Scam Alert – Premium Payment

BE ALERT – SCAMS ARE INCREASING

As the world health situation continues to be chaotic, we are reminded that there are those who prey on innocent people during times of turmoil or distress. That is happening now, as we have learned of customers being approached and asked for bank information to make their premium payment.

IMPORTANT:  No Farmers Alliance employee will EVER approach a policyholder by phone or email to collect a premium payment. We offer convenient payment options by phone or through our website – all information is at www.fami.com. Or, contact your Farmers Alliance agent for assistance. Stay vigilant – about your health AND your safety!

Assistance for Policyholders

In cooperation with our independent agency partners, Farmers Alliance is prepared to help any policyholder who is affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you are unable to pay your policy premium at this time or have any questions about your insurance coverage, please call or email your Farmers Alliance agent – please do not go to your agent’s office unless asked to do so by your agent.  We are working with our customers on request by extending premium grace periods, waiving late payment fees and continuing coverage for any expiring policies.

Many agency offices are closed to visitors to help prevent the spread of the virus, but they are accessible and responsive by phone or email. If you can’t reach your agent, please contact us at 800.362.1075 and we can help.

Farmers Alliance cares about your health and safety. We will get through this challenging time together.

Farmers Alliance’s Response to COVID-19 health warnings

March 18, 2020

To our policyholders:

First, thank you for the trust you place in Farmers Alliance. I want to assure you that we are prepared to address the safety of our employees while serving the needs of our agents and policyholders. Our Leadership Team has been closely monitoring the virus and its impact for several weeks. While we recognize the COVID-19 pandemic is a dynamic situation, we are committed to providing you a high level of service, while protecting the health of our Farmers Alliance employees. Here’s a short summary:

  • We have established policies that reduce the spread of the virus – travel restrictions, balancing on-site and remote workers to limit exposure and strictly limiting office visitors.
  • We are actively working to ensure the health and safety of our employees and their families, including additional office cleaning and hygiene practices, and social distancing.
  • We are prepared to deliver uninterrupted business operations, including the possibility of extended remote business teams.

We have an amazing, dedicated staff, and strong processes in place. We are confident in our ability to meet your needs, even if the delivery might take a few minutes longer or require a bit more patience. We are committed to serving you well, while keeping our staff and our communities safe. While this situation is extremely difficult, we are all in this together, and we look forward to supporting you in whatever ways we can.

Thank you again for your trust, and please contact us or your Farmers Alliance agent if you have any questions.

Brian Lopata
President & Chief Executive Officer

Cunningham Receives “Excellence In Service” Award at Farmers Alliance

MCPHERSON, KS – Rich Cunningham, Senior Claims Representative at Farmers Alliance Companies, received the 2019 Excellence In Service award at the companies’ recent Christmas Banquet. He was recognized for his caring attitude and exceptional service to policyholders and claimants who have experienced a loss. President and CEO Brian Lopata presented the award, noting that Cunningham exemplifies the service we strive to provide to all our customers. He said, “Rich, you recently told someone you consider it your privilege to serve our customers at their time of need, and that is exactly the spirit we need throughout our entire company.” Lopata thanked Cunningham for his dedication and commitment to his customers.

Rich Cunningham, 2019 Farmers Alliance Excellence in Service award winner (left) with Brian Lopata, Farmers Alliance President & CEO

Cunningham, who has lived in Salina since 1962, graduated from Salina Central High School in 1973 and Brown Mackie School of Business in 1974. He obtained his Associate in Claims from the Insurance Institute of America in 1990. In 1991, he obtained his Senior Claims Representative status and has helped train new adjusters for many years.

Cunningham has held all offices in the Mid Kansas Claims Association and Kansas Claims Association, including President twice for Mid Kansas Claims Association in 1991 and 1995 and once for Kansas Claims Association in 1998. He was named Mid Kansas Claims Association’s Adjuster of the Year in 1990 and 2003. He was named Farmers Alliance’s Employee of the Month in January of 1992, February of 2016, and most recently in October of 2019.

