competitive edge insurance Archives - Competitive Edge Insurance

Insurance Requirements for Business Owners

June 12, 2022/in EIDL, General Business Insurance, News /by Amanda Rogers

When it comes to protecting your business, insurance can get tricky. What policies do you need? How can you ensure you’re meeting insurance requirements given by a city, state, or government?

Don’t worry—Here we have Brenda Jo Robyn, Founder of Competitive Edge Insurance, on camera to discuss standard insurance requirements for business owners. Let’s dive in!

Why Do Business Owners Need to Comply with Insurance Requirements?

Business owners are required to have certain insurance.

Most cities, states, and governments fall into the category of asking for insurance requirements, including the SBA and the requirements they have for their EIDL loans that companies have taken out due to COVID or other disasters.

Vendors and service providers follow suit in asking for insurance requirements.

Lastly, as you might imagine, landlords frequently ask for different insurance requirements in their contracts. Anytime real property is part of a professional relationship, these requirements ensue.

What Policies Are Typically Required in Contracts?

Below is a general list of four policies you might see in a contract in terms of insurance requirements.

General Liability

The number one policy that’s required is general liability.

This type of insurance policy protects a third party in the event that there’s a bodily injury or property damage claim to your products or services that you provide for them.

General liability, for example, would also include this scenario: Let’s say you have someone come into your office (you’re either renting a space or the whole building). Then, this someone trips on your carpet and falls as they’re coming in.

General liability would be the number one policy to make sure that you have your requirements buttoned up.

Property Insurance

The next policy would be property insurance. If someone is renting their property to you, they want to ensure that it’s covered in case of a loss.

If you’re a restaurant, for example, you could imagine you’re in someone else’s building. You need to make sure not only that you have the safety elements in place (i.e. fire suppression) but also insurance for the owner of the building, should something happen.

Professional Errors and Omissions (E&O) Insurance

Professional errors and omission (E&O) insurance come into play when there’s a failure in services or technology that you might be providing. The policy will provide the company with a way to make the client whole after an error that results from this mishap or financial loss occurs.

Directors and Officers (D&O) Liability Insurance

Directors and officers (D&O) liability insurance might come into play for a business owner as well.

This type of policy is typically required by investors before they fund, and before becoming a board member. Remember, when you’re working with investors and funding, there’s a contract involved—so you’ll probably see this there.

How to Manage Your Risk as a Business Owner

So, now what do you do? Here comes the risk mitigation part.

A lot of times, you will see that most contracts ask for reasonable requirements—and it only makes sense they should have these protections in place.

We recommend, however, that you keep your eye out for these elements in order to best manage risk.

Outlandish Requirements

There are times, however, that you see outlandish requirements. Brenda Jo reminds us that these need to come up as a big red flag for you. An example of an outlandish requirement would be an unusually high minimum occurrence or aggregate limits or policies that are unrelated to the scope of the contract.

Broad Language in Indemnity Agreements

Look at broad language within the indemnity agreement that works in their favor, and not in yours. Moreover, there is such a thing as being too broad.

Remember, indemnity agreement language should always be reviewed by your attorney.

Unreasonable Required Coverage

This is a big one!

If you’re the party in the contract that the insurance requirements are being imposed upon—in construction, typically the contractor or subcontractor—it’s important to confirm that the required coverage terms are either included in your current insurance program or can be purchased at a reasonable price.

Ideally, you’ve had your broker review the contract before you sign it so that they can let you know what might be remiss in the requirements that are being put in front of you, and what you might need to purchase.

Then, is the purchase of new insurance more than what would be justified for this amount of a contract? For instance, if your contract is $25,000, and you’re required to purchase additional insurance for $5,000, does that make sense? Is this something that you can write out of the contract? Or, do you need to rework your bid?

Then, what level of insurance is necessary for each of the different policies? Do the policies make sense regarding the contract or the scope of work? For any new requirements or endorsements that need to be added, are they reasonable, and are they reasonably priced?

