Turn Mold into Gold Seminar Series

Mold Exclusions in virtually all insurance policies, including most insurance agent's professional errors and omissions policies, will have an unprecedented effect on the insurance agency and brokerage business over the next three years.

· On the positive side, universal mold exclusions create an unprecedented opportunity to sell environmental insurance policies covering mold to literally millions of new prospects, with little or no competition. Environmental insurance can be highly profitable if it is efficiently produced. The Turn Mold Into Gold seminar series shows producers how to be successful in this line of coverage and creates opportunities to sell the environmental insurance products that have been designed to address these new loss exposures.

·On the negative side, universal mold exclusions have created unprecedented uninsured professional liability loss exposure for insurance agents and brokers. Research shows that the expected mold related professional liability loss will be in excess of $3,000 annually for every insurance agent in the US. The good news is most of the professional liability exposure of insurance agents for their client’s unintentionally uninsured mold claims can easily be retroactively eliminated by implementing loss control protocols today.

·Our Turning Mold Into Gold seminar series amplifies the positive and neutralizes the negative effect mold exclusions will have on your agency for a lot less than $3,000 per agent. By sponsoring an ERRA seminar series the agency will Turn Mold Into Gold by helping clients manage the new risk.

The ERRA Turn Mold Into Gold seminar series will...

· Move your insurance sales operation into the lucrative field of environmental insurance production.

· Provide instructors who are world-class environmental insurance producers.

· Provide your producers with valuable practical techniques to identify prospects in their book and prospect base.

· Teach the 10 secrets of the trade for successful environmental insurance production. Many traditional sales approaches do not work in this line of coverage, your producers and account executives will learn the proven sales techniques used by the masters that will enable them to excel in producing this line of coverage.

· Introduce the agency to new prospects in a professional consultative venue.

· Help establish the agency as a leader in the community on the topic of mold risk management and environmental insurance covering mold.

· Reduce or eliminate the office's professional liability loss exposure arising from uninsured mold and pollution related damages. Even prior acts can be erased if there has not been a claim incurred already.

Background

“Tens of thousands of mold related losses are affecting a broad cross section of businesses today. A rapid increase in mold claims, followed by universal insurance exclusions for “mold related claims”, will create hundreds of thousands of uninsured mold related losses annually. An army of specialized plaintiff’s lawyers will gravitate towards liability lawsuits to seek recovery for their clients when a property insurance policy excludes the mold loss. Insurance to cover mold is available, but risk management advisors are ignoring it. The result is unprecedented professional liability loss exposure for insurance advisors. In anticipation of the claims morass, professional liability underwriters are adding “mold related claims” exclusions to insurance agent’s and claims adjuster’s professional E&O policies. There is no precedence in the insurance industry for claims with toxic tort severity and water damage frequency in the face of universal insurance exclusions. Universal mold exclusions resulting in hundreds of thousands of uninsured claims will have far reaching consequences on the insurance business, that are both positive and negative."

Excerpt From, Managing Mold Risk in the Post Exclusion Era.
Presented at the Society of Chartered and Property Casualty Underwriters Annual Meeting,
November 2003, New Orleans.
By David J Dybdahl, CPCU, ARM, MBA,,American Risk management Resources Network, LLC.

Now that mold related losses are excluded or severely limited in virtually all insurance policies, there will be many more third party liability claims made against contractors, building products suppliers and manufactures, roofers, plumbers, condominium associations, building owners, property managers, architects, and real estate agents, just to name a few newly exposed classes of business.

With mold in the mix as the new "pollutant" of the millennium, the potential market for environmental insurance has grown from a prospect base of approximately 100,000 potential buyers to over 10,000,000 commercial accounts alone over the past two years. Unfortunately the vast majority of insurance agents and brokers have ignored this mega trend and have left the majority of their clients unintentionally uninsured for mold related damages.

