IRMI Update—Issue #118
An E-mail Newsletter for Risk and
Insurance Professionals
ISSN: 1530-7948
August 9, 2005
In This Issue
Colleague,
Congratulations to Donald Hurzeler, CPCU, CLU, for recently being
honored by the Insurance Marketing Communications Association in
recognition of his lifelong contributions to the insurance industry.
His receipt of ICMA's Golden Torch Award in June was well deserved.
The purpose of the award is to recognize people that "helped light
the way for others in the insurance industry by improving standards
for communications excellence, speaking out convincingly on behalf
of the insurance industry, showing a sense of responsibility to
society, and/or improving public understanding of insurance issues.”
Don is chief marketing officer for Zurich's Commercial Business
Group and is currently serving as president of the CPCU Society.
Last fall, the Society published his book,
Designated for Success, which
offers career advice gleaned from his 30+ years of experience in
the insurance industry.
With the cornerstone "My name is Don Hurzeler, and I'm proud
to be a CPCU," he delivered one of the most effective speeches I’ve
heard from an incoming CPCU Society president at last year's annual
meeting. Well, Don, I'm proud of you and all you have done for the
industry.
By the way, you can learn more about or order
Designated for Success
here.
And, speaking of awards, the deadline for applying for (or nominating
someone for) the Gary E. Bird Horizon Award is August 26. If you
are a construction risk management or safety professional who is
proud of a program you implemented, now is the time to apply. Alternatively,
if you know someone who deserves national recognition for implementing
an effective construction risk management or safety program, nominate
him or her. Get
more details.
Thank you for subscribing to IRMI Update and recommending it
to your colleagues.
All the best,
Jack
Jack P. Gibson, CPCU, CRIS, ARM
President
IRMI
Getting to "YES" with Regulators—Government
regulators at all levels seem ever more reluctant to provide direction
when requested. Yet, when a "violation" is thought to exist, they
pounce on the opportunity to impose a fine or other punitive sanction.
If regulators refuse to provide direction, what options do you have?
I have found that a letter explicitly outlining the refusal to provide
direction, along with my interpretation of the regulation (and a
statement that we will act in accordance with my interpretation
unless I receive written notice that they differ with it within
10 days) can be very useful in defending against later enforcement
actions. I also recommend sending the letter via certified mail
with copies to the head of the agency and its attorney.
By: David J. LaBrec
Strasburger & Price, LLP
Dallas, TX
Suggest a Risk
Tip. Send us a practical tip (less than 300 words) for
identifying and managing risks, buying insurance, managing claims,
or filling gaps in insurance coverages.
Submit your tips.
We'll acknowledge your contribution as we did for David.
There are now 693 risk management and insurance articles on IRMI.com.
Below you'll find summaries of some recent additions with links
to the articles.
- Spotlight on the Gary
E. Bird Horizon Award—Where Are They Now?—The
Gary E. Bird Horizon Award, given annually at the
IRMI Construction Risk Conference, recognizes excellence
in construction risk management. As we are now accepting
nominations for the next award, we thought an update
on one of the past winners, T.J. Lyons, was more
than appropriate. Christine Fuge fills us in on
the purpose of the award and T.J.'s latest activities.
-
Commercial
P/C Market Softens More in Second Quarter—The
recent Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers survey
shows that commercial insurers are aggressively
competing for new business and fighting hard to
keep renewals.
-
Regulation
of Captives: Who? Why? What Next?—Michael
Mead explains how regulation of captives is inherently
different from the regulation of a traditional insurer
as respects audience, taxation, and oversight. He
also provides food for thought for the future.
-
Time
To Put Numbers on Internal Controls—Internal
control and audit specialists rely on "professional
judgment" rather than empirical evidence to support
their judgments about risk and control. Matthew
Leitch explains why this is a mistake.
-
Identity
Theft: A Personal Risk Management Approach (Part
1)—Identity theft is the fastest growing
crime in the United States today, and everyone is
a potential victim. In this first of three articles,
Robin Olson focuses on the risk itself.
-
Workplace
Violence in the 21st Century: Emerging Trends—It
is clear that workplace and school violence incidents
and prevention efforts have changed since the early
1990s. Dr. James Madero looks at the changes.
Early-bird, online registration
is the best way to reserve your preferred workshops for the 25th
IRMI Construction Risk Conference. More than 1,300 contractors,
project owners, brokers, underwriters, claims professionals, company
executives, and attorneys will convene November 7-10 in Las Vegas
at the MGM Grand Hotel. Come learn new techniques and share your
ideas to improve the ways we manage and insure construction risks.
Act now before our hotel room block is full!
Michael Orlando has written about admiralty and maritime law
for IRMI.com since 2001. A managing director in the Houston law
firm of Meyer Orlando LLC, he is involved in representing many different
maritime interests in a broad spectrum of transactions and claims,
in venues throughout Texas and the Gulf Coast. His clients have
included ship owners, charterers, agents, stevedores, terminal operators,
cargo owners, insurers, a wide variety of marine service and supply
companies, financial institutions, and many others involved in maritime
commerce. In his column, Mr. Orlando has discussed such topics as
Jones Act status, maritime pollution, and exculpatory clauses in
maritime contracts. For more information on Mr. Orlando, see his
full biography and a
list of his articles.
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