Insights Provided for Agents Selling to Eating and Drinking Establishments

RENO, Nev.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 17, 2008--A recent national survey of small business decision-makers reports that restaurant owners focus primarily on price when shopping for workers' compensation insurance, with little attention paid to potential savings available through workplace accident prevention. Survey results released by Employers Holdings, Inc. (EMPLOYERS) (NYSE:EIG) found that price drives the choice of workers' compensation carrier for 3 out of 4 (71%) restaurant owners and other decision-makers.

Workplace accident prevention apparently remains a persistent problem as nearly half (44%) of restaurant owners and managers reported at least one costly workers' compensation claim in the past five years--and 10% percent reported five or more claims within the same period.

Despite this accident reporting, a majority (61%) of survey respondents who changed carriers at their last renewal reported switching because of price. Workers' compensation insurance carriers track policyholders' loss experience to help determine premiums, as accident frequency can directly affect restaurants' insurance premium pricing. Service-driven workers' compensation insurance carriers like EMPLOYERS focus on the potentially significant savings that could be realized through effective use of workplace safety and accident prevention efforts.

Employers Holdings, Inc. (EMPLOYERS(R)) (NYSE:EIG) is a Reno, Nev.-based company whose subsidiaries are specialty providers of workers' compensation insurance focused on select small businesses engaged in low-to-medium-hazard industries. Additional restaurant survey findings included:

• Most workers' compensation insurance decisions are made by restaurant owners themselves (96% of the time).
• Nearly 8 out of 10 (79%) busy restaurant decision-makers reported that they do not visit any Web sites on a regular basis.
• Half of respondents reported they do not read any printed newspapers, magazines or other publications on a regular basis.

Restaurant owners who do not yet have accident prevention on their radars while shopping for their workers' comp coverage present a unique opportunity for agents to educate and better serve their eating, drinking, hospitality and other restaurant-related clients.

Reaching these price-conscious, busy restaurant owners also presents challenges for the nation's insurance agents. In addition to restaurateurs' price sensitivity and tight schedules, agents also compete with insurer recommendations endorsed by restaurant trade groups and industry associations.

One of every two restaurant decision-makers in the survey weighed their trade group's recommendation as extremely important (rated a 9 or 10 on a 1-10 scale) when they purchase workers' compensation insurance. (Yet only about 1 in 10 restaurant decision-makers reported buying workers' compensation insurance through a trade association rather than through an agent--so agents remain an important final step in obtaining workers' compensation coverage.)

Industry associations frequently ally with insurance carriers to offer members group incentives. EMPLOYERS serves as the endorsed workers' compensation insurance provider for the California Restaurant Association (CRA), a trade group for California's more than 90,000 eating and drinking establishments. The CRA's partnership with EMPLOYERS allows members to obtain a discounted price on workers' compensation insurance through available rate credits and flexible payment plans for eligible members.

EMPLOYERS released survey results on the restaurant industry, obtained through its semi-annual Small Business Market Monitoring Program conducted in collaboration with Profile Marketing Research, Inc., of Lake Worth, Fla. Restaurant industry-specific data was collected through telephone interviews with a representative industry sampling of 107 respondents representing eating places with 5-99 employees. Overall survey results have a +/- 9.47 percent margin of error.

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TOP THREE AGENT TIPS TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN RESTAURANT CLIENTS

When shopping for workers' compensation insurance for busy, price-conscious restaurant owners, what is an insurance agent to do?

Based on small business survey results from EMPLOYERS(R), America's small business insurance specialist.(R), agents should:

1. Focus on the Restaurant Owner--they make the insurance decisions.
2. Fish Where the Fish Are--Get to know national and state restaurant associations, and spend time familiarizing yourself with the local chapter of each trade group. This type of social marketing can increase your knowledge of the workplace accident risks faced by restaurateurs, and position you as the 'go-to' expert when restaurant owners start shopping workers' compensation coverage.
3. Realize Restaurant Industry Opportunities to Build Your Book of Business--Survey results from EMPLOYERS identify clear opportunities for agents across the restaurant marketplace. Take the time to explain to restaurant decision-makers the difference that services like loss control, managed care and fraud detection can make in keeping employees safe and restaurants financially protected. Aim to move restaurant decision-makers beyond their price sensitivity. Provide restaurateurs with solid information about how their choice of a workers' compensation insurance carrier can prove to be a critical decision.

The Small Business Marketing Monitoring Program is a semi-annual survey measurement of workers' compensation insurance industry trends, conducted by EMPLOYERS. Additional information is available by visiting www.employers.com.

Copyright (C) 2008 EMPLOYERS. All rights reserved. EMPLOYERS(R) and America's small business insurance specialist.(R) are registered trademarks of Employers Insurance Company of Nevada. Workers' compensation insurance and services are offered through Employers Compensation Insurance Company and Employers Insurance Company of Nevada. Insurance coverage not available in all jurisdictions.

CONTACT:
EMPLOYERS, Reno
Trish White, 775-327-2636
Director, Corporate Communications
twhite@employers.com
www.employers.com

SOURCE: EMPLOYERS