Although Cunningham, who has been a resident adjuster since 1984, typically serves the North Central Kansas area, he has worked a claim in every county in Kansas over his 37 years with Farmers Alliance.

Cunningham and his wife Beth have been married for 43 years. They have a son, a daughter, and one grandson. When he’s not working, Cunningham enjoys traveling, taking fishing trips to Lake Texoma, attending sports of any kind, detailing cars, and collecting match books and matchboxes.

AM Best Upgrades Rating for Farmers Alliance Companies to “A” (Excellent)

MCPHERSON, KANSAS  —  Farmers Alliance announced today that AM Best has upgraded the Farmers Alliance Rating to “A” (Excellent). The announcement was made to employees and independent agents by President and CEO Brian Lopata.

President Lopata said, “You may recall that our “Outlook” was upgraded last year at this time to “Positive”, which was a significant achievement. It is highly uncommon to have upgrades in consecutive years, making this news even more exciting.” AM Best ratings are based on financial and operational performance over several years, and are indicative of how Farmers Alliance compares with other companies. Lopata added, “This upgrade in our AM Best Financial Strength Rating is a meaningful acknowledgement of the work that has been done by our staff, our agents, and our leadership team, with strong support from our Board of Directors. This type of change does not happen by accident, and is recognition of long-term trends in a positive direction.”

According to a release from AM Best, one key aspect that influenced the analysts was the introduction of Farmers Alliance’s new strategic plan, FAMI Forward 2025. The AM Best analysts specifically noted the way the plan was created as a strength for Farmers Alliance, as it was developed with input from employees throughout the company, as well as agents and other key stakeholders. Lopata said, “This recognition of our efforts by AM Best certainly helps to reassure us that we are taking the right steps. It is especially nice to have the acknowledgement of our efforts by this respected and independent organization. We know we have a great plan, based on our past successes, and we’re so very excited about the future at Farmers Alliance.”

The full release from AM Best can be found at
http://news.ambest.com/presscontent.aspx?altsrc=3&RefNum=28857&URatingId=-1

More information about Farmers Alliance’s AM Best rating can be found at http://ratings.ambest.com/CompanyProfile.aspx?BL=0&ambnum=114&AltNum=517114&AltSrc=3

Farmers Alliance Employee Food Drive Feeds Many

Farmers Alliance employees prepare to load more than 80 family food baskets for transportation to the distribution center. Food and money were donated by Farmers Alliance employees for the McPherson County Christmas Project.

MCPHERSON, KANSAS — Farmers Alliance employees were recently made aware of a need in our community, and came together quickly to meet that need. In just three short weeks, employees collected enough food for more than 80 family food baskets for the Christmas holiday. Each food basket includes all the items for a full holiday meal, based on the size of the family. Organizers estimate that more than $2,500 of food is included in those 80 baskets, which will also include certain perishable items when delivered. In addition to the food items, the employee group collected more than $500 in cash donations, which will help provide those perishable items, which will be purchased closer to the delivery date.

According to Brian Lopata, President and CEO, “The Food Drive has been a great opportunity for us to share in a fun project, knowing that we’re helping to meet a need in our community.” He continued, “Our company was founded more than a century ago on the principles of neighbors helping neighbors. We work every day to help our policyholders protect their property and their financial stability, and then work hard to restore lives if there’s a loss. The McPherson Country Christmas Project has a similar mission of helping neighbors, and we’re happy to support their efforts with this contribution. Our employees have very caring hearts.”

Farmers Alliance employees rest for a moment after loading more than 80 large bags of food items into these pickups for delivery to the distribution center, where they unloaded the items for sorting.

 

 

The food basket items are ready for sorting at the distribution center. Pictured are just a few of the Farmers Alliance employees who participated in this project.

CPCU Conferment in San Diego

The 2018 CPCU (Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter) Conferment took place in San Diego, October 13th. FAMI Employees receiving their CPCU Designation are: Carri Brobst (I.T.), Amberle Fowler (Underwriting), Ashly Goering (I.T.) , Julie Miller (Claims), and Chris Mines (Product Management). Congratulations to all on their accomplishment!

