Oftentimes, the psychology of success gets in the way of addressing risks. Successful people often think, “I’m Ms. or Mr. Invincible. A calamity could never happen to me.” Similarly, a person who has recently experienced a liquidity event such as an inheritance, career milestone or IPO may not realize that it has put him or her into an entirely new category of risk.
Advisors, however, may know better: Their clients have a lot to lose and require an approach to insurance and risk management that goes beyond middle-market auto and homeowners policies. But questions regarding types of policies, limits, deductibles and so on, still remain. The best advisors realize that their knowledge of risk management is limited, and that there’s a reason to call in an expert, like G2.
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At G2, we bring to insurance the same thorough due diligence and expertise that a successful client demands from a top-tier wealth manager, accountant or attorney. We invest the necessary time and thought into the process to ensure that we address each client’s needs in a strategic, individualized manner.
Moreover, a trusted advisor’s participation can play a valuable role in helping G2 do excellent work for our clients. We have seen this again and again in our long-standing relationships with top-flight attorneys, accountants, wealth managers and others.
The engagement begins with an in-depth conversation between G2, the client and any other advisors. First, we help clients figure out their true risk tolerance. This requires questions that deal as much with the personal tolerance for risk as financial aspects, and high net worth individuals need to come up with the right answers for themselves. Are they fully insured, self-insured or somewhere in between? They might be insured with high deductibles, but in the course of this discussion, might realize that they don’t want to take on that kind of exposure.
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Next, G2 thoroughly examines the client’s assets from a comprehensive risk management point of view. These sessions often elicit what clients find valuable, but may also uncover value that may have been overlooked or underestimated.
With these insights, we can then ask, “How exposed are these assets?” That is where G2 brings tremendous skill and experience to finding the best pathway through a thicket of problems. This is also where the participation of a client’s other advisors can deepen and sharpen G2’s solutions:
- For example, imagine that clients create an LLC that owns their home but still need to protect themselves from lawsuits in case someone is injured on their property.
- Other clients may have multiple homes in different states and countries, all covered by many carriers. We can streamline that coverage with a single carrier, with far more comprehensive protection.
- In still other cases, we discover that high limits in a policy have saddled client couples with potentially costly gaps. One particular couple could have had, say, an automobile claim that left them $200,000 out of pocket because the limits were not calibrated properly. We make sure that such gaps are closed.
An advisor’s presence often empowers clients and keeps them disciplined and focused on risk management.
This kind of team approach actually makes the issues more real and vivid, and energizes the whole process.
It’s exciting, then, when everyone is striving for the same common goal, which is to help grow and protect the assets of the high net worth individual or individuals. We perform well when our clients are engaged, and, frankly, we perform best when they’re demanding.
At G2, we believe that the best solution for successful individuals and families lies in a consultative, custom-tailored approach for their risk management and insurance.
This article was originally published in the April/May 2016 issue of Worth.
