Kemper’s California Presence Set to Contract as Argonaut’s Expands
By Robert Warne - April 19, 2002It has been a tumultuous three years for adjusters handling the Superior National Insurance Companies In Liquidation (SNICIL) run-off. Adjusters that have stuck it out, either have learned to stay focused on their jobs or have become numb to the particular challenges each day brings.
Well if these adjusters didn’t have enough on their plate already with large caseloads, and a “lack of love from Mother Kemper,” as one adjuster put it, now job uncertainty has been introduced to the mix.
During the first week of April, Kemper Employers Group (KEG) sold the new and renewal rights of Superior it acquired from the State to Argonaut Insurance Co. This move signals that the roots feeding the Superior run-off branch of Kemper will ultimately dry up.
Whether Argonaut will assume these employees or even the office space Kemper acquired as part of its agreement with the Department of Conservation and Liquidation has yet to be announced. Argonaut representatives have been contacted, but have been unavailable thus far to comment on the deal.
When asked by adjustercom.com, Jeff Moder, the communications manager for Kemper Insurance Companies, confirmed that the transaction did take place.
Kemper agreed to administer the Superior run-off for a fee, and thought it could turn a profit on the deal. But according to sources close to the matter, early on it was evident that Kemper failed to properly assess the penalties exposure related to the run-off. So money earmarked as profits quickly went out the window.
This news casts a shadow of uncertainty over Kemper employees administering the Superior run-off particularly in the Calabasas and Rancho Cordova offices. This presents a new challenge for claims managers Colleen Slyngstad in Rancho Cordova and Helen Owens in Calabasas to convince permanent employees to stick with Kemper.
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