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INSURANCE MATTERS
 
A Newsletter for Members of the CCAP Insurance Programs
Owned by Members, Governed by Members, Service to Members
 
December 2010
Specialty Lines
 
Hello ,

With the year-end comes planning for the coming year. On the governance side, work has already begun. A week or so ago the PCoRP members voted for their representatives to the PCoRP board of directors. Coming in December, the PComp membership will be asked to nominate and vote for board members for the workers' compensation pool. The CCAP UC Trust members will be doing the same.

We also spend some time on insurance basics. As you are reading this, I and a few other CCAP staff members are meeting with our reinsurance brokers at Willis Pooling. We are planning for 2011, including coverage issues for PCoRP, discussing reinsurance options for all our programs, and even spending some time looking at wording of insurance policies.

In mid-January the PCoRP board meets to plan for the coming June 1 renewal, and the PELICAN board will meet to set its budget and rates for the March 1 renewal.

Part of this planning requires input from the members. We've just sent our annual e-mail survey to PCoRP members asking them for suggestions and responses to questions about our service. We do the same types of surveys during the year for PComp, PELICAN and UC Trust members. We need your feedback to make sure we are providing the service you want in a manner acceptable to you.

Lastly, we are actively working on administrative matters to help us provide better quality service to our members. We will be moving to a new claims software during 2011, and work has started to plan that transition (you will hear more later in the year!). We have already met to plan training dates and topics for the spring of 2011. And the beat goes on!

Make sure you call us when you need help with something,

                              John Sallade

In This Issue
Speciality Lines
Holiday safety
New PCoRP counsel
Fall workshop wrap-up
Quote of the month

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Safety never takes a holiday 

By Greg Cunningham, ARM, GSP, Loss Control Specialist

 

Family gatherings, special traditions and delicious treats! While the holiday season may be one of the best times of the year it's also one of the busiest for emergency rooms. Please follow these tips to ensure your holiday season is truly a wonderful time of the year!

PERSONAL SAFETY

Shopping anyone? When you arrive at your destination attempt to park where there is plenty of lighting and lots of people around. While shopping do so with family or friends if possible; as the old saying goes there is 'safety in numbers'. If you find yourself carrying a large amount of bags/packages return to your vehicle and lock them in the trunk while you continue to shop. If possible use a debit or credit card for your purchases so you are not carrying around large amounts of cash. When the shopping is done, make sure you know where you are going and leave the way you came in, no short-cuts or unfamiliar routes. Be vigilant, look around and make sure no one is following you to your vehicle. Once there, always check your vehicle before you enter, especially the back seat. Have your keys ready BEFORE you get to your vehicle, enter the car, lock your doors and leave the area. Trust your instincts. All too often you hear the victim of a crime state: 'something just didn't feel right'. Should you feel uncomfortable about the area ask a guard to escort you to your car.

HOME SAFETY

If you're like me, the home doesn't have enough lights on it until you can see if from space! Hopefully we are all using lights with a 'UL' listing so we don't have to call any firemen during the holidays. Always check the housing of the lights for cracks or other wear and discard any lights in question. Also, if you're a traditionalist and simply must have a live tree in your home, be sure and keep it watered. Check the water supply every day and water as needed. If you've ever seen a dry pine tree burn you will agree that these can quickly get out of control. If traveling is on the itinerary make sure you have appropriate timers on lights and a trustworthy neighbor knows your schedule and can pick up any mail/newspapers that would advertise your absence. Make sure all doors and windows are locked, the security system is armed and make sure presents are not in plain view from someone looking into your home.

DRIVING HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

How appropriate, we have to get to Grammas' house for the holidays and a Nor'easter is bearing down on us. First off trust your instincts. If the weather is bad enough to consider postponing the trip then it's probably a good idea to postpone the trip; at least long enough to give road crews time enough to properly clear and treat the roadways. The only thing worse than missing a few hours of the festivities is spending a few hours stuck in a snow bank! Before winter is in full swing, consider taking your vehicle to an empty, snow/ice covered parking lot and drive around (remember, you're not actually trying to crash here but rather lose some control of the vehicle!) to know exactly how your vehicle reacts when it's out of control; this information is vital out on the road because you will already know what to expect. Equip your vehicle with a safety kit including road flares, an emergency blanket, snow shovel, jumper cables, flashlight and sand or kitty litter to help gain traction should you get stuck in the snow. During the winter it's also a good idea to maintain at least a half-tank of gas in your vehicle.