In light of the frequency and severity of mold related losses, the domino effect of an uninsured mold loss from one defendant onto another is certain to supercharge insurance agents and brokers professional liability loss exposures to unprecedented levels in the near future. In 2002 astute professional liability insurance underwriters recognized the potential liability of insurance agents and brokers in the uninsured mold claims morass. By 2003 most insurance agents professional liability underwriters had already added "Mold Related Claims" exclusions onto their renewals and new business. These new mold exclusions on insurance agents professional liability policies make professional liability loss control essential for the producers and the agency. Sponsoring the ERRA Mold Into Gold seminar series is the first step in managing this new professional liability risk.

The ERRA seminar series is designed to turn this unprecedented professional liability problem into a significant new business production opportunity for the agency. By combining the most effective environmental insurance production techniques in the business with the agency professional liability loss control protocols, we will Turn Mold Into Gold for the office.

The ERRA Turn Mold into Gold Seminar Series…

The seminar series will enable the agency to provide your clients with a higher level service and to produce new

environmental insurance business. Our turnkey approach provides the following benefits:

… ERRA provides a world-class, production oriented, professional presenter who is an expert in environmental

insurance production, mold risk management and environmental insurance covering mold.

... The seminar creates cross marketing opportunities with other cosponsors from the community.

… The ERRA seminar leverages the agency's sponsorship investment by partnering with a law firm and a remediation contractor in your community, more then doubling the impact of your sponsorship.

... The Seminar series is designed to increase production in the lucrative line of environmental insurance.

... The program and format are designed to create environmental insurance production opportunities and reduce insurance agents and brokers professional liability exposure.

... ERRA plans and organizes all aspects of the seminar series thereby allowing the firm's personnel to continue to serve clients.

... The involvement of ERRA enhances the credibility, objectivity and ultimately the attendance at the seminar.

... ERRA is able to obtain continuing insurance and legal education credits in most states.

Step 1 - Agency Risk Reduction and Production Opportunity Seminar

ERRA staff will present to the agency personnel a 1½-hour program entitled "The Insurance Agents Survival Guide to Mold Exclusions". The presentation introduces the tactics necessary to effectively reduce the risk of E&O claims in the agency and create mold insurance production opportunities. The program is wrapped up with a presentation on "Environmental Insurance Production - 10 Secrets of the Trade", which is designed to help the agency efficiently and profitably produce environmental insurance.

Following the presentation, the professional environmental insurance specialist from ERRA will meet with individual producers to discuss the environmental insurance production opportunities in their client base or prospects. Client meetings can be arranged by scheduling additional time.

Step 2 - Client and Prospect - Mold Risk Management and Insurance Seminar

This national-class half-day seminar will be professionally produced for the agency on a turnkey basis by the experienced seminar staff of ERRA. Working in conjunction with the agency, ERRA will find the seminar co-sponsors, book the venue, develop the program, produce marketing materials and complete the marketing campaign to the selected target audience.

Agenda

Seminar Co-sponsored by:
Insurance Agency
Law Firm
Remediation Firm

Welcome and Introductory Remarks

Life Cycle of Mold: Water Damage to Remediation
Remediation Firm Sponsor
Examine the life cycle of mold from its beginning, how it lives and propagates, to its remediation. Learn the potential health effects of toxic mold and how to mitigate a potential mold problem.

Remediation Techniques and Cost Containment Measures
Remediation Firm Sponsor
Water intrusion losses that result in mold growth can be ten times more expensive to remedy than a simple water mitigation job. These costs are likely to be uninsured for the first time in 2004. What are the techniques used to remediate mold and how can the remediation costs and potential liabilities be minimized?

The Latest Litigation and Legislative Trends
Law Firm Sponsor
The legal landscape is constantly changing in light of the increasing number of mold claims. Court decisions and pending appeals will determine how the insurance industry responds. Explore these evolving issues and develop strategies to manage these new legal challenges and loss exposures.