Interested in learning more? Read on to learn about complying with insurance requirements for construction, manufacturing, and tech start-ups.

Insurance Trends in 2022: What to Watch For

February 27, 2022/in General Business Insurance, News /by Amanda Rogers

Competitive Edge Insurance is a commercial insurance brokerage that specializes in hard-to-place risks. This includes businesses that are in chaos or crisis with high-risk exposures such as construction and development, property investors and flippers, and those with excess losses or claims.

In 2022, we’re observing a noticeable change in favor of insurance buyers. In turn, we are optimistic for many segments of the commercial lines market in the coming year. Welcome to “Insurance Trends in 2022: What to Watch For.”

Let’s dive in.

From Pandemic to Endemic

“Adaptation is a profound process. Means you figure out how to thrive in the world.” —John Laroch

As we well know, COVID-19 is an ongoing issue. In fact, variants have led many to expect that COVID-19 is here to stay.

Regardless, the sentiment, at least in the insurance industry, has shifted from uncertainty to adaptation.

For the past 10 quarters, rate increases have averaged 10%. Capital in the reinsurance market has increased by 30% which provides support against a large loss event, catastrophe, economic turmoil, and/or adverse claims.

In 2022, we recommend insurees proceed with caution. Additionally, we anticipate price increases to slow. Please note, however, the word “slow” in this sentence. Increases are expected to slow, not create a downward trend in pricing.

Today’s World of Insurance: An Overview

As we know, the past 18 months have been nothing short of eventful. This considered, what are we observing in the insurance world today? Here are a few elements.

Catastrophic Losses Continue
Social Inflation
Skilled Labor Shortages
Supply Chain Disruptions

Did you know that according to a study from the Society for Human Resource Management, nearly 90% of businesses are having a hard time filling open positions?

Next, let’s dive into each insurance sector a bit deeper: cyber, commercial property, auto, and workers’ compensation.

Cyber Insurance

When it comes to cyber insurance, premiums are rising but covering less.

What’s Causing Insurance to Increase?

Cyber extortion jumped by 150% in a year
Companies are more likely to rely on outside attorneys to handle cyber response (in order to contain potential lawsuits)
Every claims category has increased in the past year; cases of malicious breaches and unintentional disclosure increased by 18%
Cyber coverages are expected to rise sharply, 40% to 50% for optimal risks and 50% to 100% or more for less optimal risks, seeing as ransomware attacks continue to crowd the cyber insurance market

Additionally, executives do not have the knowledge to properly insure their companies from cyber risk. Here are some statistics from Munich RE to paint a picture for you:

“81% of C-level respondents think their company is not adequately protected against cyberthreats
35% are considering taking out an insurance policy and will very likely do so
Only 34% of C-level respondents have been in contact with their insurers
One out of four C-level respondents was totally unaware of the opportunities that cyber solutions offer
17% of C-level respondents still do not have an overview of the cyber insurance products on the market”

The bottom line? C-level executives, while they may be concerned about cyber threats, do not have an understanding of what insurance products and services are available to them.

Commercial Property

What Elements Are Driving Rates?

Increasing frequency of natural catastrophes, as well as the severity of those events
Higher rebuilding costs due to price inflation of materials and labor shortages

Today, however, commercial property markets are stabilizing. Additionally, increased rates are slowing while capacity is increasing.

We can also anticipate more favorable terms for clients who mitigate risk. Property owners who have been working hard to mitigate risk and decrease claims can see more favorable terms and conditions, and possibly lower rates.

This benefits commercial insurance buyers that maintain quality risks with strong data to back them up. However, rates will continue to be impacted by the location of the risk.

Companies in areas at high risk of natural catastrophes, such as tornadoes, hurricanes, hailstorms, and wildfires, are seeing the highest rate increases, as well as non-renewals and even difficulty in securing coverage. For example, in wildfire areas of California and wind zones of Florida, rates have increased by over 20%.