CHILD SAFETY

As it is, after all, a holiday that most children eagerly look forward to it only makes sense to help protect them from harm this season. Follow these tips to ensure the little ones have a great time too:

  • Mistletoe, holly, poinsettias, Jerusalem cherry plants, and other plants are commonly used as decorations during the holidays. Like many plants, these are considered potentially poisonous and should be kept out of the reach of kids.
  • Tree ornaments, light bulbs, icicles, tinsel and small toys scream 'touch me' to kids but all are potential choking hazards. The general rule of thumb is that if it's small enough to fit in the mouths of babies and toddlers, it's too small to play with.
  • A lot of cooking goes on during the holiday season, so there are many opportunities for burns and scalding. Keep pot handles turned away from the front of the stove and keep the oven door closed when little people are about.
  • Sledding accidents can be very serious. Young kids should be supervised and should avoid dangerous sledding areas, such as rocky areas, steep hills and overly-crowded hills.

Here's hoping you and yours have a safe and happy holiday season. Should you require any further information on this or other Safety related issues please feel free to contact the CCAP Loss Control Department by clicking here!


 

Diff_Ad_5

 

PCoRP selects new corporate counsel 

By John Sallade, Managing Director, Insurance Programs 

 

PCoRP's new Corporate Counsel is Barb Zemlock, an attorney with the Harrisburg office of Post & Schell. Barb is an experienced litigator, and even brings county experience to PCoRP as she once served as a Chief Deputy Public Defender.

Barb replaces John Yaninek, who was PCoRP's corporate counsel for several years. John moved from his prior law firm to another Harrisburg firm, Thomas, Thomas and Hafer. This firm does defense work for several PCoRP members, and therefore John could not remain Corporate Counsel due to a potential conflict of interest.

The PCoRP Corporate Counsel acts as advisor to the PCoRP board, and also to the PCoRP staff, specifically assisting with claims litigation advice and management of the PCoRP defense counsels.

Welcome Barb!
Fall workshop season wrap-up 

By Linda Rosito, Insurance Training Director

 

Thank you for another great workshop season. In 2010 more than 40 training opportunities were held across the state and in 2011 we plan to hold them again!

 

The County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania is supporting the Going Green effort, so we have limited the amount of paper we provide at workshops, conferences and other events. As a follow-up to the fall workshops, the handouts and presentations have now been placed on our Glimpse Online for you to access. Please select the appropriate workshop and the presentations and handouts are listed at the bottom of the page. The handouts will be available through mid January when the pages will start to be updated with the spring workshop season information.

 

Planning for the spring has already begun. A save the date flyer with spring dates has also been added to the Glimpse Online for your information. Stay tuned for your copy of the spring Glimpse in early February. If you would like to be added to our mailing list, please let us know!

 

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact Linda Rosito or Jenn James at (800) 895-9039.

 

Thank you for your continued support of the CCAP Insurance Programs trainings.


Quote of the month
 
 "Vision without action is a daydream.
Action without vision is a nightmare."
 
- Japanese Proverb


 

Consider_PCoRP 

 

CCAP Insurance Programs
PO Box 60769, Harrisburg, PA 17106-0769
Phone (800) 895-9039 - FAX (717) 526-1020
Claims Fax (888) 692-2368
Click here to go the Insurance Section of the CCAP Website.

email: [email protected]

Insurance Matters is published monthly by CCAP Insurance Programs for the use of members of CCAP's UC Trust, PCoRP, PComp, PIMCC, COMCARE, COMCARE PRO, BEST Flex, PELICAN and other insurance programs, and insurance producers of these members.

Advice contained in this publication is not legal advice and members are encouraged to seek the opinion of their solicitor.

The information provided in this publication is not intended to take the place of professional advice. Readers are encouraged to consult with competent legal, financial, or other appropriate professionals. Statements of facts and opinions expressed in this publication, by authors other than Association staff and officers, are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent an opinion or philosophy of the officers, members and staff of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP). No endorsement of advertised products or services is implied by CCAP unless those products or services are expressly endorsed, or are owned or managed by the Association programs, or our affiliates. This publication may not be reproduced, modified, distributed, or displayed in part or in whole, by any means, without advance written permission of CCAP. Please direct your requests to John Sallade, Managing Director, CCAP Insurance Programs, [email protected].

Note: As part of its copyright agreement the CCAP grants the author the right to place the final version of his/her manuscript on the author's homepage, subject to CCAP's standards, or in a public digital repository, provided there is a link to the CCAP website.

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