April 14, 2004, that’s the compliance date for the HIPAA Privacy Rule for small health plans. A small health plan is defined as a plan that spends less than $5,000,000 in premium annually if fully insured, or pay less than $5,000,000 in claims annually if self-insured. Are you in compliance?
There are some excellent excess and surplus lines markets in this industry, many providing products and services superior to those in the standard market. However, there are inherent dangers in using some E&S markets that agents should be aware of. In this article, we’ll present thirteen of them.
Insureds, especially commercial clients who hire drivers, often ask their agent to furnish them with copies of MVRs on current or prospective employees. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), there are strict guidelines governing the release of such information…and potentially serious penalties for violations (not to mention the exposure to civil suits).
With more stringent underwriting that has resulted from a proliferation of mold and water damage claims, agents and others are facing increased demands for background reports when real estate is purchased or an insurance application made. However, providing this information (commonly through CLUE reports) can be hazardous to your agency’s E&O health.
When a commercial lines client requests an agency to run an MVR on a new employee in conjunction with adding him/her as a driver to the BAP, the agency may be able to do so without the written permission of the employee. That is, under the FCRA, Section 604, it’s legal if necessary to “the…
By now, most property and casualty insurance agents are aware that a majority of their customers (approximately three-fourths) actually benefit from underwriters using their credit behavior to set insurance policy rates. However, when asked the reasons why, very few can articulate them. A lack of knowledge and understanding, along with the voices of the remaining…
Increasingly, we are receiving inquiries from agents wondering about the impact of HIPAA on their operations. Well, if you thought Gramm-Leach-Bliley was a pain, in the words of Al Jolson, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Although we’re only a few months away from implementation, very few agents understand what HIPAA means to them and their…
Following up on her original article on HIPAA, Judi Newman provides more information about the nature and scope of HIPAA implementation that will help you better understand the compliance implications and how you can explain them to your staff and clients.
New and renewal policies should be reviewed thoroughly for completeness and accuracy before delivery to the insured. However, at certain times of the year when there is a heavy backlog, this could mean that insureds get their policies months into the policy period. So, how do you balance quality with responsiveness, particularly given the importance…
The insured is sued for damages arising out of an occurrence that took place many years ago. The insured is unable to find the policy in force at that time, so the insurer says they won’t respond. What do you do when a policy is lost?
