By Lisa Tuminello, Selective Flood Manager
 Recent flood events, especially in LA, TX, FL and along the East Coast, have reinforced the need for contents coverage on flood policies. Adding contents coverage to a flood policy provides customers an added level of protection in the event of a loss. It also provides your agency with a sense of security about errors and omissions risk knowing that contents coverage was offered.
To help you market the contents coverage to your customers, you can use eMarketing templates and postcards that can be ordered through the Selective Online Marketing Portal. Easy to use, these tools are a great way for you to strike up a conversation with clients on the importance of having contents coverage in place. As an added service for you, Selective will review your flood book of business and identify policies without contents coverage in place. If you're already doing business with Big "I" Flood, contact Selective's Flood Business Development team at floodsales@selective.com today for a list of your policies without contents coverage. If you need any other assistance or have further questions, contact Selective at (877) 348-0552 ext. 1033 or 1023.
Not yet registered with Big "I" Flood? It's easy to get started today. Simply visit www.iiaba.net/Flood for all the information you need to roll your book of business or begin selling flood insurance.
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SPECIAL FEATURE
AIG Private Client Group Coverage Webinar - Personal Umbrella
 Join Lisa Gelles, AIG Private Client Group Business Development Manager as she breaks down AIG's Private Client Group's umbrella coverage. In today's litigious society, one lawsuit can do significant damage to even the wealthiest of individuals. Adequate liability protection is more important than ever.
The liability coverage included within homeowners, auto and yacht policies is considered primary insurance; it responds first in the event of a claim. Excess liability (also known as "umbrella") insurance responds after primary coverage limits are exceeded. For example, the liability limit on many homeowners' policies is $300,000. If someone is injured on your property and awarded damages above that, you're personally responsible for the remaining balance, including legal fees.
To learn more about AIG Private Client Group's umbrella program, join us on March 23 at 1:00 - 2:00pm EDT. Click here to register. Cost: Free
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"You get tragedy where the tree, instead of bending, breaks." Ludwig Wittgenstein
 A $750,000 home had not one but two separate instances of flooding from broken pipes, and then a tree fell on it in the same year.
A large rental house caught fire. The fire took out most of the second floor and damaged the rafters. The firefighters had to cut holes in the roof to put it out. The owner boarded up the windows and put a huge blue tarp over the roof. About two weeks later, during a big storm a large tree fell across the back corner of the house and crushed the roof of the attached garage. These two unrelated events occurred within the same month but between them they nearly destroyed the entire house resulting also in loss of use and rental income.
A coastal condo owner was doing laundry when socks blocked the drain. The condo was completely flooded as was the unit below.
These homeowners have a similar problem: large losses combined with mixed coverage needs. Fortunately Big "I" Markets has coverage for all of them and more with Non-standard Homeowners or Rental Dwelling, Non-standard Condominium Unit Owner, Non-standard Renters, & Vacant Dwelling - Non-standard.
While there is no maximum Coverage A limit, there is a $150 - $200K minimum limit that varies by state, and exposure.
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Primary Home
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Secondary Home
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Short & Long Term Rental
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Personal Builders Risk
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Corporate Name or LLC
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Unprotected Home
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Renters
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Log Homes
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Condominium
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Coastal
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Vacant Dwelling
What you should send us:
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Older, updated well-maintained homes (Older Home Questionnaire Required)
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Coastal, Non Coastal or Brush Exposures
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Log Homes
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Trampolines, Unacceptable Animals, Unfenced Pools
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Homes titled in an LLC or corporate name (Corporate Questionnaire Required)
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Risks cancelled due to nonpayment of premium
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Risks with prior losses or being non-renewed
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Protection class 9/10
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Builders Risk
Ineligible risks include knob and tube wiring, homes in poor condition/poor maintenance; mobile homes; risks with open claims; more than 2 family unit; business or day care on premise. COVERAGE HIGHLIGHTS & AVAILABILITY
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Industry-accepted ISO HO3 policy forms modified to tailor coverage for unique exposures
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Many standard ISO endorsements and customized endorsements available
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Flexible deductible options
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Minimum Premium $1,000
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All policies are prorated, except for taxes & fees in some states
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Lex CyberSafetySM endorsement (provides liability coverage for damages arising from cyberbullying claims)
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The LexElite® Pet Insurance Enhancement
These markets are available in all states except for Hawaii. Log into www.bigimarkets.com to learn more.
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Remember that you can view the following webinars 24/7 by checking out the BIM Webinar Library. To do that log onto Big "I" Markets and click on "Publications".
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AIG Private Client Group Homeowner - Collections CoverageNEW
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Chubb Masterpiece Homeowner - Overview NEW
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CBIC Architects & EngineersNEW
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AIG Private Client Group Homeowner - Automobile NEW
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AIG Private Client Group Homeowner - Overview NEW
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TravPay
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Commercial Lessor's Risk
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Affluent Homeowners
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Travel Insurance
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Community Banks
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Affluent Homeowner
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Real Estate E&O
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RLI Personal Umbrella
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"Oh, by the way...Flood Sale"
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Habitational
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Student Housing
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BIM WEBSITE TRAINING WEBINAR
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.
