X-Message-Number: 19216
From: 
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2002 11:04:50 EDT
Subject: Re: in house life insurance

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In a message dated 6/6/02 5:01:10 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
 writes:


> 
> Message #19209
> From: "peter tindale" <>
> Subject: Alcor vs. CI
> Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2002 17:26:53 -0700
> 
> This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
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> 1. Has anyone done an unbiased, comprehensive comparison of Alcor and CI?
> 
> 2. How could relations between the two be improved?
> 
> 3. Why don't either offer in house life insurance?
> 
> 
Rudi Hoffman writing here...

Peter has asked some reasonable questions here.  

I will not touch the first two questions with the proverbial ten meter pole, 
way to many variables and frankly I don't know if empirical answers are 
currently possible on the first two questions.

But I do have a high degree of expertise on the third question, because I 
spend about perhaps 80% of my professional time thinking about *exactly* such 
questions, and am the leading writer of cryonics policies on the planet.  
Here are some possibilities, speculations, observations...

"Why don't cryonics organizations have "in-house" insurance people?"

1.  Perhaps most salient, is that this could be viewed as a conflict of 
interest issue by some.  We know there are folks out there who see cryonics 
as a scam.  For an in-house company to write policies just adds to the 
potential for (totally innaccurate) charges that "this is some kind of money 
making fraud."  

2.  It actually makes more sense to delegate this function to independent 
agents/brokers that know and have a deep background in this fledgling 
industry.  This eliminates licensing and liability requirements.

3.  There is simply not currently enough business being generated to justify 
such a department.  Some people go through their brother in law agent (often 
a mistake, BTW), a small percentage pay cash (usually a mistake, from a 
number crunching standpoint, and other reasons) and there are just not that 
many sign-ups happening.

I by no means have every cryonics policy written, but my number crunching 
indicates I have a fairly large percentage.  I have earlier stated my goal of 
"100 cryonics policies" in 2002.  We are halfway through the year, and my 
agency is at about 25! 
I wish to heck it was higher, and if the "red file" prospects on my desk, 
perhaps including some people reading this, would get off their butts we 
would have double this number. 

This is with me working my tail off, constantly on the phone long distance or 
emailing asking people to follow through on their committments, fill out the 
paperwork I have overnighted them 6 months ago, schedule their blood and 
urine test, get qualified for the best rates possible, etc.  

To put it shortly and succinctly in the vernacular, it is damn labor 
intensive.  It is a frustrating, time consuming pain in the butt.  From 
thinking about it to following through, many people take YEARS.  They (and we 
all) have *issues* that come up.

But I love this business of cryonics life insurance!  Partly because I get to 
deal with some of smartest, most forward thinking, and creative people on the 
planet, many of whom have become dear friends.  And, if you are reading this, 
we will assume that you *are one of the exceptions, that you made a decision, 
followed through in a businesslike and timely manner, and are a joy to do 
business with.  

Fortunately, most of my actual income is derived from investments, allowing 
me to pursue my passion of showing people why and how cryonics IS affordable.


Hope this helps shed some light on question number three.  Much easier to 
answer than questions one and two, which could start a whole new round of 
"cryonet wars"
(It may be time...cryonet has been *way* to calm lately.:)

Warm Regards to all,

Rudi Hoffman CFP



  

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