| Type | Public (NYSE: AFL) (TYO: 8686) S&P 500 Component |
|---|---|
| Industry | Supplemental insurance |
| Founded | 1955 |
| Founder(s) | John Amos Paul Amos Bill Amos |
| Headquarters | Columbus, Georgia, U.S. |
| Area served | Japan United States |
| Key people | Dan Amos (Chairman, CEO) |
| Products | Supplemental health and life insurance |
| Revenue | $18,254 million (2009) |
| Operating income | $2,235 million (2009) |
| Net income | $1,497 million (2009) |
| Total assets | $84,106 million (2009) |
| Total equity | $8,417 million (2009) |
| Employees | 8,349 (2009) |
| Website | aflac.com |
Aflac Incorporated (pronounced /ˈæflæk/) is the largest provider of supplemental insurance in the United States,[1] founded in 1955 and based in Columbus, Georgia. In the United States, Aflac underwrites a wide range of insurance policies, but is perhaps more known for its payroll deduction insurance coverage, which pays cash benefits when a policyholder has a covered accident or illness. The company states it insures "one of four Japanese households" and is "the largest life insurer in Japan in terms of individual insurance policies in force".[2] Aflac is also well known for its supplemental medical policies.
Aflac currently is the number one Supplemental Health provider in the U.S., followed closely by Allstate Workplace Division.
Aflac has a field force of over 72,500 agents in the U.S.[3]
In 2009, Aflac acquired Continental American Insurance Company to expand its coverage beyond voluntary benefits alone.
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The company was founded by three brothers, John, Paul and Bill Amos, in Columbus, Georgia, in 1955, as American Family Life Insurance Company of Columbus. In 1964, the company name was changed to American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus.
The company, in 1990, adopted the Aflac initials, although the official name of the underwriting subsidiary remains American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus.
The company signed 6,426 policyholders in its first year.[4] Aflac pioneered cancer insurance in 1958. Beginning in 1964, the company decided to focus sales on worksite settings, eventually through policies sponsored by employers and funded through payroll deductions. By 2003, more than 98% of Aflac policies in the United States were issued on a payroll deduction basis, making the company a leader in that approach to policy distribution. In 1973, Aflac established a holding company, the American Family Corporation.
Aflac operates in the United States and Japan, and has its worldwide headquarters and corporate offices in an eighteen story tower just east of Downtown Columbus, Georgia in an area known as MidTown. The Aflac tower is the tallest building in the city. At the end of 2009, the corporation's total assets were more than $84 billion, and the company insured more than 60 million people worldwide.
Aflac is the largest provider of guaranteed-renewable insurance in the United States and the largest insurance company overall in Japan, when measured by individual insurance policies in force.[5] Aflac launched a campaign in 2001 to promote their first accident policy in Japan, which The Wall Street Journal rated as one of the "ten most effective campaigns of 2000."
The company now offers several types of insurance policies in the United States, including the following:
Aflac also offers un-reimbursed medical, dependent day-care, and transportation flexible spending accounts. The company also offers human resources services for HIPAA and COBRA administration.
From 1979 to 1997, the company owned several television stations, most of them in small and medium markets. It sold the broadcasting division to what became Raycom Media in 1997.
Consumer groups and some government officials say that cancer insurance returns fewer premium dollars to policyholders than standard insurance. A U.S. General Accounting Office study found that the policies paid back as little as 35% of premiums. (AFLAC said its cancer insurance paid back 62.4%.) In comparison, New York State requires most major-medical policies to pay back 82% and group policies to pay back 75%. New York State does not allow stand-alone cancer policies. In 1997, AFLAC spent $175,000 on lobbyists and campaign contributions to change the law.[6] New York State lifted its ban in 1998, for purchasers who already have basic coverage. Consumer Reports recommended that policyholders use the money instead to buy lower-deductible insurance.[7]
Since 1999, the company's identity has become more widely recognized as the result of commercials featuring the Aflac Duck, who frustratedly quacks the company's name to unsuspecting prospective policyholders. The Aflac brand has developed wide recognition recently with commercials starring the famous Aflac Duck on television which started airing in December 1999. The duck concept and all of the commercials to date have been created by Kaplan Thaler Group, an advertising agency based in New York City. Struggling to come up with a concept to make the big but relatively obscure insurance company's name memorable, one of the agency's art directors stumbled upon the duck idea while walking around Central Park at lunchtime uttering, "Aflac, Aflac." He soon realized how much the company's name sounded like a duck's quack. The Aflac Duck character has now starred in more than 30 commercials. The Aflac Duck is enshrined on Madison Avenue's Walk of Fame as one of America’s Favorite Advertising Icons.[8]
In April 2009, Aflac introduced a new marketing campaign called "Get the Aflacts," designed to educate consumers about the specific benefits of the insurance products the company sells. The Aflacts campaign gave the Aflac Duck "a more prominent role," designed to "help potential customers learn the Aflacts, er, facts about policies and other products," according to The New York Times.[9]
Celebrities have starred in the Aflac ads, including Chevy Chase (2003); Yogi Berra; Yao Ming; Donald Trump's wife, Melania Trump; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Carl Edwards (2008–); the United States Olympic synchronized swimming team (2004); and Wayne Newton playing at Stardust Hotel and Casino for the 2003 commercial. The duck even appeared with Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Wile E. Coyote, and the Road Runner.[10]
In 2005, the company logo was changed to incorporate the duck. The first commercial using the new logo featured Gilbert Gottfried himself carrying the duck at a pet store because the duck kept saying "Aflac!" and he had to trade it in for another bird, which was a parrot, saying "If you're hurt and can't work".
The duck was voiced by comedian Gilbert Gottfried.[11] After serving 11 years, Gottfried was dismissed on March 14, 2011 due to postings on Gottfried's Twitter account referencing the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. The company's chief marketing officer stated that "Gilbert's recent comments about the crisis in Japan were lacking in humor and certainly do not represent the thoughts and feelings of anyone at Aflac."[12] On March 23, 2011, Aflac announced that the company was taking applications for the new voice of the Aflac Duck through QuackAflac.com until April 1. Commercials requesting the submissions, first aired in 2006 but updated, resemble a silent movie.[13][14] On April 26, 2011, it was announced that 36-year-old Daniel McKeague, a television advertising sales manager from Hugo, Minnesota, would be the new voice of the Aflac duck.[15] The first Aflac commercial featuring the new duck's voice first aired on May 1, 2011.
The company states that through a partnership with Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Aflac has contributed over $60 million to childhood cancer research and treatment.[16]
Aflac employees are formally involved in an array of charitable organizations such as Habitat for Humanity International, the Easter Seals, and the United Way.[17]
Aflac's stated objectives include the decrease of its environmental impact, for which the company is into a partnership with the Clean Air Campaign to encourage employees to engage with greater frequency in alternate commuting methods.[18]