What’s an RRG? An RRG is a risk retention group. An RRG is an alternative risk transfer entity and operates essentially as a state-chartered insurance company that insures commercial businesses and government entities against liability risks. RRGs were created in 1986 by the federal Liability Risk Retention Act. Typically, the number of risk retention groups increases when insurance is either unavailable or unaffordable. With...
Today, probably more than ever before, auditing has become a key element in insurance agencies. There is solid acknowledgement that agencies can have the best procedures - but the primary basis for agencies auditing their staff is to determine how closely those procedures are being...
For 47 years (and still going strong), I have been blessed to work in the insurance industry. From my early days as a door-to-door salesman, to the six years at an agency, to the carrier side today - I can honestly say I have enjoyed every minute. As I reflect back on the last eight years that...
If you asked your personal lines clients (or maybe even try it with your employees) whether issues relating to the use of social media are covered by their liability policy, what do you think their response would be? Probably a majority would tell you they...
Whether agency staff are working in the office or remotely, there is no doubt that they are as busy as ever. Some agency personnel I speak with indicate that they are more productive working remotely, while others indicate the opposite. Either way, finding a way to get your work done...
Claims-made coverage developed in 1964 and in those 55-plus years, it has certainly grown in its use to insure many professional liability and management liability exposures. When not properly understood and managed, it also continues to be involved in a fair number of E&O claims....
In any given year, of the E&O claims made against insurance agencies, 50-60 percent are closed for no loss payment although on many of those claims, there are likely to be some defense dollars incurred to defend the agency against the allegations. There are a...
As we go through life, we often remember some events or situations much more vividly than others. For me, one of those involved my early days as a CSR in an insurance agency in Utica, New York (I handled S-Z for commercial, personal and claims). As a newbie CSR, I was asked by one of the...
A recent news story spoke to U.S. businesses facing a potentially emerging legal threat (relating to COVID-19) from claims that workers brought coronavirus home and infected relatives. The financial impact has the potential to be significant. This “take home” article noted that between 7 and 9 percent of the U.S. COVID-19...
This is the time each year when most businesses are diligently working on their budgets and plans for the following year. They are determining their new business and retention goals as well as trying to project their expenses. Obviously, generating a profit is the major...