Loss Recommendations – Who needs them?
YOU and YOUR BUILDING DO!
Think for a moment about how you can make your property safer from hazards. That makes it safer for all the residents that live there too.
The insurance carriers feel the same way; they’d like to see everyone following their advice after inspecting the property and issuing loss recommendations that should be complied with as quickly as possible. True, some are easier and less expensive than others to do, but all must be addressed to satisfy the carrier from getting off a newly insured property or issuing a non-renewal. They are mostly mandatory to follow now, not just recommendations.
It cannot be stressed enough how important these are to do as quickly as possible from an insurance viewpoint. Carriers are much more strict with compliance to them now than ever in this hard market.
One of the most widely issued recommendations involves updating the electric to be in code to reduce the risk of fires. We all already know the damage, destruction, and even death to people that fire can cause.
It might be that the carrier advises to upgrade the electric from fuses to circuit breakers. Fuse performance degrades over time, and there is no way to test them. They can overload easily. But a circuit breaker can trip up to 1000 times faster than a fuse thereby reducing the risk of fire.
Having a stab-lok panel for the electric is also important to take care of. FPE Stab-Lok breakers may be responsible for as many as 2,800 fires, 13 deaths, and $40 million in property damage every year, even if the circuit is in the ‘”off” position. They have been known to continue to power the circuit causing an electrocution hazard.
We know of a case where the current carrier was requesting just this, but it was not getting done fast enough to stave off a notice of cancellation until another quote was received from an alternate carrier that was much higher in premium. It boils down to “Ignore, then pay more.” So it was a last-minute compliance because they didn’t want to pay more in premium and then have the new carrier request the very same upgrade. (And you can be sure they will.)
Another safety issue is air conditioners in windows that lead to fire escapes, or clutter that is blocking an exit door in a hallway or even the basement. These are common sense as a person should always have at least two means of egress (exiting) from their unit in the event of a fire.
Helping to keep you and your property safe is the ultimate goal of the carrier. Think of it this way, it’s not an “ugh-oh” moment when you get them, it’s an “ah-ha” moment. I can see that light bulb illuminating over your head right now.
Everybody can be a winner by improving life safety!
Next time we’ll talk about sidewalks; that’s another biggie.
