• The next IIABNY Board meeting is May 8, 2008 in Westchester County. If you have any local issues to bring to the Board, please contact your regional director.
• The 2008 Big “I” Legislative Conference & Convention will take place on April 2-4 in Washington, DC. Join agents & brokers from across the country to lobby your representatives and attend the Big “I” trade show and convention.
• IIABA Young Agents and NY’s NeXtGens are offering two $500 scholarships available to young agents attending the 2008 Big “I” Legislative Conference & Convention. For more information contact Paul Banuski at IIABNY.

Workers’ Compensation

• IIABNY continues its work on various aspects of the reform legislation. The aggregate trust fund (ATF) is still being debated and there are several bills being proposed.
• Recent legislation was enacted that extends the authority of the NY Compensation Insurance Rating Board (NYCIRB) to the year 2013. IIABNY will monitor NYCIRB’s activities in its new role as the rate service organization for NY and assess whether the association supports this model going forward. Also included in the legislation is a change to loss cost rating in NY, which will take effect with 2008 rates.
• IIABNY has been involved in numerous meetings on the WC requirements for out-of-state employees and has provided input to the Governor’s office and other interested parties. At this writing, we anticipate that the final rules will be published on the WC Board’s website soon.

“Late Notice” of Claims

• IIABNY is working with the industry and the Insurance Department to craft legislation that will define “late notice” and add appropriate standards regarding prejudice to the insurer. The proposed legislation is now in its third draft and a bill should be introduced shortly.
• The IIABNY board adopted a policy statement on late notice denial of claims at its 8/22/07 board meeting. You can view the policy statement on the leadership page of IIABNY’s website (must be logged in to view).
• IIABNY distributed the policy statement to the top 25 carriers in NY, urging them to voluntarily stop using a late notice defense unless the carrier’s rights have been prejudiced, while the industry seeks a permanent solution.

Agent/Broker Compensation

• IIABNY has provided input to the Insurance Department on a draft regulation. There is no specific time frame for release of the regulation. At present it is just an internal draft at the Insurance Department.
  Labor Law Reform
• A coalition that IIABNY belongs to, Businesses for a Better NY, filed a suit in federal court last fall seeking to have New York’s “scaffolding law” declared unconstitutional. The defendants moved for dismissal of the suit, and the federal judge hearing the case referred it to a magistrate for review and recommendation. That magistrate recommended that the judge dismiss the suit without holding a trial, which he did.
• BBNY appealed to the next highest court – the US Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit – which expects to hear the case in March 2008.

Coastal Markets

• IIABNY supports and is working on a number of initiatives designed to improve the coastal market for homeowners – permanent status for NYPIUA, standardization of windstorm deductible triggers, availability of HO-3 wrap policies, regulatory reform to allow for the use of catastrophe modeling, streamlined rate and form approval process and reinsurance pass-through, improvements to the C-MAP program. For more detailed information on any of these initiatives please contact Michael Barrett, Jill Muratori or Kathy Weinheimer.

• The Essentials for CSRs program is here! Following successful pilot programs in the fall, a full schedule of classes is now available. “Essentials” starts with an in-depth Knowledge Check, one of the unique features of this program that measures both the business and insurance technical skills of your customer service staff. This member-only service is FREE, automated and user-friendly. Introductory pricing of “buy one – get one for 50% off” is available to IIABNY members for a limited time so register your staff today!
• IIABNY is offering the “mandatory” NFIP approved flood training course at locations throughout the state in February through April. See the education calendar for dates and locations.

• IAAC is continuing to expand its E&O and related professional liability product offering. We now have access to many admitted and non-admitted markets to fill the coverage needs of most IIABNY members. Contact Brenda Strong if you would like more information.
• IAAC now has access to a new Westport Excess product that will go over other insurance companies’ underlying E&O coverage. Contact Brenda Strong for more information.

• View 90 second Trusted Choice® video to be shown on Continental Airlines flights and starring our own State National Director Steve Spiro. There is a link (via screen shot) to the video on the New York Trusted Choice Resources page of the IIABNY website under advertising resources.
• The new Trusted Choice® member signup as part of the renewal process has been very successful. We have over 150 new Trusted Choice agencies signed up so far and more coming in.
• Visit the new revised and updated Trusted Choice® website (www.trusttedchoice.com) with a heavy emphasis on the consumer and insurance information related to consumers and purchasing insurance. Be sure to visit the agent & broker section of the website as there is a wealth of information there about why members should join including a video done by members speaking about exactly that subject.
• In August the Key Contact for every Trusted Choice® agency location received the “Live the Brand” brochure that outlines the steps a member should take over the first 12 months of participating in the brand to successfully implement it into their agency. If additional copies are needed please contact Jamie Deapo.

• Thanks to everyone who helped make 2007 our most successful year ever for InsurPac! While we did not reach our national goal of $60,350, New York agents contributed a total of $49,350 to InsurPac. We hope to meet our national goal in 2008 and have started the year off well with nearly $10,000 in contributions received in January. 2007 contributors will be recognized in an upcoming issue of the Insider.
• More than $10,000 was paid out to charities under IIABNY’s Matching Funds Program in 2007. For more information visit IIABNY’s website or contact Kathy Weinheimer This is a great incentive for new donors and for those increasing their contribution.
• State chair Vinny Alba is organizing local association InsurPac contacts around the state, so please help when Vinny calls!
• IIABNY Board members will be contacting local associations and members in their regions, soliciting contributions. Please respond by helping get the word out in your local area and by making a contribution!

• At least 13 stories naming IIABNY as a source were broadcast or published during the month of January. The topics varied, but many articles dealt with national and state legislative issues, such as TRIA extension, workers' compensation and "L" Day.
• How agents select a premium financing company and in-home business coverage were the topics of two stories expected to appear in February issues of the National Underwriter and Insurance Journal, respectively.

• Have you checked out the “Ask Tim” videocast? This new feature on IIABNY’s website will answer your insurance technical questions.
• LifeLock, a proactive identity theft prevention program, has been rolled out to the membership. This program is backed by a $1 million service guarantee. Sign up at www.lifelock.com and receive a 10% discount when you use the promotional code “IIABNY”.
• The second edition of IIABNY’s Carrier Index has received a lot of attention from the press and insurers. This survey will be conducted twice a year and agents who complete the survey will have access to the individual results for all of the companies rated in the survey (27 companies during the most recent survey). Be sure to watch for the next survey in May 2008.