JESSICA CLARE HENDERSON
Company and Role:
Econorisk Broker Consultants – Account Executive
How did you start in the industry?
I started in insurance in a call centre at YOUi insurance company selling domestic insurance over the phone to the Australian market. At the time I was studying law and thought the position was an easy way to make enough money to fund my studies, where you didn’t require any previous working experience or qualifications.
Never the less to say, once you’re in , there’s no getting out! From Sales, I moved to domestic claims, onto corporate claims, then into corporate and commercial Underwriting and never looked back.
What is your go to insurance story to tell?
There are so many stories when you are in this industry, one of my favourites is a simple but entertaining and relatable one:
It is from one of the very first claims I handled as a domestic claims handler for our Australian clients. As you know, Australia is notorious for its deadly and frightening wildlife, now I don’t know if a spider counts as wildlife, but for anyone who has seen even a picture of a huntsman spider, I am sure you will agree it counts.
For those who do not know, they are basically kitten sized spiders that are quite aggressive when threatened although apparently fairly harmless.
The story goes:
A client was reversing out of her driveway, looking in her review mirror waiting for the garage door to open, something catches her eye, as she looks down from her review mirror at her dash, she finds herself face to face with a massive huntsman spider. In a panic she puts her foot flat on the accelerator reversing through her garage door, across the road and into her neighbour across the roads wall. The impact of hitting the wall flings the spider off the dash towards her, so she proceeded to fall out of her car and start stripping.
Hobbies, people and pets you love:
I am mom to the worlds cutest Corgi, bonus mom of two, and fiancé to my very own prince charming (He even has the majestic hair to go with the title). Our free time is made up of golfing, wine farms, good food and taking our dog on adventures.
Moto/quote you live by:
“When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.” – Paulo Coelho
DAVID FRANTZ
Company and Role:
Echelon Private Client Insurance, a division of Santam – Relationship Manager
How did you start in the industry?
End up is basically the correct phrase as I didn’t leave school or “Uni” thinking I would have a career in the finance industry, let alone insurance. I was unemployed and was made aware of a learnership opportunity through Mutual & Federal as they were known at that time. I qualified the following year through M&F and INSETA and I was immediately approached by some of the claims managers to be a permanent part of the team.
Hobbies, people and pets you love:
Firstly, I consider myself a God fearing Christian. My passion is family – wife and 2 daughters. For some reason, I always knew I was going to be a dad and I enjoy my family time tremendously. I am a dog person and have 2 pooches in my family. As many of the people who know me, will know that I am a keen “DIYer”. On weekends you will find me in tattered jeans, working on a different project all the time. From auto to home DIY to garden you name it, I tackle anything or any project I can get my hands on.
Moto/quote you live by:
Even when things are not OK, I am going to be OK.
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