were always paid on time, monthly. Mom passed away in July and was buried on July 11, 2009.
A sister was named beneficiary of one policy, I was listed as beneficiary of the 2nd policy. When I received the Death Certificate, I advised Liberty and asked what steps I should take to claim the benefits. I was told that my sister had already contacted them and that the benefits were processed and mailed to my sister's address. She lives in Jacksonville, FL. I live in Southfield, MI.
When I spoke to my sister, she stated that payment had not been received and that she would forward my disbursement to me, when it was received. When it arrived several weeks later, she wrote "return to sender" and put it back in the mail.
I have contacted Liberty on at least 8 occasions. I have spoken to several pleasant ladies who obviously know nothing about my claim. So far, I have been misinformed or lied to. On 8/31/09, I spoke with a young lady who said that the check had been mailed on 8/28/09, to my Southfield address. Today, I called and spoke with another lady who said that no, the check had not been mailed because they have not received the returned check from my sister.
I have repeatedly asked for a Manager or someone of authority so that I could hopefully get accurate information. Each time, I am told that she is not available.
Liberty does not have offices in my area so I am dependent on telephone communication with persons without communication abilities. Uninformed is uninformed! I wrote them a letter 8/19/09 and explained my situation, sent a copy of my identification and another death certificate for my Mom. There has been no acknowledgement!
I know not what to do. We aren't talking a large sum of money; surely not even a third of what Mom paid in premiums. I want some answers......
I have had several emails and calls from LNL recently all offering me a wonderful opportunity in Insurance sales. Initially I either ignored them or turned them down(when they called) as I have no sales experience and have no desire to become an insurance salesman but I decided to take advantage of the situation and get some needed interview technique experience.
Firstly that was a big mistake as it wasn't an interview but a sales pitch. They present you with this overly glossy presentation with supposedly real agents telling their story and how easy it is to get a 6 figure income. Toward the end of the presentation the "interviewer" received a phone call from his sister who wanted money to pay a bill or something. What I found particularly disturbing was that he then proceeded to tell both myself and the other person at the interview how much of a loser his sister and her son were. How her son was a drug addict etc. Not exactly professional. He also asked me whether I go to church, which I am fairly sure is illegal, and seemed particularly disturbed when I told him no. Presumably because it would limit the number of people I could harass into selling insurance too.
I left the interview feeling unsatisfied with the way he answered, or didn't answer, our questions. I then spent a little time investigating the company and stumbled upon this site which went some way to confirming my suspicions about the company.
Several days later I received a phone message from him saying I had been approved for employment. I replied by email saying that after investigation of the company and evaluation of my impressions gained during the interview I didn't want to pursue a career with LNL and to please stop sending me emails.
I am diligently seeking employment and attended a group interview in Macon Ga. for this company. The presentation was informative on the positive side of how much money you could make and how great the company is to work for. The red flag for me was when there was 15 of us in one room and they wanted my ssn to run a background check before the presentation even began. I refused until I knew if this was where I wanted to be or even if they would want me. After the Vice President finished the presentation which did nothing except glorify this company, he then congratulated everyone and welcomed them aboard.There was no Q&A for the candidates just line up and sign up. I did confront the vp and began asking questions regarding the job in inself as nothing was really said about it and I again refused to line up and sign up and explained that I would need research this opportunity and pray about it. In my experience you do not assume that people are going to sign and pay these fees without asking questions or even ask the individual if he/she might be interested in this position. What I found on this site confirmed everything I felt in my spirit while sitting in the presentation. When a vp comes to smozzch you over to work for his company promising "big money" something is not right.I saw nothing professional about this so called interview. I would like to thank all those who commented on this site and I am thankful I had the insight to walk out of there not giving them my personal information as I was the only one in the "interview" that did not sign up. Liberty National should not be allowed to prey on people who are desperatly seeking a paycheck to provide for their families. BEWARE!
I had a job interview with Liberty National Life this week and am really appalled by their recruiting methods.
I sat for a 2 hour interview with 6 other people and learned all about the insurance business. Up front it sounded great and I was interested so I stayed for the personal interview.
The personal interview entailed him talking to everyone one on one and then finishing paperwork. The last piece of paperwork was to give him your credit card information so you could get a $99 dollar class for health and life insurance on line so you could get your insurance license.
Luckily I did not do this but a few of the other people did. I came home and got on my computer and tried to find out the cheapest way I could get a test without going through this guy who told me the only way to get it for that price was with his discount and that is why he needed my information.
Needless to say I found many places where I could get the $99 dollar price without giving him my credit information so I am thinking this guy is scamming everyones money and he needs to be stopped.
Thank god I am one of the smart ones that checked this out before jumping in . Please someone needs to let all these people know what is going on and hopefully get there money back.
If you are considering a "career" with Liberty National, think otherwise. It's not worth the investment. Consider yourself better off going to the casinos in Las Vegas.
Liberty National Life Insurance Company, of Birmingham, Alabama uses deceptive recruiting tactics to get agents to work for the company. It claims on its website that one can make up to $100,000 a year or more in his/her first year. It also says on it's website that with just 7 or 8 sales a week you can make a 6-figure income, which is not true at all. It all really depends on the how the customer wants to pay the premium.
I, a former agent, had made 6 sales in one week, and I only brought home only $36 that week. That was because the customers didn't want the premiums automatically deducted from their checking accounts. Liberty National calls the automatic premium deductions "bank budget" in their jargon. I lost 98% of my commissions on those sales simply because the customer didn't want to do the "bank budget" mode of payment.
