TAUD meeting in Fayetteville has strong showing.

Friday, January 30th, 2009 | Where we will be | No Comments

Despite the challenges of getting to Fayetteville with inclement weather looming, the Region 6 meeting held at American Development Corporation boast over 90 attendees. The program was on Chemical Treatment Methods designed to reduce cost in quality water. Members also heard reports from TAUD Executive Director Bob Freudenthal pertaining to the upcoming Legislative Conference & Rally to be held at the Double Tree Hotel in Nashville on February 10th and 11th. All TAUD members are encourage to participate in this very important meeting that will encompass proposed “Bills of Interest” and TAUD’s position on current proposed legislation.

Then, Bob Freudenthal presented a plaque to honor Mr. Larry Jones for his dedicated service as Region 6 Leader. Larry has retired from Lewisburg Water & Wastewater and will spend time traveling with his wife and entertaining his 4 grandchildren. We wish Larry well in his retirement. Kenneth Carr of Lewisburg Water & Wastewater will now assume the role of Region 6 Leader.

When the program ended and right before lunch, Mr. Mike Wetherington, President of American Development Corporation honored one of his most valuable and long term employee’s, Mr. Glen Parks, known affectionately as simply “Piggy”. Glen “Piggy” Parks was very moved by the honor as Mike had invited Piggy’s wife and family to attend this special presentation. David Callahan of Soddy-Daisy-Falling Water Utility District presented “Piggy” with a Proclamation that he had written honoring January 28th, 2009 as Glen “Piggy” Parks Day at ADC. Members then watched a wonderful video presentation of the “Man From Mulberry” in Lincoln County. From Pig Farmer to mixing chemicals, his knowledge is unrivaled.

Mike Wetherington wanted to honor “Piggy” for his outstanding service of over 20 plus years to ADC and the Members of TAUD, and we look forward to many more years of service from Glen “Piggy” Parks.
Members then enjoyed a fantastic lunch provided by ADC. We thank Mike and his staff at ADC for their Hospitality and support of TAUD.

Kirk Smith
Account Executive
Next Generation Underwriters
615.822.5454
ksmith@nguins.com

Claims Question of the Week

Thursday, January 29th, 2009 | Claims Questions | No Comments

I was in an accident. Do I need to get 2 estimates for my car?

Answer:

We do utilize estimates obtained from local, reputable body shops, but only when the total damages to the vehicle are limited to less than $2,000. We have found over the years that when damages exceed this general threshold, the likelihood of a supplement from the shop increases significantly. We find that it is more economical and cost effective to assign an appraiser to inspect the vehicle in question when it is damaged severely. Then, should a supplement be submitted by the repair facility, the appraiser is in a better position to evaluate the validity of the supplement than if we had never inspected the car.

The appraiser will write a guaranteed appraisal. We issue a check to the vehicle owner based on this guaranteed appraisal. With this appraisal the vehicle owner is free to take his vehicle to any shop of his or her choice for repairs. We recommend that the shop of choice be given the appraisal. The shop can accept the appraisal as written and proceed with repairs, or they will contact the appraiser directly for consideration of additional items. An appraiser will oftentimes ask for the shop to “tear down” a damaged vehicle or remove damaged parts to allow for a better inspection before completing his appraisal, which will help him identify hidden damage that he would be unable to ascertain otherwise.

The process works quite well when we follow this procedure. In the event that the shop submits a repair supplement, they will contact the appraiser and together work out the additional charges. In these cases, we generally issue an additional check to the shop for the agreed supplement amount.

Tom Montgomery, CPCU, AIC
Director of Operations
Safety Engineering Consultants
615.826.4274
tmontgomery@sectn.com

Workers Compensation Audit – Why Be Afraid

Wednesday, January 28th, 2009 | Finance, Insurance Topics | No Comments

Most of us on the financial side of any business want to run and hide when we hear the word auditor. I know here at Next Generation Underwrites (NGU), I do. If seems like every time I turn around someone wants to audit something. You have your own internal auditors, independent financial auditors, sales tax auditors, state auditors, insurance including workers compensation auditors, and yes maybe even the most feared of all, the dreaded IRS auditor. This list doesn’t even include all of those voluntary audits you complete each day disguised as can you verify this forms. How many times do you just want to yell “just leave me alone and let me do my job.”

With that being said I think you will agree that one of the least painful audits you can endure is the one by your workers compensation insurance carrier. If it is not the least painful it is one of the few that may actually bring you good news.

One of our major accounts here at NGU is the Tennessee Risk Management Trust (TNRMT). For the last several years the TNRMT has hired and independent auditor to conduct on site audits. Each year he will find a few accounts where the payroll has increased substantially. This is usually due to additional employees being hired in a certain area and is often accompanied by an “I forgot to call and let them know about the staff I put on when we opened that new jail.” The reverse is true as well. The payroll may decrease substantially as a certain area went to contract employees. Most of the time the audit produces results consistent with the estimate. In the most recently completed audit 50% of the audits were within 5% of the original estimates while 75% were within 10% of the estimates.

