Travel Guard Response to Recent AIG News Reports

by Steve Dasseos, The Trip Insurance Guru on March 18, 2009 · 0 comments

March 17, 2009

There have been a number of articles and news stories recently regarding AIG, Inc., (the Holding Company.) Some of you have expressed concern, others have expressed frustration. I am writing to let you know that we share your anger and appreciate your commitment to your customers and to the industry.

I’m sure that the controversy over the news that AIG, Inc. is paying retention bonuses to employees in the Financial Products group is as upsetting to you as it has been for all of us at Travel Guard. There is a significant difference between AIG, Inc. and Travel Guard. Travel Guard is part of the Commercial Insurance (CI) Group, a collection of insurance companies that are well capitalized and have no debt. Recently it was announced that Travel Guard and CI will become part of a new holding company called AIU Holdings. This will position Travel Guard and other entities within AIU Holdings for the future as a more independently run company with independent board members, management team and brand identity. Formation of AIU Holdings will help position the companies for the potential sale of a minority stake in the business, which ultimately may include a public offering of shares, depending on market conditions.

The thousands of women and men who work for the companies in AIU Holdings are dedicated professionals who provide valuable service and protection to more than 40 million customers throughout the world. It is important to understand the distinction between the challenges AIG faces as a result of AIG Financial Products and the continued strong and well run Property Casualty businesses of AIU Holdings.

For more than 25 years, Travel Guard has been a value-based company where “our direction is led by our values.” We empower our employees to make decisions in the best interest of our customers. We give back to the local and global communities we serve. We walk our talk – we do what we say we’re going to do. I want to assure you that despite the challenges of our parent company, no one in the industry takes better care of your customers than Travel Guard.

If you have additional questions, please ask. Also, please feel free to share this not only with your employees, but with customers that voice concerns. Otherwise, we wanted to ensure that you have, as one late great radio broadcaster used to say, “the rest of the story”.

Best regards,

Tom Zavadsky

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Steve Dasseos & TripInsuranceStore.com fully support Travel Guard (see this post for more on why Steve feels this way). They have good quality plans with excellent customer service. Click here to see all the Travel Guard plans’ details.

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