Mold Exclusions and Coverage in Insurance Policies
ERRA Representative or agency representative
Many insurance companies are attempting to limit or exclude mold coverage in all new and renewal policies. Discover how the flow down effect of these mold exclusions will impact various industries and their risk management programs. Learn how to fill various insurance coverage gaps on a cost effective basis by utilizing state of the art environmental insurance products.

Availability of Mold Coverage
ERRA Representative or agency representative
The environmental insurance market is providing coverage for a wide range of mold damage claims. In many cases the mold coverage gap created by mold exclusions in standard coverage lines can be filled with the appropriate environmental insurance. Learn which policy forms are appropriate, how to obtain the insurance, what policy language to look for and how to minimize the costs of this new coverage.

Mold Claims Chart
If you are an insurance agent and want to know how the domino effect of mold claims will affect you...don't miss this analysis.

Sponsorship

The insurance agency sponsor of the "Turn Mold into Gold Seminar Series" will receive:

· A national caliber conference on a turnkey basis.

· Environmental insurance production training from a world class instructor.

· An $11,000 + advertising budget for the agency at a fraction of the total cost of producing a national class conference on your own.

· Assistance in identifying and recruiting co-sponsors for the client and prospect seminar.

· The exposure from thousands of brochures that will be mailed to the clients and prospects of the agency, target prospects of ERRA and the clients and prospects of the co-sponsors.

· Professionally produced hard copy glossy seminar brochures for distribution to clients and prospects to attend the conference.

· One speaker on the program at the sponsors' option. ERRA can assist in preparing the presentation materials for the speaker.

· Introduction as sponsor at opening and closing of conference, identification as a sponsor on the mailer’s and on a slide preceding the seminar.

· Space at the conference to display your company marketing materials.

The Economics

The insurance agency sponsorship is $6,400. This includes 25 complimentary attendees to the client projected seminar. (There are no limitations to the number of attendees that can attend the office presentation).

Co-sponsors contribute $2,500 each, which includes 10 complimentary attendees per co-sponsor.

The gate charge for those persons not holding complimentary passes is $110.

About Us

Expanding the use of environmental insurance as a risk management tool through education, technology, resources, innovation and networking.

ERRA is a nonprofit association dedicated to helping its members utilize environmental insurance products to provide more valuable services to their customers. ERRA enhances the professional capabilities of its members through focused educational forums, technology enhanced knowledge management, and providing access to specialized multi-disciplined resources in fields related to environmental risk management.

ERRA hosts a number of forums that focus on environmental insurance and related topics. At these conferences attendees are presented with the educational tools to be more effective in the use of environmental insurance. Expert presenters address the environmental risk management and insurance needs of the customer and practical environmental insurance solutions that address those loss exposures. Emphasis is placed on innovative, state of the art solutions that the practitioner can efficiently implement.

The use of technology to enhance the capability of it's members is a cornerstone of ERRA. A web site at www.erraonline.org serves as the home page for ERRA. Here members can access powerful content that has been selected with the environmental insurance practitioner in mind. Hot links to important sites including the government data on regulated sites and environmental laws have all been brought together in one easily navigated site. The newest policy forms, applications, and descriptive materials from the major environmental underwriters are also found on this site. The ERRA website is designed to save time for insurance and risk management practitioners while enhancing the level of professional service they provide to their clients.

To become a member of the Environmental Risk Resources Association complete a membership form on www.erraonline.org or email the webmaster@erraonline.org. Office memberships are also available.

How to Contact Us:
Environmental Risk Resources Association
4901 Pine Cone Circle, 2nd Floor
Middleton, WI 53562-4061

877-735-0800
608-798-1013 Fax
webmaster@erraonline.org

“Just a short note to let you know how much I enjoyed your presentation. For those who think discussing insurance, particularly when it has to do with mold, is like watching paint dry needs to attend your presentation. You were interesting, informative, certainly entertaining, and easy to follow."

John V. Waltz CGB, CEI, CES, CMI, CMC
President, Certified Mold Inspectors, Inc.

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