Auto Insurance

Rates have gone up and up. But what’s driving the increase?

What’s Causing Auto Insurance Rates to Increase?

An increasing amount of accidents and deaths caused by distracted driving
Higher medical costs for accident victims
Rapidly climbing repair costs for vehicles exacerbated by the disrupted supply chain for parts and paucity of skilled and trained labor

As a result, we expect to see averages of 5-15% increases in both commercial and personal auto insurance in 2022.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

Workers’ compensation is a mixed bag.

There’s a base that’s put into play by The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California (WCIRB), which is our rating and statistical bureau for data. The WCIRB gives us the trends and where to go.

The state fund has announced rate increases, the 2022 WCIRB new policy assessment increase sits at 5.9318%.

Beginning January 1, 2022, new assessment levels took effect for the six workers’ compensation surcharges administered by the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR). The six will total 5.9318% in 2022, compared to 3.9590% in 2021.

For more information on rate increases between 2021 and 2022, visit the graph below.

How Can You Prepare?

Let’s talk about risk management.

First things first, review your policies before they expire!

It is estimated that commercial properties were undervalued for underwriting purposes by more than 30% in November 2021 policies annually.

To rectify undervaluation, more frequent, in-depth property risk appraisals—that take into account more extreme weather events, potential supply chain hurdles, and inflation trends—are recommended.

Second, write your own story. Don’t let the underwriters do it for you! Work with your insurance broker and risk representative to take appropriate steps to reduce your risks whenever possible. This will make you more attractive to underwriters.

Below is simply an outline of factors that owners can address to influence the most favorable underwriting profile, which leads to the most favorable terms, conditions, and pricing:

Take inventory of assets
Pinpoint current exposures and cost drivers
Update contracts to the current environment
Review existing risk management techniques
Highlight business continuity plans and loss control measures in place
Build a company culture focused on safety
Manage claims efficiently
Be weather-ready

Additionally, to reduce negative consequences from supply chain crunches and labor shortages in the aftermath of a catastrophe, “risk managers and property owners should consider entering agreements with builders before an event occurs to ensure the availability of materials and manpower for the restoration job.”

Underwriters are more critical now than ever on property, asking in-depth questions on what you’re doing to control your risks; not only to employees but to tenants and visitors.

Read on for more on how to prepare as well as what to expect from workers’ compensation policy renewals this year.

What Mandating the Vaccine Might Mean for Your Business Insurance

December 5, 2021/in General Business Insurance, Health & Wellness, News /by Amanda Rogers

Business owners have experienced unforeseen challenges as a result of the last nearly two years in a global pandemic.

The conversation surrounding the ethics of requiring vaccines has been floating around the workplace for about just as long.

In September 2021, however, President Joe Biden directed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to introduce an emergency temporary standard (ETS) that requires companies with 100 or more employees to ensure all employees are:

Fully vaccinated
Or, that they submit to weekly testing and mandatory masking

*As of November 17th, however, OSHA has paused all vaccine mandates “after a federal appeals court upheld a stay.”

Regardless, it is still top of mind for employees. Here’s what mandating the vaccine might mean for your business insurance along with how you can prepare if the mandate is passed.

Who Would This Mandate Affect?

According to The New York Times, companies with 100 or more employees would “have until Jan. 4 to ensure all their workers are either fully vaccinated or submit to weekly testing and mandatory masking.”

This measure would be enforced to promote workplace health and safety and will affect “some 84 million private-sector workers across the country, including some 31 million who are believed to be unvaccinated.”

If the mandate comes into play, OSHA anticipates the ETS will be in effect for six months depending on COVID-19 statistics.

When Did This Mandate Come About?

“The measure was announced by President Biden in September [2021], and details were released on Nov. 4 by the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA],” according to The Times.

