News
Northeast states respond to disasters from this year’s hurricane season
Tropical Storm Ida—which hit Connecticut, New Jersey and New York yesterday—caused extensive flooding in all three states. As a result, Gov. Ned Lamont, Gov. Phil Murphy and Gov. Kathy Hochul declared states of emergency in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York, respectively. Additionally, Lamont announced Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved his request for Connecticut to receive an agricultural disaster declaration following Tropical Storm Elsa in early July. This declaration means that farmers in the state are eligible to be considered for certain assistance from the Farm Service Agency to cover production losses from the storm, such as emergency loans, provided that eligibility requirements are met. While only six of Connecticut’s eight counties are named as primary counties in the declaration—including Hartford, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, Tolland and Windham—Fairfield and New London are named as contiguous disaster counties, making all farmers in the state eligible. And, Hochul announced on Tuesday that she requested physical disaster declarations from the Small Business Administration for Niagara, Otsego and Rensselaer counties, after severe weather events that caused damage to homes and businesses. PIA Northeast is here for its members. For state-specific updates following the recent tropical storms and recent flooding, PIA members can access PIA Northeast’s Hurricane Info Central. Do you have a question about the recent storms? PIA members can email the Industry Resource Center, or call (800) 424-4244.
Conn.: CID hosting climate change and insurance conference
The Connecticut Insurance Department announced last week that it is hosting the Connecticut Conference on Climate Change and Insurance on Oct 13-14, 2021. At the conference, the CID and the nation’s foremost experts on climate change, resiliency, mitigation and adaptation will lead a discussion on what the insurance industry should consider to mitigate climate change and to adapt to it. Virtual presentations will highlight the latest climate science, private-sector best practices and regulatory environments related to climate change.
N.Y.: Gov. Hochul nominates DFS superintendent
The New York State Department of Financial Services announced Tuesday that Gov. Hochul nominated Adrienne Harris as the next superintendent of financial services. Harris—who was a top economic adviser to President Barack Obama—will become the state’s top financial regulator tasked with overseeing the banking and insurance industries, and their compliance with state laws as New York works to rebuild its economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Compliance
N.J.: Business-interruption disclosure due to commercial policyholders by Nov. 14
In accordance with A-4805—which Gov. Phil Murphy signed in May—the Department of Banking and Insurance created a one-page summary that details common triggers for business-interruption coverage, gives examples of perils that are covered typically, and summarizes common exclusions. Additionally, the DOBI was required to make a statement that informs commercial policyholders about the definition of business-interruption coverage, and informs them that the coverage may not be triggered by a government-ordered shutdown. According to the law, insurers must use the statement provided by the DOBI, and it must be delivered to commercial policyholders by Sunday, Nov. 14, 2021, which is 90 days from the date of publication of the summary.
Advocacy
Learn the ins and outs of the NFIP’s RR2.0 with PIA National and PIA Northeast
Many National Flood Insurance Program agents are concerned about how to guide their clients through the NFIP’s new rating methodology program, Risk Rating 2.0. The program—which goes into effect Friday, Oct. 1, 2021, for new policies and policies with renewal dates between Friday, Oct. 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022—is a more equitable way of pricing flood insurance. PIA National has created a webpage for agents to keep track of important dates related to RR2.0 and training provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. For more information on RR2.0 and for updates, visit the RR2.0 page on the PIA Advocacy Blog. And, read How the NFIP’s Risk Rating 2.0 affects agents, clients and WHAT?!?!–FEMA Risk Rating 2.0 on PIA Northeast News & Media.
N.J.: Make sure you are registered to vote for the upcoming state elections
New Jersey’s general election is Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021. Are you registered to vote? It’s important that you are eligible to cast a vote this year—not only are all 120 state legislators up for election, but so is Gov. Murphy, and New Jersey PIAPAC wants to make sure that independent agents are represented in the state Capitol adequately. To find out how you can check your voting registration status, visit the election section of the NJPIAPAC website.
Technical
N.Y.: NYSIF allowed to write WC coverage employers with out-of-state employees
A.7504—which was signed into law last month—allows the New York State Insurance Fund to write workers’ compensation coverage for policyholders’ out-of-state employees. Working in conjunction with licensed carriers in other states, NYSIF now can provide workers’ compensation coverage to policyholders with out-of-state employees by securing the payment of workers’ compensation benefits under the laws of other states than New York. However, in order for a policyholder to be eligible for NYSIF’s out-of-state coverage, he or she must have more workers’ compensation premiums or payroll in New York state than in all other states combined. Previously, NYSIF policyholders needed to have an additional policy from an out-of-state carrier in order to cover their out-of-state employees, creating additional expenses and decreasing efficiency for the policyholders. Upon hearing from members about the difficulties placing out-of-state coverage for NYSIF policyholders, PIANY and NYSIF worked together to support this legislation during the 2021 legislative session. NYSIF expects to begin offering out-of-state coverage to its policyholders in the first half of 2022.
Educating insurance agents
PIA & You: An Overview of PIA Member Benefits
Did you know that as a PIA property/casualty member agency or brokerage, you also may be a member of PIA National? Whether you’re new to PIA or need a refresher about how to maximize your membership, PIA National is offering a member-benefits overview to highlight all your PIA-member benefits available at the national level, on Friday, Sept. 24, 2021—and every fourth Friday of the month, through Feb. 25, 2022. PIA National offers a wide range of programs and products to help your agency succeed, grow and save money. During this webinar, you’ll learn about: business-building tools; insurance products; agency management tools; and tools from The PIA Partnership. Register for one of these monthly webinars now. If you can’t attend the live webinar, register to receive a recording the next day. The PIA & You: An Overview of PIA Member Benefits webinars will occur on the fourth Friday of the month. If you are an affiliate agency member, you can upgrade to a PIA National membership—call PIA Member Services at (800) 424-4244 to start receiving these benefits directly.
N.J.: PIANJ hosting forum to discuss emerging coverages
PIANJ is hosting a Deep Dive Forum on Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2021, at 11 a.m., to discuss emerging lines of personal and commercial insurance coverages that get overlooked often, including cyber liability policies, directors and officers policies, employment practices liability insurance, miscellaneous professional policies, and emerging lines of insurance in the industry. When you register for the forum, you’ll get to submit a question that will be addressed during the forum to help you and other independent agents in New Jersey learn more about how to sell these specific lines of insurance.
Register now
Sept. 14: CTYIP Golf Open
Sept. 27: PIANJ Golf Classic
Oct. 6: PIANJ Women’s Leadership Alliance Advocate to Win
Oct. 14: CTYIP Fall Brewery event
Oct. 14: NY-YIP Fall Reception