One thing that Liberty National doesn't tell potential agents is the chargebacks and disallowances. Chargebacks means that you get paid on a submission of business one week and then the pay gets taken back on the next paycheck. If the company declines a policy, this is usually the case. A disallowance is when they don't pay you for writing up a policy because the customer had a lapse on a previous policy. Chargebacks and disallowances have cost me approximately $400 in commissions.
Another ripoff is on the website is that the company says its agents receive full support through in-depth training and management support designed to meet agents goals. I find this partially true. The training course is a lousy two-week course that is out-of-sync and the management is only concerned with the numbers.
My sales manager was a great manager but he quit after a couple months. This new manager I was put under didn't know diddly squat about Payroll Deduction enrollments and I wanted her to help me land a major business account. She was promoted because she made a lot of sales, not because she had any managerial experience. The District Manager was very unsupporting and gave me poor leads to go by. With no support, I decided to quit.
Finally, it takes a lot of effort to make a sale. You might spend $100 worth of gas and a few days to get a $50 direct pay sale. The only way you can complete a sale if a customer or family member has a checking account, which is a major burden because you can't accept any other payments besides a bank draft or check for the premium amount. There is also the risk that your sales will get declined. If there is an error on the application, you are charged $1. This is a serious issue and very dangerous because the company pays you solely on commission. The unreimbursed business expenses, chargebacks, and disallowances increase your chances for loss and you can actually lose money by doing this "career".
On my last week I had enough of Liberty National when I saw a $200 chargeback on my commission statement. One of my sales was declined and they took the money out my paycheck. I was only a couple dollars short from being in the red and having a negative commission balance. I quit because I didn't want to work hard for a company that I could owe money to.
So...If you decide to work for Liberty National, make sure you can afford to work for free and pay back any charges through future sales.
I believe I'm entitled to post a review of my personal experiences with The Liberty National branch office located on 440 Knox Abbott in West Columbia. I've been a broker since 2010 and wanted to look into a possible career with a reputable company.
So I looked around for this Company, to find they had no office here in Columbia (First red flag since it's the capital of SC). After having to call several offices around the state and eventually the home office, it took almost 3 weeks just to get a call back. (Second red flag. Who takes almost a month to call back a licensed experienced agent?) Once they called me back, finally, I sit down with the Agency Owner who states "I have no interest in hiring you today". I respect that as a business person who shouldn't move too fast.
That turned into being delayed into another week to attend a "mass recruiting" event which I was told that I'd receive an overview of the business model, pay structure, etc. This meeting turned into an hour long speech about his family, career with LN, short term in bible college before he dropped out, and homes we own in Rome, GA as well as here in Columbia. Needless to say, I'm getting ready to get started considering I've waited an entire month almost to get back started into clients.
After that I'm set up for a third interview (for what Idk) in order to finally be offered contracting paperwork. Now spilling over into October, i'm set up with yet another appointment to download my laptop with quoting software. Not to mention I'm being trained by a secretary that has no insurance experience, no product knowledge, and haven't even set up one agent at all. I was used for her training practices. On several occasions, I had to help her help me since only thing she had that I didn't was phone numbers of other people to call.
Then to get started, I'm given a list of 300+ business owners to call with a one page script and no training try to set appointments with them. After a few days of foolish pointless calling, I tell the agency owner about the objections in which I'm set up with another appointment in which he only tells me a one-liner in how to overcome any objection. (About 6 weeks wasted and a no training).
In all I wasted about 7-8 weeks of my life even considering that as an opportunity:
RED FLAGS:
1. Secretaries were friends who made recruiting and admin calls from this elaborate office from their cell phones.
2. The admin assistant (a young attractive woman) addressed the owner (a young attractive guy) by his first name on several occasions and opened his office door while in meetings with me a few times.
*I've seen that situations a few too many times to know any better.
3. Me as an new agent with this organization was paired with an excited agent to find out she wasn't even licensed at the time (REALLY)
4. It's obvious this man's paycheck is salary versus commission because he's so lax it ridiculous.
*My purpose is just to give a non-biased preview of my experience with this particular agency.
Torchmark seems to be the same ole motto. "Through all the crap up against the wall and see what sticks"
I am in the process of looking for a job. I got a call from the receptionist at Liberty National telling me to come in for a job interview on Friday June 17,2009 at 1:00p.m.
I was excited because it was finally a job that wasnt a retail job. So anyways Friday June 17,2009 came around and so i drove on the other side of town to a nice office building located off the northwest freeway. I thought i was going to be interview by myself with the manager of the company.
Well as soon as i sign all the information that the receptionist gave me, more people starting showing up. Well then they led us to a room with 10 chairs or more in it, and with a projector. So i was like "did i already get hire" this is not a typical interview.
Well the first thing that was put on the screen was THIS IS NOT A CATTLE CALL. I was like ok. Seeming i dont have that much experience in sales based commission. I continued on. The branch manager did the presentation, and all it talked about was money and more money. I was really excited because i have two kids at my home and all the money could do for us. Well then the presentation was over and the SCAM part was in order to continue on, we would have to pay 240.00 for insurance license before we could make money. Im sorry i dont have that much money to be spending it on a license.
So the branch manager asked if any one of us doesnt think this is for them then let me know and you can leave. Out of 10 people i was the only one to leave and i kept thinking to myselves are these people crazy.
IF YOU HAVE TO PUT MONEY INTO A JOB BEFORE YOU START MAKING MONEY THEN ITS A SCAM. STOP RIGHT THERE. DO NOT GO ANY FURTHER.
