Michael Welch, Big I® Advantage Marketing Assistant
 It's no secret Americans love their pets. Nearly 70% of U.S. households own a pet such as dogs, cats, fish, birds, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, horses, etc. The pet industry is made up of the products/services that keep these pets alive, healthy and happy - food, toys, grooming, daycare, training, accessories, medical services and more. Pet food, grooming, services, etc. are essentially a recession-proof industry, growing by an average of over 5% in the past 15 years. So any economic strengthening will likely reflect in even higher spending.
There are several trending reasons for this:
Only the Best: People are now seeking all-natural, organic food, cutting edge medical treatments, and luxury spa services for themselves, and it's spilling over into how they treat their pets. Businesses that bring these goods and services for pets are growing exponentially. Near my own house is a pet resort facility that cost millions to build, including high tech amenities such as a specialized air system. It is designed with sick pet rooms that have negative air pressure, which means it draws air in from the rest of the facility and vents outside to prevent the spread of disease. National Geographic did a special in 2008 on how we pamper and dote on our pets which featured this place. I know this because one of my own beloved dogs (chocolate lab/purple collar) is bounding around in the video starting around the 2 minute mark.
Spreading the Health: "There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face" - Bern Williams.
Owning a pet may make or keep you healthier, whether it's bringing dogs and cats to hospital patients or elderly care facilities, the positive effects of the bond of love between owner and pet, or just the benefit of getting off the couch to take the dog for a walk. According to the Human Animal Bond Research Initiative Foundation (HABRI), "People are happier and healthier in the presence of animals." According to this study the savings in healthcare in the U.S. may be over $11 billion annually.
One of the Family: As the NatGeo video above shows, pets can be more than just the family pet and may be treated as a member of the family. This trend is called humanization, demonstrated by demands for better food, accessories, and services, including expensive medical treatments. With more people in urban and suburban areas, fewer and fewer canines are just "outside dogs." How many people do you know that have pets sleeping in their bed?
Aging Out: As Baby Boomers send their kids off, they often seek a replacement. Even though most categories of spending decrease after 55, peak spending on pets is between 55-64. As the humanization trend has grown over the decades, Millennials grew up along with it and as many are delaying having children of their own they spend extravagantly on their family-member pets.
As part of the Small Commercial Standard Markets, Travelers is offering expanded coverages for those in the Pet Services industry.
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Pet Grooming Liability Endorsement* - Automatically included for Pet Grooming and Pet Day Care and Overnight Boarding services. Covers injury to dogs, cats or other domesticated animals as a result of providing or failing to provide pet grooming services.
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Boarding Kennel Endorsement* - Automatically included for Pet Grooming and Pet Day Care and Overnight Boarding services. Covers injury to dogs, cats or other domesticated animals in the care, custody or control of the policyholder.
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Veterinarians Professional Liability Coverage - Optional add-on coverage in the event of a professional error ("medical incident") that results in injury or loss of an animal up to $2M/$4M (Occurrence/Aggregate).
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Animal Floater - Optional add-on coverage in the event of accidental injury, death, damage, theft or escape of animals belonging to others that are in your care, custody or control, on your premises for examination, treatment, grooming, boarding or breeding, or while in transit.
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Business Income - Mobile Operations Vehicle Endorsement - Optional add-on coverage extends BIEE coverage for loss of business income due to direct physical damage to policyholder vehicles/trailers that provide services on the road.
* Endorsements are available to other Pet Care Services businesses as an optional, add-on coverage.
Pet groomers, pet sitters, pet stores, veterinary offices, pet day care and overnight boarding services all have one thing in common: their love for animals. Here are a few tools to help you explain why Travelers is the smart choice to protect their business - and their passion.
Travelers Select is now submitted under the product name Small Commercial Standard Markets on Big "I" Markets. ACORD Applications and three year loss runs will be required. Travelers is available in all states except AK, FL, HI, LA, RI & TX.
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SPECIAL FEATURE
Attach More (and Bigger!) Files Now in BIM
 We are very excited to announce that Big "I" Markets has been updated to allow for up to 10 files to be attached to one "New Message" and an expanded file size capacity from 4MB to 10MB. We hope you find these enhancements to the Big "I" Markets platform helpful. We will continue to implement enhancements to Big "I" Markets to make doing business on BIM as easy as possible. We value your input, so if you have any additional enhancement recommendations, please do not hesitate to send them to bigimarkets@iiaba.net.