COVID, ELP, and EPLI

First things first, what is Employer’s Liability Insurance? This form of insurance “protects your business when an employee sues over a work injury or illness,” according to Insureon. It is especially important, considering “almost one in five small businesses will face employee litigation” at some point.

Equally as important to consider is Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI), which is insurance that “provides coverage to employers against claims made by employees.”

With the potential vaccine mandate, we can anticipate an increase in EPLI claims. As a result, we might see EPLI premiums increase. Kyle Jeziorski, Executive Vice President at Founder Shield offered insight: “I think insurers will try to add COVID-19 exclusions to EPLI policies and potentially offer the coverage for an additional premium.”

It’s definitely something we here at Competitive Edge Insurance will continue to keep a pulse on.

How Responsible Are Businesses for the Spread of COVID?

During the onset of COVID, many employees wondered to what extent businesses and business owners should be held liable if an employee were to contract COVID-19 on the job and suffer sickness or even death as a result.

The answer today is still clear as mud.

There are, however, steps your business can (and should) take to prepare for these newly introduced COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

Steps Your Business Can Take to Prepare

Business Insurance tells us that now is the time that businesses should prepare U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission processes as well as human resources (HR) departments for what lies ahead.

As we well know, there are many employees across the U.S. who will request exemptions from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine due to religious or health reasons. This process, called an ‘interactive process,’ can take weeks or even months.

For businesses, this can be a lot added on their plates—especially if they receive a high number of requested exemptions.

Businesses should know this ahead of time and prepare accordingly.

Erect a Framework in Advance

“Businesses owe it to themselves to put together a framework to manage this,” says Chuck Kable, Chief Legal Officer and Chief Human Resources Officer at Axiom Medical. “You have to have a protocol and a process that you have to administer consistently and over time, and you have to treat everybody equally.”

If businesses fail to do so, this is when liabilities begin to pop up.

“Any mishandling of an exemption request can run afoul of anti-discrimination laws,” says Adam Kempe of Kelley Kronenberg. Companies might face various liabilities including:

Failure to maintain and keep private workers’ health information
Failure to follow steps in Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) exemption requests

Consider OSHA Fines

If the headache of one of your employees filing a claim with OSHA as a result of your negligence isn’t enough motivation to get your ducks in a line, consider the hefty OSHA fines you might face.

If a complaint is filed, the first thing OSHA is going to look for is your current OSHA Covid Protection Procedures that are in place, which includes your Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP). All employers are required to have IIPPs in place.

OSHA fines can be especially detrimental to your company’s financials because while OSHA personnel might come in looking for one thing, chances are they will do some digging, which could lead to additional fines or penalties. OSHA, in that sense, is similar to the IRS—except for employers.

Employee Screenings

A final precaution that employers should take, according to Brenda Jo Robyn, founder of Competitive Edge Insurance, is to conduct thorough employee screenings.

Brenda Jo also acknowledges that it may be the case that many people will choose to not work as a result of this mandate.

“You can find out a lot about an employee or potential employee from a screening,” says Brenda Jo. “Be sure to look at their workers’ compensation claims and do reference checks.”

Take advantage of not only their most recent reference but reach out to prior references as well.

A Final Word

With this potential vaccine mandate firing up, it’s especially important for employers to be on their A-game as far as safety procedures and insurance are concerned.

“There’s nothing that prevents a company, especially one not familiar with these issues, from now bringing in appropriate HR personnel, a consultant, or employment counsel to understand what to expect,” says Kempe of Kelley Kronenberg.

On the topic of vaccines, did you know that Brenda Jo Robyn, founder of Competitive Edge, began her career as an Epidemiologist who specialized in immunizations? To hear more about vaccines, specifically, her passion for Polio research, visit this blog post.

Why is Phishing the #1 Thing Killing Small Businesses?