Liberty National Life Insurance Company Liberty National Birmingham Alabama
If you are considering a "career" with Liberty National, think otherwise. It's not worth the investment. Consider yourself better off going to the casinos in Las Vegas.
Liberty National Life Insurance Company, of Birmingham, Alabama uses deceptive recruiting tactics to get agents to work for the company. It claims on its website that one can make up to $100,000 a year or more in his/her first year. It also says on it's website that with just 7 or 8 sales a week you can make a 6-figure income, which is not true at all. It all really depends on the how the customer wants to pay the premium.
I, a former agent, had made 6 sales in one week, and I only brought home only $36 that week. That was because the customers didn't want the premiums automatically deducted from their checking accounts. Liberty National calls the automatic premium deductions "bank budget" in their jargon. I lost 98% of my commissions on those sales simply because the customer didn't want to do the "bank budget" mode of payment.
One thing that Liberty National doesn't tell potential agents is the chargebacks and disallowances. Chargebacks means that you get paid on a submission of business one week and then the pay gets taken back on the next paycheck. If the company declines a policy, this is usually the case. A disallowance is when they don't pay you for writing up a policy because the customer had a lapse on a previous policy. Chargebacks and disallowances have cost me approximately $400 in commissions.
Another ripoff is on the website is that the company says its agents receive full support through in-depth training and management support designed to meet agents goals. I find this partially true. The training course is a lousy two-week course that is out-of-sync and the management is only concerned with the numbers.
My sales manager was a great manager but he quit after a couple months. This new manager I was put under didn't know diddly squat about Payroll Deduction enrollments and I wanted her to help me land a major business account. She was promoted because she made a lot of sales, not because she had any managerial experience. The District Manager was very unsupporting and gave me poor leads to go by. With no support, I decided to quit.
Finally, it takes a lot of effort to make a sale. You might spend $100 worth of gas and a few days to get a $50 direct pay sale. The only way you can complete a sale if a customer or family member has a checking account, which is a major burden because you can't accept any other payments besides a bank draft or check for the premium amount. There is also the risk that your sales will get declined. If there is an error on the application, you are charged $1. This is a serious issue and very dangerous because the company pays you solely on commission. The unreimbursed business expenses, chargebacks, and disallowances increase your chances for loss and you can actually lose money by doing this "career".
On my last week I had enough of Liberty National when I saw a $200 chargeback on my commission statement. One of my sales was declined and they took the money out my paycheck. I was only a couple dollars short from being in the red and having a negative commission balance. I quit because I didn't want to work hard for a company that I could owe money to.
So...If you decide to work for Liberty National, make sure you can afford to work for free and pay back any charges through future sales.
Liberty National Life Insurance Company Reviews
I bought a policy through Liberty National Life Insurance company 1/20/09. I then researched the company when I got home and was appalled by the things that I read here and on the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. I read that in the last 12 months there had been 38 complaints lodged against this company.
I decided to cancel my policy. I called my sales rep this morning and informed her that I did not want to do business with this company and why I didn't want to do business with them
She said she would have to talk to her manager and call me back. So I waited.
A couple hours later her and her manager call me and her unit manager starts to tell me that I was misinformed and that I had not properly researched the company and that I need to research it through the Dept. of Financial Regulations if I wanted an accurate picture of the stability of the company. I explained to her that alot of the complaints had been customer service issues and that finances had nothing to do with customer service.
I told her I didn't want to do business with a company that I had any doubts about and to cancel my policy. She started to agrue with me about how misinformed I was, at which point I told her I was not changing my mind and she told me no worries and hung up on me.
Which only confirms the customer service issues. I called my sales rep back and informed her that I needed something in writing pertaining to the cancellation and that my account would not be charged. She did fax me what I requested.
Later this afternoon I was called by the Regional Manager who started yelling at me about the fact that I got my info from this website and it wasn't posted by their customers but by their competors. I told him at that point that even if it was wrong that he and the other manager where trying to bully me into keeping a policy I do not want and that the company as a whole was leaving a bad taste in my mouth.
Everyone should beware of this company and I should have investigated before signing any paperwork. Which I of course told the sales people I wanted to do before buying the health insurance and they offered to bring up the torchmark web page for me.
This Liberty National office lures potential sales reps in by telling them they will give you free leads. When pressed on it, the manager told me he would send out postcards and I would get the responses and follow up on them. THAT IS TOTALLY NOT TRUE!!!
After I had gone through training and started asking about the leads, I was given a list of people turning 65 and was told I needed to go door to door, pass out "Free Gifts" and try to get appointments to get business. When I asked what happened to the postcards, I was told that they were not available until after I started submitting policies and then they may consider it. In the meantime, they want you to knock on 100 doors min. per week off their list.
Just to make it clear so you don't have the same problem, even if the manager doesn't tell you, if you do med supps, you will be required to go door to door off of their "Turning 65 list". If you do the business side, you will be required to call business's and go door to door.
If that is what you are looking for, it may not be a bad deal, but it would be nice if instead of being sneaky and misleading upfront, they would tell you the truth. Quite frankly, after I found he lied about that, I wasn't going to stick around and find out what else he was lieing about.
Liberty National is a "trainwreck"
Their creed is the following and appears in there literature
Since its organization in 1900 "The Guiding principle of Liberty National Life Insurance Company has been to achieve sucess by deserving it, to protect its policyholders with a fair unselfish contract and to serve them faithfully,adequately,honestly and economically"
"Every decision considered at Liberty National must benefit the customer,the agent and the commpany."