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Court Bonds: Appeal Bond and Supersedeas Bond
 The world of court bonds can be confusing and sometimes hard to navigate. Are you familiar with appeal bonds and supersedeas bonds? They are very common court bonds. While we see these two terms often used interchangeable, they are two distinct types of bonds.
When a court case is settled and a judgment rendered, the losing party may desire to appeal the decision to a higher court. The appeal bond will cover the opposing party's court costs if the appeal is unsuccessful. The court determines the penal sum of the appeal bond.
According to Black's Law Dictionary a supersedeas bond is "a bond required of one who petitions to set aside a judgment or execution and from which the other party may be made whole if the action is unsuccessful." When a party prevails in court and obtains a judgment, the opposing party may wish to appeal the lower court's decision. In addition, they do not want to have to pay the judgment to the winning party until the appeal process is complete. In order to hold off payment of the judgment, the appellant is required to obtain a stay of enforcement from the court. When the court issues the stay of enforcement, they also determine the amount of the required supersedeas bond.
Because the appellant has already lost the case at trial and because the success of most appeals is low, these bonds are consider to be one of the highest risk class of bonds within the surety industry. Typically, a supersedeas bond guarantees that the if the appellant loses the appeal, the surety and the principal are "jointly and severally" liable to the oblige to satisfy the original judgment. For this reason, most appeal and supersedeas bonds will require 100% collateral (or in some cases more) in order to a surety to entertain.
Goldleaf Surety Services has a number of good surety markets that write appeal and Supersedeas bond. For court bonds - and all types of bonds - you can access Goldleaf Surety through Big "I" Markets. Simply log in to www.bigimarkets.com or email us at bigimarkets@iiaba.net and an underwriter will contact you.
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BIM Website Training Webinar
Big "I" Markets website
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When (and Why) Partial Losses Become Total Losses
Virtual University
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Date: Thursday, August 17
Time: 2:00 - 2:30pm EDT
Cost: Free
Summary:
For all you folks who recently registered for Big "I" Markets, remember you can participate in a webinar from the comfort of your office to help you learn how to navigate around the system. Every Thursday at 2:00 p.m. EDT we'll show you how to navigate the Big "I" Markets platform, including how to submit a quote! A recording of this webinar can be found under "Publications" after logging into Big "I" Markets.
Registration:
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Date: Wednesday, August 23
Time: 1:00 - 3:00pm EDT
Cost: $69
Summary:
We do a bad job explaining the concept of "replacement cost." We tend to tell clients they will get new stuff for old junk - which is partially true; but partial truths get you sued.
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Attendees in this session learn:
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The coverage gaps in property policies making Ordinance or Law Endorsements necessary;
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Who promulgates and who enforces local building codes;
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What constitutes "major" damage;
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The details of various ordinance or law endorsements; and
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How to develop coverage limits for each coverage part.
Approved for CE in select states.
Registration:
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Agency Risk Management Essentials: Emerging Exposures: Marijuana, Mold and More
E&O Risk Management
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Date: Wednesday, September 13
Time: 2:00 - 3:00pm EDT
Cost: Free
Summary:
Join us to learn about a number of exposures facing insurance agents that have plaintiff attorneys licking their chops! The webinar will not only identify the exposures, but also give you the tools you need to reduce your agency’s risk of Errors & Omissions (E&O) Claims. The discussion will feature a Member Insurance Agent, Virtual Risk Consultant Representative, Swiss Re Claims Specialist, as well as E&O Defense Counsel.
If you have any questions relating to the topic that you would like addressed during the discussion, please email Jim Hanley.
Learn more about risk management resources available to your agency at www.iiaba.net/EOHappens.
Registration:
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Be one of the first five with the correct answers and win a $5 gift card (Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts, Baskin Robbins, or Krispy Kreme).
Don't forget to answer the Tie Breaker!
1. The list of "Companies Holding Certificates of Authority as Acceptable Sureties on Federal Bonds" is also known as "Department Circular _________"?
2. On this date in 1057 this man is killed by the son of a man that he murdered so he could take his job. Unlike the play bearing his name, he did not die in his sleep. Name him.
3. According to the "Coverage at a Glance" link above, how much will be spent on pets this year?
TIE BREAKER
TB - Earl Scruggs, an alleged would-be burglar in Indiana was foiled by what, requiring medical attention?
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BIG "I" MARKETS SALE OF THE WEEK
Congratulations to our agent in Ohio on a Bid Bond sale of $7,350 in premium!
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