CUSTOMER SERVICE

At a time when the rest of the industry is cutting back on service, Employers Direct Insurance Company has formed a dedicated team of account managers and customer service representatives that have one responsibility: to be responsible for assisting our policyholders. This team of field and home-office based Customer Service members average more than ten years of California workers’ comp experience. At Employers Direct, the Customer Service team takes responsibility for whatever action is necessary to resolve a policyholder’s question or concern. This level of service is one of the many value-added services provided by Employers Direct to our policyholders.

The customer service team works in tandem with all internal departments including Claims, Loss Control, Finance, and Underwriting to ensure that policyholders are provided with whatever assistance is necessary at any stage of the sales, underwriting, loss control, or claims process. Whatever the situation, the Employers Direct Customer Service Department communicates, informs, and provides solutions.

We invite you to meet our Customer Service team. If you have any questions, please contact us.

	Ken J. Helfrich, Assistant Vice President of Field Services Ken J. Helfrich is Assistant Vice President of Field Services for Employers Direct and is responsible for managing the Loss Control and Customer Service Departments. With over 18 years of Loss Control experience from both workers' compensation insurers and private industry, Ken provides a comprehensive knowledge of the workers' comp system, human resources, and a wide range of loss control expertise from a variety of industries. In September 2006, Ken was appointed to the Advisory Board of the Worker Occupational Safety and Health Training and Educational Program (WOSHTEP), which is administered by the Commission on Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation (CHSWC). Due to Ken's Board appointment, Employers Direct has participated as a corporate sponsor of the Young Worker Leadership Academy, which trains and educates California youth about workplace safety.
	SanDee Hunter, Customer Service Field Manager SanDee Hunter serves as a Customer Service Account Manager and is the main point of contact between policyholder customers and Employers Direct and is responsible for the day-to-day relationship management. She also provides current policyholders with news and information about workers’ compensation.  For 17 years prior to joining Employers Direct in 2003, SanDee was an active member of the Southern California Workers’ Compensation insurance community. SanDee’s previous roles include business development at Marsh Advantage America, where she was responsible for sales and service. She also spent 15 years with Liberty Mutual Insurance Group, where she was responsible for business development, service, and supervisory responsibilities. SanDee attended Brigham Young University and San Diego State University where she studied teaching. SanDee is a licensed California Agent/Broker.
	Robert Bergstrom, Customer Service Representative Robert "Bob" Bergstrom serves as a Customer Service Representative and is responsible for the internal service needs of our policyholders, Senior Marketing Officers, Customer Service Account Managers, management, and staff.  For 20 years prior to joining Employers Direct in 2004, Bob was an active member of the Southern California Workers’ Compensation Insurance community. Bob’s previous role included Account Service Representative at Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, where he was responsible for servicing policyholders in concert with the Account Executive to retain profitable business.  Bob received his Certified Insurance Service Representative (CISR) designation and is a licensed California Agent/Broker.
	Phyllis Cameron, Customer Service Account Manager Phyllis Cameron serves as a Customer Service Account Manager and is the main point of contact between policyholder customers and Employers Direct and is responsible for the day-to-day relationship management. She also provides current policyholders with news and information about workers' compensation. For 17 years prior to joining Employers Direct in 2007, Phyllis was an active member of the Northern California insurance community. Her previous roles have included Marketing and Account Management for large commercial lines insurance brokers. Phyllis' most recent role prior to Employers Direct was as Commercial Lines Team Leader - she supervised a staff of 15 and managed business plan objectives to ensure renewal retention. Phyllis also managed a $5M book of business for which she was responsible for negotiating pricing and servicing. Phyllis is a licensed California Agent/Broker.
	Cyndi Kroop, MBA, ARM, AIC, Customer Service Account Manager Cyndi Kroop serves as a Customer Service Account Manager and is the main point of contact between policyholder customers and Employers Direct and is responsible for the day-to-day relationship management. She also provides current policyholders with news and information about workers’ compensation.  For 15 years prior to joining Employers Direct in 2006, Cyndi was an active member of the San Diego Workers’ Compensation community. Her previous roles include 10 years as Vice President, Client Advisor, and Operations Manager for Marsh Risk & Insurance Services. She has also served as a Senior Workers’ Compensation Claims Consultant and Senior Workers’ Compensation Underwriter.  Cyndi received her M.B.A. Degree from the University of San Diego, and her B.A. Degree in Business Economics from Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. She was awarded her Associates in Risk Management and Associates in Claims from the Insurance Institute of America. Cyndi is also a licensed California Agent/Broker.
	Edward A. Pedroza, Customer Service Account Manager Ed Pedroza serves as a Customer Service Account Manager and is the main point of contact between policyholder customers and Employers Direct and is responsible for the day-to-day relationship management. He also provides current policyholders with news and information about workers’ compensation. For over 20 years prior to joining Employers Direct in 2007, Ed was an active member of the Southern California insurance and legal communities. In Ed’s previous role as Branch Manager for the past 18 years with a third-party claims administrator (TPA), he managed a claims administration branch that served insurance carriers, managing general agents (MGA’s), and self-insured clients. Ed’s responsibilities included personnel management, business development and retention, proposal development, and customer service. Ed attended California State Polytechnic University and also has a paralegal certificate. Ed is a licensed California Agent/Broker.
	Debbie Smith, Customer Service Representative Debbie Smith serves as a Customer Service Representative and is responsible for the internal service needs of our policyholders, Senior Marketing Officers, Customer Service Account Managers, management, and staff.  For 20 years prior to joining Employers Direct in 2003, Debbie was an active member of the Southern California Workers’ compensation insurance community. Debbie’s previous roles included Office Assistant, Assistant Supervisor, and Supervising Service Representative at Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, where she was responsible for renewing and servicing accounts. She coordinated meetings throughout the year with various departments to make sure service commitments were met. She also supervised and trained the office support in the department. Debbie is a licensed California Agent/Broker.
	Nancy Terrill, Customer Service Account Manager Nancy Terrill serves as a Customer Service Account Manager and is the main point of contact between policyholder customers and Employers Direct and is responsible for the day-to-day relationship management. She also provides current policyholders with news and information about workers’ compensation.  Nancy joined Employers Direct in 2006 and has over 20 years experience in the insurance industry. She began her career at Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and has also worked for multiple regional retail brokerage firms. Nancy has held several positions in insurance company marketing and handling large account specialty products in the Western United States. Her underwriting expertise includes workers’ comp risk evaluation as well as other lines of property and casualty coverage. She has eight years of California workers’ comp experience, primarily in large account underwriting and direct policyholder relationship management.
	Linda Watson, Customer Service Account Manager Linda Watson serves as a Customer Service Account Manager and is the main point of contact between policyholder customers and Employers Direct and is responsible for the day-to-day relationship management. She also provides current policyholders with news and information about workers’ compensation.  For 16 years prior to joining Employers Direct in 2004, Linda was an active member of the Southern California insurance community. Her previous role for the past 10 years was as the Office Manager at a Southern California agency. Linda managed a Commercial Agency that specialized in large automotive dealerships in Southern California with a portfolio of over 30 dealerships, maintained strong relationships with owners/business managers to ensure complete satisfaction and retention of renewal business, was responsible for gathering information for submission of renewal information, and was the initial contact for trouble shooting.  Linda is a licensed California Agent/Broker.