Each is equal in importance,and if any one of them is missing we simply won't do it
IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING JOINING LIBERTY, DO NOT BELIEVE this propaganda for a minute.Check the history of this company withs regards to its cancer exchange program lawsuits.This company will also allow you to pay more into a policy than you can recieve.
I personaly have seen 2 policies recently where the insureds had paid in two times what the beneficiarys are going to recieve.
The company cares about one thing and one thing only and that is maximizing the earnings for the shareholders and the analyst.
Liberty is a 100 year old company and its management team has hundreds of combined years of expeirence.
You have to ask yourself how did the company lose 30% of their agents in 2004 and 50% in 2009
Ask the person interviewing you to show you a copy of the recent AM Best report
If you really want to see how Liberty is performing you can read about them in the annual reports which are on line.The comments from the President are a "broken record" of comments ."We are turning the corner at Liberty or I am optimistic that the next quarter will be better"
How is that this company with all of its changes and management leadership in the past 10 years has not made the company grow.In fact since 1998 inforce life premium has declined.Compare this record to their competitors.
Branch managers recruited 60,000 applicants last year and less than 300 agents will make it past their 1st anniversary.(Mgrs are required to recruit 10 prospective agents per week.Multiply this times 160 offices at 40 weeks a year)
The company promotes their agent position as an "Opportunity of a Lifetime"
If this was such an opportunity why are agents and managers leaving as fast as they come in ?
Branch and Unit Managers and former managers owe hundreds of thousands of dollars to the company due to lapsed policies which are a result of wholsale recruiting, poor training and mediocre products and ineffective leadership in the home office.
Thes managers are paid for the most part on newer agents ( less than 6 months in the business).If you can make it for 6 months the manager neither cares nor can afford to help becasue his # 1 job is to recruit and not manage
In fact he would he or she would prefer to see you leave and then the manager could give your accounts to a newer agent.
Liberty's niche is worksite and the middle income market.
Their focus is to specialize in writing insurance of $ 50,000 or less.In my opinion they have no regard for the well being of customers family, otherwise they would encourge agents to write more insurance and not penalize them when they do
Yes that is true, Liberty pays less commssion when you write bigger/larger face amount policies.
The true purpose of life insurance is to replace the economic value of the person
Liberty's agent for the most part are nothing more than "policy peddlers".
Before going to work for this company Do You Homework
Check the AM Best Report and other internet website comments
Ask the person or manager recruiting you the following
How many agents have you trained that are still in the business ?
The answer will shock you
Don't believe all of the hype
Only 200-300 agents are making any enough money.
Ask for the weekly bulletin and get the manager to explain in detail what it is and means.
In the last 3 years mgt has changed the compensation plan 7 times
Does this sound like a company that has it act together
Thank You Rip Off Report for allowing me to write this
The insurance business is a good career but this company, well let me just say this
Their record speaks for itself
No growth in the past 10 years
Lose 30 % of their agents in 2004 and then 50% in 2009
Agent Who Can't Afford To Retire Yet
Birmingham Alabama
Consider the following if you are considering Liberty for employment.Per the company weekly reports only 300 agents out of 1700 are generating suffiicient premium enough money to pay their bills.The company lost 1500 agents out of appox 3400 agents in 2009 per mangement.Liberty has appox 140 districts.More than likely 70% of the premium and sales is being written by only 30% of the districts.(Similiar to the 80/20 rule)
According to AM Best the company is rated A+ with a negative outlook. AM Best is very concerned about Liberty National's ability to maintain and grow their field force.Liberty could be downgraded to A from A+ by losing 50% of its field force in the last 12 months.
In 2000, the company had $ 312 million of life premium in force.According to the latest annual report figures of 2008 the comapnay had $ 287 million dollars of premium in force.This figure alone should speak volumes about the management at Liberty National.
Liberty specializes in worksite marketing.They prefer small policies 10,15 and $ 25,000 policies.The company's niche has always been in the final expense market.Their cancer policy reduces considerably at age 65. Their current term insurance rates are 30-100% above "market rates".The more insurance you sell at Liberty the lower the commission you are paid.For example the company will pay you 65% commission on $50,000 Whole Life and 33% at $100,000.This also occurs with their term portfolio of poducts.
Mgt is constantly changing the pay plan.They open offices and then they close them.Former agents,unit managers and branch managers owe the company hundreds of thousand of dollars due to policys that were written and have now lapsed.(Persistency is below average at Liberty becasuse of its market niche).This is one of the reasons the company has to "over price" it products.
Their is the possibilty that the company could finally be realizing that its current philosophy is not working.Only time will tell.This sales job is for the very few.
If you are still interested, I would suggest having 3 months of living expenses set aside.Learn the business and and just know that 80% of agents who enter the business will be out of the business within 5 years according to the Life Insurance industry statistics.