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Big "I" Product Webinars
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Tuesday, March 14 - 2:00 - 3:00pm EDT. "How to Use Competencies to Hire Top Performers" Big "I" partner Caliper recently completed a massive, multi-year research project to identify the competencies that point to success in a variety of jobs across all industries. And they'd like to share their findings with you. Click here to register.
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Thursday, March 23 - 1:00 - 2:00pm EDT. "AIG Private Client Group - Personal Umbrella" Join Lisa Gelles, AIG Private Client Group Business Development Manager as she breaks down AIG's Private Client Group's umbrella coverage. In today's litigious society, one lawsuit can do significant damage to even the wealthiest of individuals. Adequate liability protection is more important than ever.
The liability coverage included within homeowners, auto and yacht policies is considered primary insurance; it responds first in the event of a claim. Excess liability (also known as "umbrella") insurance responds after primary coverage limits are exceeded. For example, the liability limit on many homeowners' policies is $300,000. If someone is injured on your property and awarded damages above that, you're personally responsible for the remaining balance, including legal fees.
To learn more about AIG Private Client Group's umbrella program, please Join Lisa Gelles, AIG Private Client Group Business Development Manager on March 23 at 1:00pm EDT. Click here to register.
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Big "I" Virtual University Webinars
Don't miss the following education opportunities provided from the Big "I" Virtual University experts that focus on topics agents need to know to make a smart start in 2016. For more information, contact national staff.
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March 15 - 1:00 - 2:30pm EDT. "Is the Absolute Pollution Exclusion Really Absolute? Hint: NO!". ". During the 90 minute webinar Chris Boggs will tear into, or tear apart, the so-called "absolute pollution exclusion." Beyond a detailing of the exclusion and its exceptions, we: (1) Discuss and detail some key terms and concepts found within and applicable to the "absolute" pollution exclusion; (2) Define "pollutant"; (3) Detail the need for a "causal connection" between the release of a pollutant and damage; and (4) Introduce the historical purpose of the pollution exclusion. Click here to register.
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April 19 - 1:00 - 2:30 EDT. "Untangling the Work Comp Mess" - Part 1 of 2. Workers' compensation is a relatively easy coverage to understand. Work comp is work comp is work comp. The difficulty in work comp does not arise out of the policy but rather from the myriad statutes that surround and control how a work comp policy responds. April and June webinars combine to untangle many of these laws that cause problems. Two key questions to be answered during in the April webinar include: What makes an injury or disease compensable under workers' compensation? Who is covered by the work comp policy? Plus more. Click here to register.
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STUDENT OF THE INDUSTRY PARTING SHOT
Flood: Average Premium, Rate and Penetration in Your Home Town
By Paul Buse, President of Big I Advantage®
Recently I was shown the 2016 National Flood Insurance Program data by Ginny Pierson, the head of Big "I" Flood, our endorsed flood program with Selective Insurance Company. This data fascinated me. "Wait, in all of my home town of Madison, WI, there are 147 flood policies? With a river, countless streams, three lakes and an isthmus?" The average premium is $369 with a limit of $292,000 and total premiums in the whole capital city of $84,000?
Below are the USA averages with highest and lowest states. Check out your hometown, city or county
Click for larger version
Source: National Flood Insurance Program Data: "Policy Statistics"
Question for you: Would you be interested in a valet placement service for flood insurance? I'm particularly interested in states where flood policies are rare. (Perhaps too rare?) In Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio, only about one in every 150 households has flood insurance. The idea would be that as a service to members, all you would have to do is give the name of your client on Big "I" Markets and the rest is taken care of for you. A huge amount of flood insurance must be written by agents with less than a handful of policies. We suspect agents where flood is rare refer clients directly to the NFIP. Instead, how about a no-muss, no-fuss valet service where you knew your customers were handled by an expert? You would retain ownership of the policy expirations if you wanted to take the policy over. If that idea resonates with you, Ginny and I would like to hear from you.
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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!
Congratulations to this week's winners (We had a tie* so there are six) - Julie Seibold (SC), Kevin Morrison (GA), Peggy Sands (OH), Richele Glidden (NH), Ufemia Lind (NE) & Ed James (FL).
1. For the Small Commercial market. other than a BOP, what three coverages do Travelers Select and CNA both offer? - WORKERS' COMPENSATION, COMMERCIAL AUTOMOBILE, & COMMERCIAL UMBRELLA
2. On this date in 1953, James Watson and Frances Crick informally announced they had discovered the structure of ______________. - DNA (DeoxyriboNucleic Acid)
3. The RLI Umbrella program allows for how many DWI/DUIs per household? - ONE
TIE BREAKER
TB - We’re all working hard with the goal of a comfortable retirement. What is the name of the Big “I” staff person you should contact to ensure you will be independent when you retire? Hint: www.iiaba.net/Retirement - CHRISTINE MUÑOZ, Big "I" Director of Retirement Services, at christine.munoz@iiaba.net
* Two emails came in the same minute
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BIG "I" MARKETS SALE OF THE WEEK
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