November 21, 2021/in Cyber Insurance, News, Video /by Amanda Rogers

What is phishing? And no, we’re not talking about the activity of catching fish for food or sport. Phishing, spelled with a ‘ph,’ is an ever-growing concern defined as the “technique for attempting to acquire sensitive data, such as bank account numbers, through a fraudulent solicitation in email or on a web site, in which the perpetrator masquerades as a legitimate business or reputable person.”

But why is phishing especially harmful to small businesses? Why are they being targeted? We have all the answers and more, thanks to Brenda Jo Robyn, founder of Competitive Edge Insurance.

So, welcome to ‘Why is Phishing the #1 Thing Killing Small Businesses?’ We hope you stick around to learn something new, including how you might protect yourself as a small business owner.

What is Phishing?

Today, phishing can come in a variety of forms. According to Brenda Jo, phishing is “any activity that compromises your organization’s security… It can come in the way of an email or a text or an application.” These applications that retrieve your data can be on your computer, phone, even your iPad. Scammers target you and ask questions to get your information in really creative ways.

An Example of Phishing

Let’s say you receive an email that you’ve been expecting from Bank of America. Why not just ignore it? Well, because…

“It looks like you really should open it. [After all,] it’s a secure document for the bank you’ve been working with lately,” says Brenda Jo. The culprits know you’ve been waiting for this specific type of document to arrive in your inbox because they’ve been screening your emails.

“So, now they have captured that you’re working with this bank and now this bank is sending you a secure document that you need to open… You open it out of their Google docs, and all of a sudden, bam, you got a worm or a virus on your computer,” says Brenda Jo.

“That’s going to either start going through all your files and looking for stuff. They’re gonna track your emails or they’re going to track your keystrokes.”

Phishing is huge right now. Brenda Jo continues. “I can’t stress enough how important it is to make sure that your computers and data is secure from others. There are a lot of what are called ‘bad elements’ or ‘bad actors’ out there that are trying to steal your data… Right now data is money. And the more data you have, the more money you can make.”

How Dangerous is Phishing for Small Businesses?

The statistics speak for themselves. Right now, 60% of small companies that have been hit by a cyber attack are closing their doors within six months. The reason? It is very costly to come back from a cyber attack.

Most small businesses don’t have the collateral, backing, or lines of credit to make themselves whole again after an attack of this caliber.

How Can Small Businesses Protect Themselves from Phishing?

Training

Focus on training.

Training your employees: (For example, they need to know how not to send excel spreadsheets emails! Instead, create a zip file or convert the document into a PDF. Why? It is very easy to scrape data from an excel file while in an email.)
Training IT: They need to know what to look for.

Due Diligence

Due diligence is the bare minimum. Document your training and go over it on a weekly or quarterly basis. Next, ensure your IT systems are multi-layered. This means not only having firewalls on your computers and servers but also helpful, educated IT personnel available.

Develop a Planned Crisis Response

A planned crisis response includes a cyber liability policy. As Brenda Jo says, “one of the things that kills the small business is the lack of PR or response to their clients and/or vendors when a phishing attack occurs and data has been compromised.”

“It’s very expensive to go and let everybody know, ‘Hey, your information was taken and here’s the year’s worth of credit monitoring’”—especially if the data is health-related.

You might face both federal fines as well as fines from the state government. The costs add up, and that’s where cyber liability comes in to help.

Reach Out to Competitive Edge Today

As you look at your coverage, think of the potential for cybersecurity issues, evaluate your tolerance for risk, and take the time to look at your policies in detail. As experts, we at Competitive Edge can tell you where you are vulnerable and what the risk might cost you. It is then your decision to accept the risk or mitigate it with coverage. You know what we would do.
Interested in learning more about the dangers of ransomware and why the need for cyber liability coverage is increasing? Read on in cyber liability coverage for the new era of ransomware.

What to Expect from Changing Contractor Costs

November 8, 2021/in Construction, High-Risk Insurance, News, Video /by Amanda Rogers

The global pandemic brought many changes to the construction and builders industry. Here’s what to expect in 2021.