Well like every one i was took by this company to.I was told i would may six figers and then about 100,000 the next year.Only to find out it was all a lie. I was told that i was not was calling or going to see enough people. Then when i was working with a girl in the office we were shareing work cause we both seen how things were and we had kids to feed. My bm call her in the office and said she want us to meet her at a daycare to do a payroll. So the next day my riding buddy { thats what we would call each other} showed up their and I was at the office wating for her. When she got back she asked were i was i told her here wating on you. We talk about what happen she said she was sorry cause i shared a payroll with her the week befor that i had got. I went up to talk to the bm about it and to see about what i heard about the 5k was true. cause i had just hit 5k and she was so mad got told me to shut the door so the new agents would not here. I said no cause if it was true they need to know befor they put all this money that i have in it. She told me to leave or she was calling the cops. I have not made no money after that. I have asked for help and all they said is your not calling orgoing to see enough people. so i was looking for some help online and come aross this web site. thank you all.I took all my stuff back up their and quit. I called the commissioner only to find i was they only one that has ever called about what was going on.So here is his number 404-656-2070 just maybe if all the people call we can stop the way they rope u in and hang you out to dry
Working for the company was one of the worst decisions that I could have made. This is a pyramid scheme in which the agent is urged to enroll family, friends and acquaintances. I now believe it was done that way because management knows the agent will not remain very long with the company. I was never told how much I would be paid for enrollments. When asked, the response was always the same "it varies. We will get to that later". I was always expecting the "bonus" that I was supposed to have reached that week but when it did not come, I always received some kind of justification. It was always "my fault". When asked what should I have done instead, it was always "we will be training about that. Training was promised but never materialized. There was a dread to go into the office to pick up your very, very small check each week....$20 at the most. You are asked to sit down; briefed about what you "need to do" (consistently under pressure to sell). Only after you have listened to the mental abuse are you handed your check. The office is so far away that you will have to put the change they said your earned into your gas tank. It was horrible. I never found out just how much I was to be paid. Looking for a $300 check and being handed and two figure check instead was very demeaning as well as insulting. And somehow you found yourself "owing the company" for sales you made, or didn't make or plans that they said "doesn't pay very much or charge backs. The only people I saw who made money was the branch manager. They make the money off their agents who leave all too soon because there is no incentive, you get fired, or healthy morale circulating and because you do not make money. You got threats to fire you rather than encouragement. I was all too shocked when I heard that when I decided to leave the company, I would owe them money and they would make me look bad to the insurance department. This is unfair. They should be the ones in which the insurance regulations department has a talk with. I'm not there anymore and I'm sorry I ever joined. It's been quite an experience to say the least. This was my first job as an independent agent. It has left me with a bitter taste in my mouth. I don't know that I can ever trust another company to do what it advertises.
I made an appointment for Group Insurance with a company that another agent went on the appointment. He signed up employees and I was to make 30% commission.
This appt. was on 9/24/09. I still haven't seen any payment for this.
Every week I ask for my check and it isn't there. I ask why and they have no answer.
I send emails and make phone calls as to why and get no response.
I really need my money. This is the only income I have.
This question is for anyone that cares at liberty national life insurance, particularly mr. Mcwhorter and mr. King.
Why do you attempt to recruit new agents when you do not attempt to participate in their success?
My response: isn't the new agent success, your success also. I see this as being a deceptive lie. I have researched your website for months, to evaluate your benefits and training. And admit on face value it looks good. But when i waste time and money to go after my insurance license in my state, and then sign up with liberty national. The fast track to success, that's promised, is apparently a deceptive lie. As i said i have researched your website and even now have a 3 ringed binder that lays out the training. But no one has attempted to give me structured training that's on your website or 3 ringed binder. The only thing that happened is a few blanks have been filled in as questions come to mind. And training material has been thrown at me and i am expected to understand what's been thrown at me. That is not a training program. It makes more sense to me to use your resources on the new agents since they show an interest in joining liberty national and have tooken time and money to going after there license. But apparently i must be foolish to take liberty national words at face value.
It like piecing together a puzzle you know that all the pieces are there, but it too time consuming to sit there an figure out if that piece goes here or there. That is not fast track to success.The full puzzle has to be connected/ completed to see the full scope of the plan.
I can assure you if i was branch manager, my new recruits would not have to worry about training, from the first hour they walk in the office, i would hold their hands for one week to one month, everyday, every hour. Till i helped them reach the $5,000.00. Instead of telling them to get the appointments 240 -24-15-5- and then show them what supposed to be done. This is a piece of the puzzle that either your forcing a piece to fit or can't find the right position/place to put it. You need to paint a picture of what supposed to occur, this is effective communication.
I don't know who at fought, the corporate officers, regional directors, district managers, branch managers. All i can say is "it a shame to say words that give the impression of good faith and then it shows it face as a two-faced liar." this does not show integrity, character, or ethical manner of a professional.
But anyone that will listen to me i attempt to save them from the disappointment and time and money they will wasted and experience at liberty national.
Here are phone number i have found but done know if they lead anywhere. 205 325 2722 888 776 2500 888 244 7010 888 827 3704 800 333 0637
I loved Liberty National. I went from rookie to District Manager in 3 years. I was successful. Now, by my choice,...I'm gone.
LNL used to be a great company. They had been in business for 100 years and had the luxury of ethical, experienced, respected, senior management. Under the administration of such people as Tony McWhorter, Jack Kelley, and Hillary Carnley (to name a few), the company was well respected. Agents could become managers, managers could become district managers, and district managers could become RVP's. All this while utilizing one basic principal..."the only success in management is through the development of other people." This thought process all changed when Andy King took over leadership.
No more respect for senior leadership. If you weren't a "yes man" for Andy, guess what? You're now retired or fired.
No more hiring quality individuals with staying power.
No more truth in hiring practices.
What Andy and his buddies have done to LNL is shameful. But at least they all have made TONS of $$$$$.(sarcasm)
I started as an agent, finished near top 10 first year. Then became Sales Manager, finished number 1 in company. Then onto Unit Manager in which I finished in top 15. Andy King came aboard...I jumped ship.
