The clients of DD Insurance desire they in no way must file a claim with the longtime Brainerd-based totally business enterprise, but they will be satisfied if they do.
Weizenegger-Engel Insurance has served the coverage wishes of more than 1,500 corporations and households within the nation for nearly a century by managing dangers.
“What I could emphasize is we’re in all likelihood 90 percentage business coverage is what we do. We’re handling commercial business firms for insurance,” said Craig Miller, enterprise main.
Weizenegger-Engel Insurance has licensed retailers in all states except Alaska, Hawaii, Vermont, and New Hampshire. “We have gotten farther out in our geography of where we do commercial enterprise. We have clients at the Iron Range, down within the Twin Cities, out in far western Minnesota, so we have accelerated our service vicinity,” Miller said.
The corporation insures, as an instance, businesses in those industries or groups: auto sales and service, constructing substances, contractors, device sellers, funeral directors, resorts and eating places, production, clinical, expert, retail, lodges, tire dealers, and retreaders.
“In 2008, we noticed quite a few of our contractor’s exit of business, so there has been a large slump for several years … However we quite plenty weathered via it,” stated Robyn Rudek, senior organization marketer.
Miller said, “We had been nevertheless very competitive with our advertising – getting accessible and doing business with new companies to update what we have been dropping. And we’ve got diverse over the past 15 years. We most effectively insured one school district 15 years in the past.”
Rudek said the business enterprise now insures “some of the college districts … And some of the municipalities and several nonprofits.”
Miller delivered, “And a maximum of the important production inside the community. … We’ve had people that have completed commercial enterprise with us for over 50 years.”
Miller is one of the 10 employees of Weizenegger-Engel Insurance, affiliated with Primary Source Insurance, a nationwide corporation based in Owatonna.
“Insurance may be very established upon – and the pricing of it, long term – managing your claims and minimizing your claims, so we’re very worried about our clients to assist them in broadening strategies, quality practices, to reduce claims,” Miller said. “Our core goes to continue to be commercial enterprise coverage, but what we want to do is likewise do the institution fitness for the enterprise owner, so we want to be that one-stop-shop to handle their desires, so they have got one agent to talk to, one agency to speak to, to clear up their troubles.”
Rudek has labored at Weizenegger-Engel Insurance for more than four decades and is not the only employee at the corporation with that kind of longevity. Renate Vogt, who retired approximately a year ago, also labored for the organization for more than four years.
Company origins
“We have been a melding of two agencies,” Rudek said of the agency’s origins. “I originally commenced with Opsahl Insurance – Butch Opsahl, he changed into in downtown Brainerd – and his father began it in 1921, I suppose it becomes.”
She said the notion that it became in 1981, after Butch Opsahl’s death, that the organization becomes purchased through the Graham Weizenegger Insurance Agency.
“Steve Engel and Bob Weizenegger added our employer together, and we operated separately from the Weizenegger office for a few years, and then we all merged,” Rudek stated.
Weizenegger-Engel Insurance is owned with the aid of Federated Insurance Companies of Owatonna. “That’s who Steve Engel sold out to 15 years ago,” Miller said.
Other outstanding modifications that affected Weizenegger-Engel Insurance include how computer systems became a well-known office gadget. Rudek said whilst she commenced on the enterprise, everything was carried out with the aid of paper.
“We’re totally internet-based with our software program and records retention, so all patron policies, all consumer provider management,” Miller said. “We’ve were given statistics of smartphone calls; we’ve got data of conversations, emails, all cataloged while we used to have walls of report cabinets in this building.”
Growing cyber-legal responsibility and pc hacking
Rudek stated any other change in employment practices liability had grown a lot over time. “It just looks like something keeps getting added each couple of years like now the recent item is cyber-legal responsibility with all of the pc hacking,” Rudek said.
Miller delivered, “Or personnel losing a computer – glaringly consumer facts, credit score card facts being received. … Or you may get duped into wiring money into an account, and groups – it is taking place in our community. Pretty often … Being approached to do it.”
Weizenegger-Engel Insurance presents its customers with an annual assessment for their protection and change control practices, financial and enterprise succession planning, insurance coverage and options, and insurance renewal, consistent with its website.
“I also see us adding extra agencies that we represent,” Miller said of Weizenegger-Engel Insurance, which represents a predicted 18 distinctive insurance businesses, too.
“Every insurance organization has their area of expertise of what they need to do, so over the past 4 years, we have delivered two new groups, and over the following two years, I’d like to add another enterprise, so that we can write greater numerous kinds of businesses accessible.”
And as for the destiny of Weizenegger-Engel Insurance? Miller said he expects their customers will come from even farther areas in the internet age.
“But it still comes down to 2 real key areas: one, businesses are greater complex, and it takes some knowledge, and, two, that’s wherein our people come into play,” Miller said of his coworkers’ sturdy paintings ethic and professionalism that has stood the check of time.
“Anybody can promote coverage. What it comes down to is how properly do you understand the guidelines and the insurance desires of the purchaser.”