Farmers Alliance Employees Support WACCC with Creative Contest

MCPHERSON, KANSAS — Farmers Alliance employees recently crowned employee Zack Lock, Application Programmer, as the 2018 FAMI “Prince of Pink” in a special ceremony at the Home Office. Lock was one of six employees who volunteered to compete for the title by raising funds for McPherson’s Women And Children Combatting Cancer (WACCC). All combined, the 6 potential “Princes” collected $3,503.76 for the local organization. The other candidates included Tyler Bruton, Electronic Communications Coordinator, Jeff Collins, Buildings & Grounds Supervisor, Thomas Gray, Underwriter, Pat Reed, Office Claims Adjuster, and Stephan Rhymer, Underwriter.

Farmers Alliance employees participating in the “Prince of Pink” competition to support WACCC. Front row: Joshua Paine, Natalie Zink, JoLynn Stout, Zack Lock, Tammy Cape, Dixie Barrow. Back row: Jamie Hubin, Stephan Rhymer, Jeff Collins, Tyler Bruton, Thomas Gray, Pat Reed.

The “Prince of Pink” campaign was initiated by the Farmers Alliance Wellness Committee. Chairman Sandy Baldwin, Casualty Claims Manager, explained that the committee believes “wellness” includes more than just eating healthy and leading a physically active lifestyle. “It’s also about supporting your community, especially those who are facing health-related challenges,” she said. WACCC provides financial and emotional support to those fighting cancer.
The week-long campaign featured numerous fundraising activities presented by the six teams. Each “Prince” candidate was assigned a volunteer “campaign manager” who assisted with fundraising and promotion. Activities included all types of baked goods for sale or auction, arts and crafts items for auction, “candy-grams”, chances to win tickets to various events and activities, and a fun “Herd That” activity that would send a “herd” of cows to a co-worker’s office, which they would have to pay to have removed. In addition to supporting a great organization, the contest allowed employees to learn more about the mission of WACCC, as well.
President and CEO Brian Lopata (a two-time recipient of the “herd”) said, “Our Farmers Alliance family is much like any other family — we like to enjoy fun and food together, but we also like to make a difference in our community. The “Prince of Pink” campaign has been a great opportunity for us to have fun together while helping to meet a need in our community. And, we got to see Zack in that beautiful dress!” He thanked all employees for supporting this cause, especially the candidates and their campaign managers for all their hard work.

 

The Farmers Alliance Wellness Committee with WACCC representatives. Left to right: JoLynn Stout (FAMI), Sandy Baldwin (FAMI), Angie Timson (WACCC), Gloria Schroeder (FAMI), Jen Bonham (WACCC), Shayna McElwain (FAMI).

Your identity is as valuable as the cash in your pocket. Protect it!

At Farmers Alliance, we want to help you protect your property AND your identity! Your identity is valuable, and recovering from an identity theft can be difficult and costly. A first step toward protecting identity theft is by assessing your risk. Through our partners at Cyber Scout, you can evaluate your risk quickly and easily.

It’s called your ID RiskCompass, and with just a few quick questions you can identify areas of strength AND weaknesses to address, with helpful tips for making simple changes.
You can find this at www.fami.com, click “Protect Your Identity” under the “Already a Customer?” list of options. You’ll see ID RiskCompass right at the top!
There’s even more great information available from CyberScout — you’ll find it in the Knowledge Center at that same web location.

As a reminder, you and your household members have access to an experienced, personal-touch fraud specialist from CyberScout at no cost. If you suspect that you are a victim of identity theft or fraud, call to be connected to a fraud specialist at the CyberScout Resolution Center. A personal fraud specialist will guide you through the resolution process until the problem is fully resolved and your peace of mind is restored.
For help: 800.362.1075, ext. 1128 For info: www.fami-idtheft.com

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