Here's why...
I actually rec'd an email for the el Presidente' himself which said,"hire the masses, put'em in classes, and kick their asses." Andy wanted us to do seminar type recruiting in which we were to illustrate the "income potential" to potential new hires. Andy's intended presentation was completely unreal and misleading. I would not participate.
I would, however, like to thank the "old Liberty National" for giving me an education on how to write strong business, take care of customers, and hire/train successful agents. I made alot of money with the Old LNL and travelled quite a bit. However, the Old LNL is know gone. DO NOT fall for their crap! Look around at the quality of people in those offices, ask about their turnover rate, ask to privately interview the last 10 agents that got hired, ask random agents to see their paystubs. This will reveal the truth. Then you decide.
There are great opportunities for true sales people and managers in the insurance field. If you're currently at LNL, keep looking, there's life after Liberty National. If you're successful, it is because of YOU! Not anyone else. You can do it anywhere. Simply prospect, know your products, and do what's right for your customer at all cost. This is how I was taught.
When Great companies go wrong.... North Georgia, Georgia
I agree with the other reviews on this website. Don't work for them the chargebacks are horrendous and the emotional junk that is dished out is too.
Anonymous All of, South Carolina
U.S.A.
I have worked for Torchmark (UA and Libnat) in various positions. Most recent, I was an agent employes by a branch in Texas. My BCBS Major Med had been in force since I was a manager with UA. I took a position with LibNat and they carried over my policy with my transfer. Months later, I scheduled a surgery I had been waiting VERY long to have. I notified my BM many times, verbally and in writing that I would be on leave. Two days after I was released from the hospital, I received a letter from LibNat that my MM was cancelled. The company was taking my premiums from my comission checks, however after some cancellations, there was nothing left. TDi advised that they had to give me a months notice, and send me a cetified letter detailing premiums, due dates, etc. Never got that! Once I did get hold of someone, she refused to re-instate my policy even if I paid the premiums. Two weeks later, they terminated my contract.
Although my sugery was approved by BCBS, becuase LibNat backdated and cancelled my policy, now my surgery is not covered. I have left several messages for one of the HR supervisors in Birmingham, and she has yet to return any of my calls. They did'nt bother to call me, my BM, or even send me a certified letter...this goes to show how poorly Liberty treats their employees. I have already contacted TDI, and my attourney. Both of whome state their actions were illegal. The worst thing about this, they ruined my Cobra eligibility. Sad but true. But this is the SAME company that terminated my girlfriend for non-production ( and she did produce, my life policy) while she was 7 mos pregnant...go figure.
My Mom purchased two small life insurance policies from Liberty National almost 30 years ago. Premiums were always paid on time, monthly. Mom passed away in July and was buried on July 11, 2009.
A sister was named beneficiary of one policy, I was listed as beneficiary of the 2nd policy. When I received the Death Certificate, I advised Liberty and asked what steps I should take to claim the benefits. I was told that my sister had already contacted them and that the benefits were processed and mailed to my sister's address. She lives in Jacksonville, FL. I live in Southfield, MI.
When I spoke to my sister, she stated that payment had not been received and that she would forward my disbursement to me, when it was received. When it arrived several weeks later, she wrote "return to sender" and put it back in the mail.
I have contacted Liberty on at least 8 occasions. I have spoken to several pleasant ladies who obviously know nothing about my claim. So far, I have been misinformed or lied to. On 8/31/09, I spoke with a young lady who said that the check had been mailed on 8/28/09, to my Southfield address. Today, I called and spoke with another lady who said that no, the check had not been mailed because they have not received the returned check from my sister.
I have repeatedly asked for a Manager or someone of authority so that I could hopefully get accurate information. Each time, I am told that she is not available.
Liberty does not have offices in my area so I am dependent on telephone communication with persons without communication abilities. Uninformed is uninformed! I wrote them a letter 8/19/09 and explained my situation, sent a copy of my identification and another death certificate for my Mom. There has been no acknowledgement!
I know not what to do. We aren't talking a large sum of money; surely not even a third of what Mom paid in premiums. I want some answers......
I have had several emails and calls from LNL recently all offering me a wonderful opportunity in Insurance sales. Initially I either ignored them or turned them down(when they called) as I have no sales experience and have no desire to become an insurance salesman but I decided to take advantage of the situation and get some needed interview technique experience.
Firstly that was a big mistake as it wasn't an interview but a sales pitch. They present you with this overly glossy presentation with supposedly real agents telling their story and how easy it is to get a 6 figure income. Toward the end of the presentation the "interviewer" received a phone call from his sister who wanted money to pay a bill or something. What I found particularly disturbing was that he then proceeded to tell both myself and the other person at the interview how much of a loser his sister and her son were. How her son was a drug addict etc. Not exactly professional. He also asked me whether I go to church, which I am fairly sure is illegal, and seemed particularly disturbed when I told him no. Presumably because it would limit the number of people I could harass into selling insurance too.
I left the interview feeling unsatisfied with the way he answered, or didn't answer, our questions. I then spent a little time investigating the company and stumbled upon this site which went some way to confirming my suspicions about the company.
Several days later I received a phone message from him saying I had been approved for employment. I replied by email saying that after investigation of the company and evaluation of my impressions gained during the interview I didn't want to pursue a career with LNL and to please stop sending me emails.
This is his response....
