Customer Service Representative | Buffalo, NY | Oct 23, 2020
Will Work You Into Depression
This job did to me exactly what I said in the title: worked me into a depression.
The metrics are insanely difficult to consistently meet up to the company standards, and most of them aren't within your control. For example, you need to receive a certain amount of surveys, and every single survey needs to be rated "excellent" or it's held against you. But it's also held against you if you do not get enough surveys back; as if you can control your callers being elderly or foreign or just have a difficult time using computers. The company also fails to understand that when most customers are upset with something the company did, they rate the entire survey poorly even if the agent was not at fault, yet the agent is still held accountable. Essentially the company just wants to find ways to blame their employees rather than admitting their own faults.
A lot of the metrics contradict one another. The managers who demand all of this perfection were CSR agents when the standards and metrics were much lower and even most of them do not score perfectly every single call they take. (they have to handle so many calls in a specific time period)
That's another thing: call scoring. All of your calls are recorded and audited and scored just so the company can find more and more ways to put you down. They will find literally anything you did wrong. It could be something as simple as asking "how can I help you today?. They WILL find a way to find something wrong with that. You're forced to e
I worked here in the claims department as an entry level claims adjuster for a few months and the pay is pretty good for the job you’re doing, but it can really wear you down. There are numbers you’re expected to hit everyday regarding how many inbound calls you take and how many online claims you work, but you have to work every claim as close to completion as you possibly can. If you miss things on a claim, the performance team marks your grade down and it’s automatically a “non-sat” for your performance, which basically means you didn’t do your job right.
A lot of the time it really feels like you’re being slave-driven because there’s so much work you’re expected to do, and if you’re not meeting expectations then your rating will be low. You’re rated on a 5pt scale and if you’re anything below a 3/5 (which is proficient), you aren’t even eligible to do something as simple as getting your permanent schedule changed.
You don’t know what your permanent schedule will be until you finish training, and at that point you’re bidding against your training teammates for the best schedules aside from the person in the class who finishes with the highest rating. The highest rated person in training pretty much gets the schedule they want, which isn’t fair to other people that may need a different schedule for personal reasons. And if you need to change your personal schedule later on down the line, it’s still on a bidding system and if someone with a higher rating than you wants t
ProsGood, competitive pay
ConsHigh workload, unsupportive management, no work/life balance, extremely strict attendance
Honestly, have never had such a horrible experience working for a company that tricked me into such a wonderful sounding program - Management Development Program- they made me actually feel like I had finally found a company that was going to challenge me and like there were real opportunities to move up in the company and that I’d finally be given the opportunity to really gain leadership experience and be challenged. The entire HR reporting system is corrupt, if you go to them to tell them about any issue you are having with anyone who’s worked there for years, they automatically jump to defend that supervisor, saying XYZ wouldn’t do that and that they’re friends with them and that “maybe your being too emotional” because “that that doesn’t sound like them.” No accountability whatsoever. I was hired for the management Development program along with 3 other people on my team. The other two quickly quit, and I tried to stick it through despite the miserable work environment, but finally stopped caring when I was demoted from the program based on the fact that I accidentally parked in the wrong spot (because there is a huge lack of communication that goes on and it also isn’t outlined in the handbook that you can literally be fired over parking in the wrong spot. Anyways, I was demoted to a salary almost $10 less per hour than i was being paid and was given that as their reason for “reaching the decision to officially remove me from the MDP program”, when I would have assumed
ProsDecent pay; health insurance once your finally eligible for it, and 1 decent training manager that shows she actually cares
ConsMDP program as a whole, be prepared to be isolated / excluded from the class once they find out your an MDP trainee, they do not value diversity or humor (so take that off the walls), HR’s lack of confidentiality in any concerns you report, HR’s handling of concerns reported, HR will side with anyone who has higher seniority, air so dusty that they straight up have sore throat lozenges on standby, if you get sick from the DUSTY AIR too bad because 3 strikes and your out
I was an auto damage adjuster for 3 years. The training is phenomenal, you’ll rarely find another company with a better training program. However, that training is company-specific, so you’ll quickly have to forget everything Geico taught you before you’re able to transition into a similar role outside of the company. The training was paid, tons of OT pay and honestly, the best part about Geico. Once you’re in your new position and start working, you’ll quickly realize the writing on the walls were a warning and not that warm welcome you were made to believe. The real-world job is grueling, relentless and for some areas in the US, dangerous.
