Last week, I had the opportunity to spend a day in Joplin, Mo., with members of the State Farm team—witnessing the company's concerted response to the devastating tornado that ripped through the city, leaving more than 140 dead and 1,000 injured (see my Reporter's Notebook on page 6).
While the insurance industry is too often viewed as the “bad guys” by the general public, that's definitely not the case in Joplin right now, I can say with total confidence, based on all I heard and saw.
Indeed, after the first responders who risked their lives in rescue efforts, local insurance agents and the claims adjusters who have arrived from all over the country are some of the most popular people in the city—seen as white-hat-wearing heroes who are there doing all they can, 24/7, to help citizens reassemble their shattered lives.
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