I am diligently seeking employment and attended a group interview in Macon Ga. for this company. The presentation was informative on the positive side of how much money you could make and how great the company is to work for. The red flag for me was when there was 15 of us in one room and they wanted my ssn to run a background check before the presentation even began. I refused until I knew if this was where I wanted to be or even if they would want me. After the Vice President finished the presentation which did nothing except glorify this company, he then congratulated everyone and welcomed them aboard.There was no Q&A for the candidates just line up and sign up. I did confront the vp and began asking questions regarding the job in inself as nothing was really said about it and I again refused to line up and sign up and explained that I would need research this opportunity and pray about it. In my experience you do not assume that people are going to sign and pay these fees without asking questions or even ask the individual if he/she might be interested in this position. What I found on this site confirmed everything I felt in my spirit while sitting in the presentation. When a vp comes to smozzch you over to work for his company promising "big money" something is not right.I saw nothing professional about this so called interview. I would like to thank all those who commented on this site and I am thankful I had the insight to walk out of there not giving them my personal information as I was the only one in the "interview" that did not sign up. Liberty National should not be allowed to prey on people who are desperatly seeking a paycheck to provide for their families. BEWARE!
I had a job interview with Liberty National Life this week and am really appalled by their recruiting methods.
I sat for a 2 hour interview with 6 other people and learned all about the insurance business. Up front it sounded great and I was interested so I stayed for the personal interview.
The personal interview entailed him talking to everyone one on one and then finishing paperwork. The last piece of paperwork was to give him your credit card information so you could get a $99 dollar class for health and life insurance on line so you could get your insurance license.
Luckily I did not do this but a few of the other people did. I came home and got on my computer and tried to find out the cheapest way I could get a test without going through this guy who told me the only way to get it for that price was with his discount and that is why he needed my information.
Needless to say I found many places where I could get the $99 dollar price without giving him my credit information so I am thinking this guy is scamming everyones money and he needs to be stopped.
Thank god I am one of the smart ones that checked this out before jumping in . Please someone needs to let all these people know what is going on and hopefully get there money back.
If you are considering a "career" with Liberty National, think otherwise. It's not worth the investment. Consider yourself better off going to the casinos in Las Vegas.
Liberty National Life Insurance Company, of Birmingham, Alabama uses deceptive recruiting tactics to get agents to work for the company. It claims on its website that one can make up to $100,000 a year or more in his/her first year. It also says on it's website that with just 7 or 8 sales a week you can make a 6-figure income, which is not true at all. It all really depends on the how the customer wants to pay the premium.
I, a former agent, had made 6 sales in one week, and I only brought home only $36 that week. That was because the customers didn't want the premiums automatically deducted from their checking accounts. Liberty National calls the automatic premium deductions "bank budget" in their jargon. I lost 98% of my commissions on those sales simply because the customer didn't want to do the "bank budget" mode of payment.
One thing that Liberty National doesn't tell potential agents is the chargebacks and disallowances. Chargebacks means that you get paid on a submission of business one week and then the pay gets taken back on the next paycheck. If the company declines a policy, this is usually the case. A disallowance is when they don't pay you for writing up a policy because the customer had a lapse on a previous policy. Chargebacks and disallowances have cost me approximately $400 in commissions.
Another ripoff is on the website is that the company says its agents receive full support through in-depth training and management support designed to meet agents goals. I find this partially true. The training course is a lousy two-week course that is out-of-sync and the management is only concerned with the numbers.
My sales manager was a great manager but he quit after a couple months. This new manager I was put under didn't know diddly squat about Payroll Deduction enrollments and I wanted her to help me land a major business account. She was promoted because she made a lot of sales, not because she had any managerial experience. The District Manager was very unsupporting and gave me poor leads to go by. With no support, I decided to quit.
Finally, it takes a lot of effort to make a sale. You might spend $100 worth of gas and a few days to get a $50 direct pay sale. The only way you can complete a sale if a customer or family member has a checking account, which is a major burden because you can't accept any other payments besides a bank draft or check for the premium amount. There is also the risk that your sales will get declined. If there is an error on the application, you are charged $1. This is a serious issue and very dangerous because the company pays you solely on commission. The unreimbursed business expenses, chargebacks, and disallowances increase your chances for loss and you can actually lose money by doing this "career".
On my last week I had enough of Liberty National when I saw a $200 chargeback on my commission statement. One of my sales was declined and they took the money out my paycheck. I was only a couple dollars short from being in the red and having a negative commission balance. I quit because I didn't want to work hard for a company that I could owe money to.
So...If you decide to work for Liberty National, make sure you can afford to work for free and pay back any charges through future sales.
Really Upset Former Agent Birmingham, Alabama
U.S.A.
I believe I'm entitled to post a review of my personal experiences with The Liberty National branch office located on 440 Knox Abbott in West Columbia. I've been a broker since 2010 and wanted to look into a possible career with a reputable company.
So I looked around for this Company, to find they had no office here in Columbia (First red flag since it's the capital of SC). After having to call several offices around the state and eventually the home office, it took almost 3 weeks just to get a call back. (Second red flag. Who takes almost a month to call back a licensed experienced agent?) Once they called me back, finally, I sit down with the Agency Owner who states "I have no interest in hiring you today". I respect that as a business person who shouldn't move too fast.
That turned into being delayed into another week to attend a "mass recruiting" event which I was told that I'd receive an overview of the business model, pay structure, etc. This meeting turned into an hour long speech about his family, career with LN, short term in bible college before he dropped out, and homes we own in Rome, GA as well as here in Columbia. Needless to say, I'm getting ready to get started considering I've waited an entire month almost to get back started into clients.