The job description was easy enough, you inspect customer’s cars after accidents, update them throughout the repair or advise them that it’s a total loss and you go from there. Unfortunately, this is where the disconnect starts. Your team is usually understaffed, or overworked, usually both at the same time. The days are usually a hectic scramble to inspect cars, update customers, and sort through tons of admin work. To make things even harder, you are picked apart by the most intense micro-managing I’ve ever seen from an establishment. They know the very second you’re working, done working, every phone call, every email, every minute metric and statistic to grade your performance. From how often you pick up the phone, how many bumpers you wrote to repair instead of replace, how frequently you document communications with customers, etc.
ProsFlexible hours, you make your own schedule. Company car with free gas.
ConsInsane workload, toxic management, no support.
Typical high volume insurance call center with great benefits and long term stability
GEICO is a leading employer in the middle GA area for a reason. The entry level pay is higher than what most any other company in the area is going to offer with little to no experience or secondary education requirements. The company offers the best benefit package I've ever had with low cost medical, dental, vision and many other typical insurance plans available. The medical plan specifically was one of the best structured ones I've encountered with relatively low co-pays and a ride provider network through United Health Care. The 401k plan through Vanguard is well performing and a great retirement tool. The annual profit sharing is probably the biggest incentive the company offers you won't find elsewhere. It results in a typical 10% company contribution of your salary and ranging between a 5% to, most recently, a 20%, cash payout bonus as well. The daily life is similar to any other call center. You are typically on back to back calls for 8-10 hour shifts, depending on business need, and schedule assignment with 1-2 15 minutes breaks and a 30 minute lunch resulting in a 38.75 hour paid week and typically 5 8-8.25 hour days a week. You have minimal, if any, choice in your schedule coming into the company, but there is usually some flexibility within 6 months to a year for shift bids. It will typically always require working at least 1 weekend day depending on the department, but it is at least set to where you don't have to worry about fluctuations. Long term goals and ca
ProsProfit sharing, excellent benefits, long term stability and progression opportunities, good starting pay for are but not necessarily the field entirely
ConsShort rigidly scheduled breaks, constantly changing goals and procedures always trying to keep operations lean and efficient, high turnover resulting in understaffing, very high volumes and wait times make for a stressful environment at times
During training, much will be made of the support structures in place, GEICO's commitment to your growth, and the "family" structure.
In reality, none of these are true.
Support is not available when needed. Instead, they are used for culling tools against those they are looking to purge. "Growth opportunities" are little more than lateral moves to other departments under the guise of "promotion". Most growth is capped (time restrictions, IFTT qualifiers, etc.), so despite claims of "it can be done" in less time, expect to be glued to your desk in Service or Sales for years before even being entertained for *actual* promotion, regardless of prior job experience or qualification. They will also discuss how it is a "family" and they wish to "take care" of their employees, but those are quite limited definitions, in that they are applicable only insofar as they engender more drive and allegiance from the employee, but not so much from "corporate". If you are sick or have a family emergency, you will still be required to be at work. You will be penalized if not. No amount of documentation or discussion will change that.
All of this is after you make it through the tremendously lengthy application process. If you make it through, that is. If not, they will not notify you that they have declined your application. They will not have any information on why your application was stopped, even if you reach out to inquire. They will only offer you a shoulder shrug and the assu
ProsThey *can* pay you well, but likely still not what you're worth
Cons*Everything* is calculated and weighed against you (even bathroom breaks)
I thought GEICO would be the answer to my unhappiness at my job. Well I went for my interview...the process took me NINE HOURS, I had to go to lunch because they didn't have any CSRs available for me to double jack with. I finally went through the interview process, and then the managers stated I would probably need to come back some time next week. Which means I would need make sure I could get the day off at my current job in order to make the very demanding drive back up to GEICO. Well I left for the day, I got in my car, I was leaving the parking lot, got out onto the main road, and then they decided to call me and offer the job. If they knew they were going to hire me, wouldn't it have been easier to do so while I was still in the building?! Parking at GEICO was horrendous, so then I had to find a parking spot again, which should be an Olympic Sport in itself. So then I was there for another hour and a half filling out all of my paperwork, and then the drug test. They said they'd be taking a STRAND of hair, but no, the nurse took out her scissors and took a half inch chunk of hair, that was cut maybe an inch and a half from my roots. I wasn't the only person that was misinformed by this, once we got into our training classes. That whole process was a major miscommunication, during my phone interview they said a couple of hours would be needed, which to me means 2-3 at the max! Nowhere near 11 hours!