Shock Loss: How to Redefine your Risk Profile in a Post-COVID Market

November 1, 2021/in Construction, High-Risk Insurance, News /by Amanda Rogers

EIDLs and Hazard Insurance: Your Full Guide

October 31, 2021/in EIDL, General Business Insurance, High-Risk Insurance, News /by Amanda Rogers

When running a business, there are so many things to keep track of—especially considering the COVID-19 hullabaloo we’ve experienced over the past nearly two years. Various types of insurance, Small Business Administration (SBA) loan requirements… the list goes on.

An important topic that continues to change, however, is Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and the subsequent need for hazard insurance if it is collateralized. This brings up many questions, like

How much does it cost?
Why do I need it?
How can I obtain coverage?

Each of these questions and more is answered in this article: Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) Hazard Insurance: Your Full Guide.

Let’s dive in.

What are Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs)?

EIDLs are “the primary form of Federal assistance for the repair and rebuilding of non-farm, private sector disaster losses” administered by the SBA. “The disaster loan program is the only form of SBA assistance not limited to small businesses.”

An Update on EIDL

Over the summer, many small business owners received an alarming email from the EIDL program through the SBA.

As part of the EIDL requirements, you must have hazard insurance in order to apply for the EIDL loan. In the email from the SBA sent earlier this year, individuals were informed that those who had received the EIDL loan, must present proof of insurance in order to have their loans forgiven.

Here’s a look at what the email said.

The Email Stated:

“The SBA is launching a new round of EIDL Advances – called Targeted EIDL Advance – which provides eligible businesses with $10,000 in total grant assistance. If you received the EIDL Advance last year in an amount less than $10,000, you may be eligible to receive the difference up to the full $10,000. The combined amount of the Targeted EIDL Advance and any previously received Advance will not exceed $10,000.”

Along with Information Claiming That:

“Businesses eligible for the Targeted EIDL Advance must meet ALL the following eligibility criteria:

Located in a low-income community, as defined in section 45D(e) of the Internal Revenue Code. The SBA will map your business address to determine if you are in a low-income community when you submit your Targeted EIDL Advance application.
Suffered economic loss greater than 30 percent, as demonstrated by an 8-week period beginning on March 2, 2020, or later, compared to the previous year. You will be required to provide the total amount of monthly gross receipts from January 2019 to the current month-to-date.
Must have 300 or fewer employees. Business entities normally eligible for the EIDL program are eligible, including sole proprietors, independent contractors, and private, nonprofit organizations. However, agricultural enterprises, such as farmers and ranchers, are not eligible to receive the Targeted EIDL Advance.”

The SBA said loans won’t be forgiven unless you have proof of insurance coverage. If you’re looking to check which COVID-19 loans are forgivable, visit this list.

But Why Do You Need Hazard Insurance to Qualify?

“The Small Business Administration is a lender. Just like any other lender, the SBA is trying to protect their loan’s collateral from unforeseen circumstances,” says Naomi Bishop on hazard insurance. Therefore, all borrowers must obtain hazard insurance within 12 months of loan approval. Additionally, coverage must be maintained throughout the life of the loan.

Additionally, when applying for a loan, you guarantee a loan by offering assets as collateral. For example, financial (i.e. cash and cash equivalents), physical (real estate), vehicles, and so on.

If you then default on an SBA loan, the lender has the right to seize and sell assets as repayment. Even others’ collateral may be at risk if they signed a guarantee on the loan. For this reason, insurance is crucial to keeping your business and others safe.

More on Hazard Insurance

Under the requirements for the EIDL, the SBA requires that your business has hazard insurance to cover 80% of the loan amount. Hazard insurance is a term for coverage that may be included within several different types of property coverage.