After that I'm set up for a third interview (for what Idk) in order to finally be offered contracting paperwork. Now spilling over into October, i'm set up with yet another appointment to download my laptop with quoting software. Not to mention I'm being trained by a secretary that has no insurance experience, no product knowledge, and haven't even set up one agent at all. I was used for her training practices. On several occasions, I had to help her help me since only thing she had that I didn't was phone numbers of other people to call.
Then to get started, I'm given a list of 300+ business owners to call with a one page script and no training try to set appointments with them. After a few days of foolish pointless calling, I tell the agency owner about the objections in which I'm set up with another appointment in which he only tells me a one-liner in how to overcome any objection. (About 6 weeks wasted and a no training).
In all I wasted about 7-8 weeks of my life even considering that as an opportunity:
RED FLAGS:
1. Secretaries were friends who made recruiting and admin calls from this elaborate office from their cell phones.
2. The admin assistant (a young attractive woman) addressed the owner (a young attractive guy) by his first name on several occasions and opened his office door while in meetings with me a few times.
*I've seen that situations a few too many times to know any better.
3. Me as an new agent with this organization was paired with an excited agent to find out she wasn't even licensed at the time (REALLY)
4. It's obvious this man's paycheck is salary versus commission because he's so lax it ridiculous.
*My purpose is just to give a non-biased preview of my experience with this particular agency.
Torchmark seems to be the same ole motto. "Through all the crap up against the wall and see what sticks"
I am in the process of looking for a job. I got a call from the receptionist at Liberty National telling me to come in for a job interview on Friday June 17,2009 at 1:00p.m.
I was excited because it was finally a job that wasnt a retail job. So anyways Friday June 17,2009 came around and so i drove on the other side of town to a nice office building located off the northwest freeway. I thought i was going to be interview by myself with the manager of the company.
Well as soon as i sign all the information that the receptionist gave me, more people starting showing up. Well then they led us to a room with 10 chairs or more in it, and with a projector. So i was like "did i already get hire" this is not a typical interview.
Well the first thing that was put on the screen was THIS IS NOT A CATTLE CALL. I was like ok. Seeming i dont have that much experience in sales based commission. I continued on. The branch manager did the presentation, and all it talked about was money and more money. I was really excited because i have two kids at my home and all the money could do for us. Well then the presentation was over and the SCAM part was in order to continue on, we would have to pay 240.00 for insurance license before we could make money. Im sorry i dont have that much money to be spending it on a license.
So the branch manager asked if any one of us doesnt think this is for them then let me know and you can leave. Out of 10 people i was the only one to leave and i kept thinking to myselves are these people crazy.
IF YOU HAVE TO PUT MONEY INTO A JOB BEFORE YOU START MAKING MONEY THEN ITS A SCAM. STOP RIGHT THERE. DO NOT GO ANY FURTHER.
Liberty National Life Insurance Company Liberty National Birmingham Alabama
If you are considering a "career" with Liberty National, think otherwise. It's not worth the investment. Consider yourself better off going to the casinos in Las Vegas.
Liberty National Life Insurance Company, of Birmingham, Alabama uses deceptive recruiting tactics to get agents to work for the company. It claims on its website that one can make up to $100,000 a year or more in his/her first year. It also says on it's website that with just 7 or 8 sales a week you can make a 6-figure income, which is not true at all. It all really depends on the how the customer wants to pay the premium.
I, a former agent, had made 6 sales in one week, and I only brought home only $36 that week. That was because the customers didn't want the premiums automatically deducted from their checking accounts. Liberty National calls the automatic premium deductions "bank budget" in their jargon. I lost 98% of my commissions on those sales simply because the customer didn't want to do the "bank budget" mode of payment.
One thing that Liberty National doesn't tell potential agents is the chargebacks and disallowances. Chargebacks means that you get paid on a submission of business one week and then the pay gets taken back on the next paycheck. If the company declines a policy, this is usually the case. A disallowance is when they don't pay you for writing up a policy because the customer had a lapse on a previous policy. Chargebacks and disallowances have cost me approximately $400 in commissions.
Another ripoff is on the website is that the company says its agents receive full support through in-depth training and management support designed to meet agents goals. I find this partially true. The training course is a lousy two-week course that is out-of-sync and the management is only concerned with the numbers.
My sales manager was a great manager but he quit after a couple months. This new manager I was put under didn't know diddly squat about Payroll Deduction enrollments and I wanted her to help me land a major business account. She was promoted because she made a lot of sales, not because she had any managerial experience. The District Manager was very unsupporting and gave me poor leads to go by. With no support, I decided to quit.
Finally, it takes a lot of effort to make a sale. You might spend $100 worth of gas and a few days to get a $50 direct pay sale. The only way you can complete a sale if a customer or family member has a checking account, which is a major burden because you can't accept any other payments besides a bank draft or check for the premium amount. There is also the risk that your sales will get declined. If there is an error on the application, you are charged $1. This is a serious issue and very dangerous because the company pays you solely on commission. The unreimbursed business expenses, chargebacks, and disallowances increase your chances for loss and you can actually lose money by doing this "career".
On my last week I had enough of Liberty National when I saw a $200 chargeback on my commission statement. One of my sales was declined and they took the money out my paycheck. I was only a couple dollars short from being in the red and having a negative commission balance. I quit because I didn't want to work hard for a company that I could owe money to.
So...If you decide to work for Liberty National, make sure you can afford to work for free and pay back any charges through future sales.
Really Upset Former Agent Birmingham, Alabama
U.S.A.