Lets do a People’s Trust Insurance review, from the ground up.
People’s Trust Insurance operates out Deerfield Beach, Florida, a suburb of Miami.
They currently have a 4.2 rating on Google, based off over 1,400 reviews.
That alone is not worthy of concern, but recently Roofing Insights founder Dmitry Lipinskiy was made aware of the fact that People’s Trust has been sending cease-and-desist letters to contractors who have posted disparaging information about People’s Trust on social media.
For Lipinskiy, a man of integrity who believes in holding people and companies accountable for their actions, People’s Trust’s decision to threaten contractors for their opinions has rubbed him the wrong way.
After a series of investigations into the practices of People’s Trust, Lipinskiy and Roofing Insights have learned that the CEO of People’s Trust has a 40% approval rating. It has also been discovered that People’s Trust is prohibiting people from posting reviews of their company on Facebook, a clear sign that the entity is not confident in the responses they will receive from consumers.
People’s Trust’s behavior is disappointing, but it should come as no surprise, given all that has unfolded in recent years regarding the way corporations seem to set the precedent for how big businesses operate.
Still, this doesn’t keep a bulldog like Lipinskiy from exposing companies for their deliberate behavior.
“I don’t understand why big corporations haven’t learned this lesson,”
begins Lipinskiy.
“It’s 2021. You have to have open conversations with people, especially when it comes to social media.”
But based off People’s Trust disinterest in letting customers review their services on Facebook, it’s clear that an open conversation is the last thing People’s Trust wants to engage in.
This, in conjunction with the cease-and-desist letters distributed by representatives from People’s Trust, gives Lipinskiy further motivation to examine the Florida-based company in order to find out whether the flurry of negative comments directed toward People’s Trust is legitimate.
“It rubs me the wrong way,”
Lipinskiy says of the legal actions that People’s Trust has taken against contractors.
“I hate bullying. If I see anyone going after someone who cannot reply, we’re going to have their back.”
Lipinskiy feels similarly about People’s Trust’s decision to block customer reviews on their Facebook page.
Says Lipinskiy:
“People’s Trust Insurance: if you keep doing that, we’re going to continue to call you out.”
Real Online Reviews: Buying Credibility on BBB
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) was once a hallmark of American consumerism.
Homeowners flocked to the BBB website to find reputable companies, and business owners were proud to list their business on the site.
Over the years, the BBB became more corporate and in turn began to monetize their services. This included allowing businesses to purchase a higher listing on their site so their brand could get exposed to more homeowners.
As a result, shady and unreliable businesses began to generate more leads, and this affected customers’ faith in the website.
Today, People’s Trust is doing the same thing, boosting their standing on the BBB despite the fact that they have a laundry list of customers who are dissatisfied with their service.
“They’re trying to portray themselves as a good company. They also hide their Google reviews,”
reveals Lipinskiy, then recommending that if consumers want a more accurate depiction of how a particular company operates, it’s best to visit Glassdoor, a website where former employees can review their past employers.
On the site, one doesn’t need to scroll very far to find scathing reviews from ex-employees of People’s Trust.
“If you want a full picture of the company, search the internet and you’ll find the answers,”
says Lipinskiy.
Conflict of Interest
For all repairs, People’s Trust forces their clients to work exclusively with a company called Rapid Response Team.
By some accounts, Rapid Response Team is more expensive than their competitors, and they also don’t offer a quality service.
Worse, most clients aren’t aware they have to work with Rapid Response Team until they make a claim on their policy. It is then that they are dealt the harsh and inconvenient truth.
By partnering with Rapid Response Team, People’s Trust has subsequently created a conflict of interest for their business, and by forcing their customers to go through Rapid Response for all their repairs, this has left many customers mystified.
“Here’s the problem,”
says Lipinskiy.
“You can’t do that because you can’t service people in every way. You cannot be an expert in everything.”
Time will tell if People’s Trust’s strategy of not letting their policy holders choose their own contractors will eventually backfire on them.
Something Good
Level the Playingfield is a Facebook group with over 13,000 members that for the most part consists of contractors and other members of the roofing industry.
Lipinskiy recently asked the group about their thoughts regarding People’s Trust.
The overwhelming majority of the people who responded had negative things to say about People’s Trust.
Says Lipinskiy:
“I’ve seen plenty of good reviews. I don’t think that People’s Trust is worse than others. Every company has their flaws. They’re all in business to make money. They’re greedy, but not always ethical, and they’re in business to please their shareholders.”
But there were a few contractors who defended People’s Trust.
Wrote one person (*please note that this quote has been edited for readability):
“They’re actually not a bad company. They always pay for every roof. Just always recommend that your homeowner doesn’t get the “preferred contractor clause” in the policy. Other than that, they’re not bad.”
After conducting his investigation, Lipinskiy is now looking for a response from People’s Trust and insists that his aim is not to tarnish the company. Rather, he simply wants to create a better customer experience for their clients.
The following is Lipinskiy’s call-to-action for People’s Trust:
“I want to have a conversation with you and see if there’s something that I’m missing. Maybe you’re a completely different company from what we read online. Maybe you will want to do a company tour and open your doors to us. If you have good initiatives and practices, we would like to highlight you. We want to find a good insurance company that we can recommend to our homeowners. We don’t believe that all companies are bad, but when you send cease-and-desist letters to contractors about their comments on Facebook, that’s where I draw the line.”
Lipinskiy also adds a final sentiment, one that obviously applies to People’s Trust, but to other businesses as well:
“If you want to improve your product, you need to start listening to the homeowners, read your online reviews, and stop bullying people who don’t recommend or agree with you.”
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