Insurance Illustrated | October 6, 2023

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for the week of October 6, 2023

Education + Analysis for the Independent Agent

Categories Included In This Week's Edition

Special Feature * Advantages of Big 'I' Membership * Agency Management * Back to Basics * Personal Lines * Commercial Lines * Insurance Laws & Statutes/Coverage Resources

Special Feature

What’s Happening in Multi-Family Housing Insurance Market?

The Foundation for Community Association Research Factbook reported that 52.9% of U.S. housing was built prior to 1979, leading to aging roofs, failing plumbing, and more.
"The habitational market has long been claim-ridden," O'Connor Corrigan says. “High frequency, high severity—you know, the insurance covers accidents that are typically confined to one home, but now imagine it's spreading to your neighbors." Visit this link to listen to this podcast, a highly enlightening 30-minute trip through the challenges of the multi-family housing insurance market.

Advantages of Big 'I' Membership

Best Practices

The Best Practices survey is conducted by Reagan Consulting and the Big "I" as a joint initiative and analyzes the performance of the nation's leading agencies to uncover the methods, procedures, techniques, strategies, and business practices they use to achieve superior results. The Best Practices Study also establishes benchmarks against which agency performance can be measured and offers guidelines on how to use the study as a tool to help improve operations and maximize potential. The tools are a great resource for agency managers or principals who are interested in reviewing their operations to enhance agency performance and profitability.

Agency Management

DO NOT Sign Lender-Supplied Private Flood Insurance Forms

Banks are required to accept private flood insurance as broad as the NFIP policy per the Biggert-Water Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012. The problem is, they want the AGENT to certify the flood policy meets the guidelines of the Act. No agent should ever certify something the banks are required to certify. This article explains why.

Ending Follow-Ups with Late-Paying and Past-Due Customers

Your agency has finally concluded that following up on late-paying and past-due customers is too big an E&O exposure and too expensive and time consuming to continue. You believe it would be in order to contact all of your customers and advise that you are discontinuing this practice. What is your next step? While this is an older article written by two insurance gurus, the same solid advice holds true today.

What is a “Change” in Risk?

When can an insurance carrier cancel a policy during the middle of the policy term? Everyone knows and can easily explain cancellation for non-payment, but that’s not the issue. The real problems and misunderstandings seem to flow from the concept of a “change” in risk. How much “change” must there be before the insurance carrier can cancel a policy during the term?

Back to Basics

Understanding the Unique Facets of Flood Insurance

Flood insurance is, unusual. A flood policy essentially covers one peril but it is surrounded by many unusual facts and facets that make flood coverage unlike any other. Agents must understand the uniqueness of flood to more effectively present it to clients.

Personal Lines

Don’t Let Water Damage Claims Drown Your Agency’s Profits

In 2021 according to the Insurance Information Institute (III), almost 24% of losses under homeowners insurance arose from water damage (including freezing-related) claims. From 2017 to 2021, III reports that the average claim severity for water damage claims for homeowners multi-peril policies was $12,514. What if some simple homeowner education could help your insureds prevent or reduce costs arising from water damage claims? Read this article for tips on preventing water damage insurance claims.

Insurance History – And Maybe Some Myths and Legend

Insurance (or assurance), as we understand the concept today, is more than 700 years old. But what events shaped our modern world of insurance? Following are some interesting facts, myths, and legends that helped mold the current insurance world in America.

How Vacant is Vacant – But What if it’s NOT Vacant?

Vacant land, or what qualifies as vacant land, is a common question for the VU. Two recent “Ask an Expert” questions specific to vacant land indicated the need to address the question again.

Commercial Lines

Just How Restrictive is a Designated Premises Endorsement?

This article from IA Magazine, originally a question through the Big "I" Ask An Expert service, provides information on premises endorsements.

Including a ‘DBA’ in the Named Insured Might Limit Coverage

Does the breath of coverage depend on the inclusion or exclusion of the assumed business name, the DBA? Well, the answer isn’t as clear as you might think.

Alternatives to Business Income Coinsurance

Non-BOP business income coverage is written on a coinsurance basis; however, some agents are afraid of coinsurance for a couple reason: 1) they don’t know how to develop the proper coinsurance percentage; and 2) they don’t want to explain the CP 15 15 Business Income Report and Worksheet. Well, there are three alternatives to coinsurance agents can use. One doesn’t save the agent from having to explain the worksheet, and two may not indemnify the insured – but agents do have alternatives. All three are touched on in this article.

Insurance Laws & Statutes / Coverage Resources

The Underwriting Period

Every state and the District of Columbia grants insurance carriers an “underwriting period.” Insurance carriers are granted broad authority to cancel a newly-written policy during this statutorily-limited period.

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