If you have any kind of business property insurance, you are likely covered. In fact, commercial property insurance is considered hazard insurance. This coverage protects your company’s physical assets, like buildings, furniture and equipment, supplies, computers, inventory, customer’s goods, signs, fencing, and even lost income from damage or loss.

The SBA does not allow personal hazard insurance to be considered for loans. Business auto insurance is also not allowable coverage for this requirement.

What is Happening Now?

Effective September 8, 2021, many updates were made to the COVID EIDL program. All of which can be read in full here on the SBA website.

The impact of the primary policy changes include:

Higher loan amounts are available
Increase[d] use of funds flexibility
SBA automatically defers for 24 months from loan origination
Simplifies affiliation rules for all industries…
Created additional way[s] to meet program size standards… to include industries uniquely impacted by COVID-19 [that] continue to experience significant economic hardship
Introduces maximum cap on corporate groups

Do You Have the Right Coverage and Correct Amounts to Satisfy Your SBA Loan?

As previously mentioned, the SBA requires that at least 80% of your loan amount is covered with hazard insurance. It may be beneficial to have 100% of your business property value covered with hazard insurance. If you received EIDL funds without coverage, you should contact your insurance agent as soon as possible.

There are a few other rules related to the insurance coverage that the SBA has stated:

The insurance must be in the name of the business and must show proof of business property.
If someone is a sole proprietor, and they have a DBA (Doing Business As), the DBA must be on the policy.

How Much Does Hazard Insurance Cost?

The premiums that one pays for hazard insurance is dependant on several factors, including:

Selected limits and deductibles
Type of coverage
Where you live (some states are more prone to natural disasters than others)

Although this is not an end-all-be-all formula, for homeowners, the annual cost of hazard insurance typically costs between 0.25% to 0.33% multiplied by the purchase price of your home.

Hazard insurance doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. By comparing rates with the help of Competitive Edge Insurance, you’re sure to get the best deal for your business while making sure you stay compliant with the SBA’s requirements.

Curious about the difference between hazard insurance and high-risk insurance? Competitive Edge specializes in high-risk insurance— learn “What Classifies High Risk.”

World Polio Day

October 17, 2021/in Health & Wellness, News, Personal Lines, Video /by Amanda Rogers

Competitive Edge’s very own CEO, Brenda Jo Robyn has a passion for charitable giving. Because of Brenda Jo’s previous career as an Epidemiologist who specialized in immunizations, she places special attention on Polio research. As October 24 is World Polio Day, we wanted to get Brenda Jo’s insight into what World Polio Day really means to her.

What World Polio Day Means to Brenda Jo:

“I belong to the rotary club of Coronado and one of the things that I specifically work on is a fundraiser called End Polio Now, which raises funds to immunize children across the globe.

Over the last few years, we have raised $2.1 billion to protect over 3 billion children and 122 countries from Wild Polio Viruses, two have been eradicated, and one is still active. And the only countries in which Polio exists in the wild are Pakistan and Afghanistan. This year, we only had two reported cases in January. However, between 2018 and 2020, there hasn’t been as much access to services for families and children. And in those two countries in 2020, there was a three-month break from providing immunizations due to COVID-19.

They couldn’t go around and go from town to town and, and tried to tribe. Due to recent events, it has become increasingly challenging in Afghanistan and the immunization locations have been closed down. There’s a big concern right now on how this will play out and affect the future.

Currently, there’s an estimate of 3 million children that remain, un-immunized. And why is this a concern? Well, it can lead to an outbreak. Refugees are being accepted in countries all over the world, and we don’t know who is immunized and who is not immunized as they come. We really have to focus on those children as they’re coming in and treat them all as if they are not immunized.”

Understanding World Polio Day

World Polio Day is an effort to draw attention to the End Polio Now organization working to eradicate the wild poliovirus in both Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as increase immunizations in countries that are at greater risk, like Africa.

In order to eradicate the wild poliovirus, high-quality immunization campaigns must be carried out to polio-affected and high-risk countries. Rotary has played a huge role in contributing to Polio eradication.

