Allianz Global Assistance Is All About Agents
One of the first things that travel agents need to know about Allianz Global Assistance is that the company is committed to taking care of its partners and their customers, writes executive editor, Bob Mowat in this week’s digital edition of Canadian Travel Press.
“There are two main things that travel agents need to know about Allianz Global Assistance,” observed
Dan Keon, the company’s vice-president, market management. “The first is that our main priority is to take care of our partners and help them grow their business in every way we can. And secondly, it’s to take care of their customers.”
In a recent conversation with Canadian Travel Press, Keon pointed out that: “What some travel agents may not be aware of is that we have strong roots in Canada and we’ve been working with agents in Canada for 30 years.”
However, Keon is quick to tell you that Allianz Global Assistance also has “an unparalleled global presence.”
“We work with 36 business units around the world to both share best practices, but also to engage with them when needed to support our customers when they are travelling abroad,” Keon said.
He explained: “Those business units can help us overcome cultural or language barriers in countries where otherwise it might be difficult to provide assistance.”
The other piece is that the company’s global reach gives it the ability to respond swiftly to major crises.
“With the Nepal earthquake in 2015,” Keon noted, “We had people on the ground and response centres around the world coordinating and we were able to lift 55 of our customers out of Nepal.”
“More recently with the Vegas shootings,” he said, “We had 7 of our customers down there that were affected and within hours we had our air ambulance partners meeting them in hospitals and arranging to bring them home. So that global reach really makes a critical difference, especially with the travel insurance and assistance component.”
For the full story, check out this week’s digital edition of Canadian Travel Press.