So why be afraid of the workers compensation audit? All the audit is doing is summarizing you actual payroll numbers. Remember this is one of the few audits that can bring good news other than confirming the good work you know you do. In the audit recently completed by the TNRMT 35% of the membership actually got money back.

Jeffery T. Mathis
Chief Financial Officer
Next Generation Underwriters
615.822.5454
jmathis@nguins.com

CLAIMS QUESTIONS OF THE WEEK: When do workers’ compensation benefits stop?

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 | Claims Questions | No Comments

Airport Liability

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 | Insurance Topics | No Comments

We at Next Generation Underwriters, strive to meet the needs of all of our customers. One way we can do that is to provide airport liability insurance to our cities and counties. We try to provide each customer with aviation insurance that is tailored to their unique circumstances. We have access to the major aviation underwriters and the experience to provide you with the best coverage for your needs.

Other than providing airport liability for the Insured, sometimes when the public entity is being audited, the auditor will look to make sure that the entity has the correct coverage for their airport. Contact me and I will help you to get the best coverage for your account.

Donna Robinson
Customer Service Representative
Next Generation Underwriters
615.822.5454
drobinson@nguins.com

Claims question of the week

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 | Claims Questions | No Comments

When an employee is taken off work after an injury one of the first questions the injured employee has is when do I get paid and how much will I get.

This is spelled out under the Tennessee Workers Compensation Law as follows:

1. How and when are payments made to the injured employee?

When the treating physician takes an employee off work due to a work related injury, workers’ compensation insurance carrier makes payments to the injured employee. The amount of payment is 66 2/3 of the employee’s average weekly wage for the fifty-two (52) weeks prior to the date of injury. (There are statutory minimum and maximum amounts for workers’ compensation benefits.) First payment is due within fifteen (15) days of knowledge of injury and benefits should be paid at least semi-monthly. Claims Handling Standards state, “All workers’ compensation benefits shall be issued timely to assure the injured employee receives the benefits on or before the date they are due.”

In order to qualify for workers’ compensation payments, an injured employee must have a doctor’s statement for time out from work. Count every calendar day covered by the doctor’s off work statement. Do not count the date of injury. Days off work do not have to be consecutive. If an injured employee is returned to work and then has to miss additional days, count every day covered by the doctor’s excuses.

Workers’ compensation payments are not paid to an injured employee for the first seven (7) days of disability. Workers’ compensation payments commence on the eighth (8th) day the treating physician takes an injured employee off work. Beginning on the 8th day, an employee is eligible for one day’s benefits. On the ninth (9th) day, an employee is eligible for two days’ benefits, and so on. If the employee continues to lose time from work through the fourteenth (14th) day, the seven-day waiting period will be picked up and the employee will be due benefits retroactive to day one (1) of the period of time the treating physician has taken an injured employee off work.

2. How much will the injured employee receive in benefits? How are the payments figured?

An employee is entitled to 66 2/3% of his/her average weekly income, within statutory maximum or minimum amounts. The employer must submit a wage statement, using Form C-4, Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development Wage Statement, to the insurance carrier. This wage statement will list an injured employee’s gross earnings for the past fifty-two (52) weeks prior to the date of injury. The wage statement should reflect all earnings, including overtime. Gross earnings are totaled, then divided by 52. The result is the employee’s average weekly wage. Multiply the average weekly wage by .6667. The result is the employee’s weekly compensation rate. The weekly compensation rate may not be higher or lower than maximum and minimum rates in effect on the date the employee was injured. Note: If an employee has worked at the place of employment fewer than fifty-two (52) weeks, the weekly compensation rate may be figured by one of the following methods:

A. Total the number of weeks an injured employee has been employed. Calculate gross earnings for those weeks. Divide gross earnings by the number of weeks employed. OR

B. Calculate the average weekly wage over 52 weeks being earned by a person employed with the same employer performing the same job as the injured employee.

Clayton Cabron
Senior Claims Specialist
Safety Engineering Consultants
615.826.4274
ccabron@sectn.com

New State Law Regarding Special Needs Children

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 | School Safety | No Comments

A new state law is in place to keep special education students safe from unreasonable, unsafe or unwarranted discipline. Until only recently, Tennessee had no laws governing the use of isolation or restraint of such students. The “Special Education Isolation and Restraint Modernization and Behavioral Supports Act” allow districts to restrain or isolate them only with certain conditions. Some of the steps banned are tie-down straps, locked or barricaded rooms, or any restraint that restricts air. There are currently 32 states that have legislated rules or laws of that spell out the use of restraint and isolation. Advocates want the law to require that schools notify parents about any use of restraint. The law currently says parents have to be notified only if it is included in the student’s education plan.

Chris Stites
Safety Engineer
Safety Engineering Consultants
615.826.4274
cstites@sectn.com