They claim to be the "low cost provider" yet they give us numerous book
It's true GEICO is a fast paced environment BUT you are trained to learn how to keep up. The only way into GEICO is thru an entry level position. We've ALL put some time in on the phones and that time varies for everyone from managers, directors and supervisors, they all started on the phones.(Unless you work for our home office in MD, there is a different process) However once you get in, YOU ARE IN! At that point you can figure out what it is you want to do with your career; relocate, become a supervisor, a trainer, work in HR, work in IT, work as an auto damage adjuster, work for the internet team and more! WHATEVER YOU want to do YOU can, you just have to want that for yourself! It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do with my career and when I did I didn't look back. I'm still running forward!
Everyone who has commented on here from our different regions all have different perspectives about the company, but one thing remains the same which is that from day one, we all have the ability to make our careers into whatever we want them to be. This isn't a job for excuse makers, this is a career for goal driven people! If you want to know more about working for GEICO go to the YouTube page and search GEICO Careers. Those people are speaking about their OWN experience with GEICO.
Cool things: you typically get 2 raises in your first year and your annual review raise each year. PROFIT SHARING (if you don't know google it!) Yes, you can eat at your desk, but n
GEICO HAS NEVER BEEN A FAMILY FRIENDLY COMPANY!!!! No matter what they tell you
I attest to this because I worked in three different departments for 12 yrs. I was hired for the Spanish Sales department by being offered an additional $1. per hour and as soon as we were out of training they had us taking both Spanish and English calls. Not too much longer and they leveled everyone's salary so it didn't matter that we answered bilingual calls which were more time consuming and made it harder to meet the goals. Throughout my years there I saw many people come and go...Horrible place to work...Micromanagement, Disrespectful, Management Gossip, Advancement by who you know, Open door policy -yeah right! you open the door and provide them with proof of a situation but they take it and turn it all around to make it seem like it wasn't such a terrible thing at all...why you are just imagining that this Supervisor has treated you badly by yelling and cussing you out loud enough for all to hear but no one will come forward from fear of said coworker who just happens to be their supervisor. Situations like this occurred with the same results every time. If you have any other talents outside of what your Geico job is by all means do not make them known as they will USE you abundantly. They take you off the phones with the promise that it won't hurt your dependability. When it's time for raises again you realize that you are coming up a couple of points off to getting a raise. Oh and just try to tell management that you don't want to do the next special project they ne
I have been at GEICO for a year and would not recommend to anyone. I am a liabilities adjuster aka TCR1and it is the dumping ground of the claims department. The processes send you chasing your tail, the training does not really prepare your for the job or expectations, management is so stuck on the GEICO way they do not listen to any suggestions, and when you offer suggestions that would actually improve things you are told "we are a low cost provider." In a nutshell the company would rather spend money on advertising than investing in their employees and improving processes.
Benefits: Well people say the benefits are great because the majority of people they hire come from industries that did not offer benefits or college kids. As someone that has had awesome benefits that are subpar. They love to talk about profit sharing; however, you are not eligible until after a year, if you make it because the salary is terrible.
Salary: The starting salary in my area is about 42.5k. The expectations and salary definitely do not match. You have a report card and a perfect rating will yield a 5% raise. Now keep in mind they drive home this perfect score all yield and there is no bonus structure built in, so you are fighting for perfection for 5%, which doens't yield much more than inflation. The workload and expectations the job should not be paying less than 50k.
Expectations: In the TCR1 role you are given a caseload of files to handle. New claims are assigned everyda
ProsSchedule flexibility
ConsSalary, benefits to me but some enjoy, management, lack of a bonus structure
Questions And Answers about GEICO
What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Asked Mar 15, 2020
Extremely stressful
Answered May 23, 2023
Busy
Answered May 21, 2023
What benefits does GEICO offer?
Asked Jul 16, 2019
Paid holidays off
Answered May 23, 2023
Medical, Dental, 401K, Paid Vacation
Answered May 23, 2023
How long do you have to work at GEICO before you can go on maternity leave?
Asked Nov 6, 2020
12 months
Answered May 25, 2023
1 year
Answered May 23, 2023
What is the best part of working at the company?
Asked Dec 9, 2019
GEICO is very supportive. Being able to build a career at GEICO is in your hands. Their willingness to support their people in all aspects is exceptional.
Answered May 11, 2022
The money but other than that you’ll need anti depressants
Answered May 10, 2022
If you were in charge, what would you do to make GEICO a better place to work?
Asked Oct 17, 2019
I would start by paying people for the hours they actually work and not pressure people into working for free off the clock. Then I would hire enough people to do the work. Finally I would look for solutions to make the processes easier and more efficient instead of them becoming more complicated and difficult
Answered May 12, 2021
I would Sell geico to ALLSTATE because they're bETTER. They off er free or reduced lunch.
