Over the years, we have been very fortunate in that we have had only a couple of small general/professional errors and omissions liability losses. I know that many members have historically been frustrated by the insurance-related demands of their customers. Many are the days when I have heard, “Never had loss. We don't really need the insurance — just the certificate.”
Meanwhile, our accumulated premium reserves have grown. I have called it our rainy day fund. Well, over the last six months it sure has rained. We have seven losses now, one of which has maxed out the policy limit of $2 million. The other six are ongoing and several are carrying large loss reserves. I believe that for any of the insured members involved, if it were not for our program and the accumulated premiums generated over the years, they would be looking at the very serious possibility of being without coverage at next renewal.
The coverage that we offer, which is exclusive to us, is extremely broad and crafted specifically for control system integrators. As an example, the $2 million loss would not have been covered by the other policy forms out there.
So please remember, just because it has not happened to you yet does not mean it won’t in the future. The majority of the insured involved in these losses are CSIA Certified. Part of your management regime should be to ensure that your liability coverage meets your coverage needs as well as your premium needs.
For more information, please contact myself, Paul Barnard, at paulbarnard@csia-insurance.com or (00)1-610-507-6595.