|
|
|
|
|
|
Later in November, AAIS will initiate a filing
in most states of a new optional Green Coverage Endorsement and
accompanying schedules under the
Commercial Output Program
(COP).
The endorsement extends insurance under the
COP's property and income coverage parts to three categories of
coverage:
-
Green Building Coverages, which cover
certain costs incurred to comply with "green" construction
certification standards developed by organizations promoting
environmentally friendly construction.
These include costs incurred to restore indoor air
quality, recycle debris, restore vegetative roofs, recertify a
structure as green, and replace water or electricity that is lost
when onsite renewable energy or water conservation equipment is
damaged.
-
Non-Green Building Coverages, which cover
the costs to upgrade conventional but damaged personal property,
finishes, plumbing systems, lighting systems, HVAC equipment,
and roofs with property that meets green standards.
These coverages apply only for buildings and structures that do
not have a green certification.
-
Green Income Coverages, which cover
the income cost for the extension of a restoration period due to
materials or procedures required to achieve a green
certification.
This section also covers loss of income incurred when there is
damage to renewable energy equipment that supplies power to a
public utility.
For information on affiliating with AAIS for use
of the Commercial Output Program, contact Rick Maka at
rickm@AAISonline.com or by
calling 800-564-AAIS, ext. 222.
Maple Data Technologies,
Manalapan, N.J., announces the imminent release of the first AAIS
application for the company's "R8" (pronounced "rate") insurance rating
system. R8 is a rating system that can be utilized
through a stand-alone web-based interface or integrated into existing
company software.
When users provide information on a risk in a defined format, R8
automatically identifies the necessary rates, factors, discounts, and
formulas. It then performs calculations and provides final rates.
Users can view and administer rates, accept or reject published changes
to rates and algorithms, and modify rates and formulas as needed to
support business processes. Alternatively, R8 can be
used to incorporate rating plans and/or rating information from various
sources into company rating systems.
The first applications of the R8 infrastructure, which are expected to
be released in January 2010, will be for the
AAIS Agricultural Output (AgOP)
and Agricultural General Liability
(AgGL) programs. Maple Data Technologies
anticipates developing applications for other AAIS programs in the
coming months and years. For information on Maple
Data Technologies and the R8 system, contact Nicholas Teetelli, CEO, at
nicholas.teetelli@maple-data.com or by calling 732-863-5523.
The Connecticut Insurance Department recently issued a
bulletin and accompanying
checklist updating the department's requirements for homeowners
insurance coverage for windstorms and hurricanes.
Among other changes, the department now promulgates a definition of
"hurricane" and provides guidelines for applying hurricane
deductibles and for timing the occurrence of a hurricane.
Previously, homeowners carriers in Connecticut could define
"hurricane" and their hurricane "timing factor" independently.
Also, homeowners carriers were previously allowed to impose both
hurricane and windstorm deductibles on a single policy; under the
new rules, companies can only impose one or the other.
AAIS will be reviewing its windstorm deductible endorsement and rule
and will file amendments as needed.
A recent
bulletin from the Arkansas Insurance Department notifies
insurers that are members of the state's Rural Risk Underwriting
Association that their annual assessment payments of $200 are due
Dec. 31 at an address given in the bulletin.
The association provides homeowners insurance to residences in
Arkansas that are classified as "unprotected" under the AAIS fire
protection definitions.
Companies reporting statistical data to AAIS for
Artisans or
Businessowners policies
are to begin utilizing the revised statistical plans for those lines no
later than for policies booked on Jan. 1, 2010.
Among other things, the new statistical plans,
released in April:
-
Add new policy form fields for some endorsement
coverage options;
-
Add new class codes for professional liability
coverage options;
-
Add the lead liability reporting requirement to
New Jersey and Rhode Island (in addition to Massachusetts and
New York); and
-
Add new fields to capture additional information
essential to the rating of Artisans and Businessowners risks.
More information on the new statistical plans, along
with the plans themselves, are available to eligible affiliates as
attachments to bulletin 09-0728, dated April 3, 2009.
The contact person for the plans has changed since
the bulletin was issued. Direct questions to Janice Nieman, director of
technical product support, at
janicen@AAISonline.com or by calling 800-564-AAIS, ext. 223.
AAIS has submitted filings in Illinois to address a new state law
affecting liability coverage for the use of non-highway vehicles.
An Illinois
statute, effective Jan., 1, 2010, makes any person operating a
non-highway vehicle on a public road subject to the state's
mandatory motor vehicle insurance requirements.
The AAIS filings address liability coverage under forms that
provide personal and/or farm liability coverage, including the AAIS
Home-Based Business Coverage Option. The Illinois Department of
Insurance has advised AAIS that the filings will not be reviewed
until internal issues have been resolved.
For now, new policy provisions are proposed to exclude coverage for
liability that arises out of a non-highway vehicle being operated on
a public road, with an exception for a covered vehicle crossing a road
lawfully.
Also, in some lines of insurance, the exclusions would not apply to
"implements of husbandry" (e.g., tractors).
More details are available in bulletins 09-2109 and 09-2177, available to AAIS
affiliates for the affected lines in Illinois.
|
|
Transmitted by the American Association of
Insurance Services, 1745 S. Naperville Road,
Wheaton, IL 60189. |
|
|
www.AAISonline.com
|
|