What is Rotary?

Brenda Jo is a part of the Rotary Club, which provides her with various opportunities to connect and give back to the community at large.

“Rotary is a global network of 1.2 million neighbors, friends, leaders, and problem-solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change–– across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves.”The main goal of Rotary is to serve others in the form of charitable works, giving, and time. Brenda Jo loves being a part of Rotary as it gives her the opportunity to make a real difference in the world. If she can impact just one life in a positive way, it is all worth it.

What Factors Reduce My Commercial Insurance Premiums?

October 10, 2021/in General Business Insurance, News /by Amanda Rogers

Do you know the in’s and out’s of commercial insurance? Test your premium knowledge by taking the quiz below!

Which of these will reduce my Commercial insurance premiums?

Need some more help after taking that quiz? Read more about the four types of insurance you should have for your business here!

Hiring in California: How to Reduce Your Risk

October 3, 2021/in California, General Business Insurance, News /by Amanda Rogers

Hiring new employers can be risky for company culture and the bottom line.

Since new employees are hard to come by, sometimes the decision to hire is rushed and there can be increased risks involved with the hiring process.

Even Brenda Jo Robyn, founder of Competitive Edge Insurance, screens employees pre-hire on Motor Vehicle Records (MVRs). This checks if they have a clean record and can they legally drive for your company, which ultimately will help with company rates.

Screening Employees

Who you work with matters.

On one hand, creating a positive company culture will benefit your employees and overall employee retention, which reduces financial and social risk. One way to create this company culture concerns how you screen potential employees in order to avoid a toxic environment.

A DMV screen costs 60 dollars and has proved to be worth the extra step. This DMV screen includes a general background check and driver’s license check.

It’s important to require DMV screens every year. This can save your company a lot of time and money in the long run by retaining the right employees.

Lastly, if your employee is driving on company time, it is important to make sure that the employee has their own car insurance.

Intellectual Property

In California, your client list can be considered intellectual property. In each employee offer letter, however, it’s crucial to have a separate section outlining that all clients will stay connected with the company if they were to leave.

If you have failed to do so already, you might consider reaching out to current employees and stating the new company policy.

Physical Space

The separation of class (for example, warehouse space vs. office space) for employees might take a couple of extra steps as a business owner but will reduce risk when hiring new employees. The separation between the physical warehouse and office space is the main separation to be considered as a business owner.

There are regulations for how the space is separated. For example, for some, areas being separated by chain link is considered acceptable.

Invest in EPLI

The Employer’s Professional Liability, also known as EPLI, causes different claims to arise from employees. There are a few ways to protect your business from a flood of EPLI claims. Employee lawsuits are rising and in return, settlements are becoming even more expensive. Although there are different types of insurance, workers’ compensation and EPLI are both ways to reduce risk with employee benefit plans.

EPLI is crucial to invest in as a company if it comes to a disgruntled employee—even if you are a small business. In the chance that your company gets sued, your EPLI insurance will cover it.

High-Risk Coverage

High-risk insurance addresses companies whose coverage was either terminated because of a claim, those who are new and cannot get coverage because of industry risk, or those who have experienced drops in revenue or industry disruption such that carriers are broadly refusing coverage.

You might be wondering, what risk class am I in? Luckily, there are various ways to determine this subgroup:

“An insurance risk class is a way for insurers to underwrite policies based on one’s belonging to a particular risk group.

People in each risk group will generally share similar characteristics that help insurers better estimate the chances that the policyholder will file a claim

Riskier risk groups will pay higher premiums—for example, people who are sick, older, or have a poor driving record.”

As a business owner, it is important to put the gates, systems, and processes in place to protect yourself, and Competitive Edge is here to help!

We follow the practices we write about because we believe in the importance of preventative risk. For those who are interested in reading more about what classifies as high risk, read on.

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