AAIS has received word from the Louisiana Department
of Insurance that the principal components of its latest Homeowners
manual filing have been approved.
This manual filing is significant for several new
features, some unique to Louisiana, others to be implemented
countrywide:
-
The separation of basic policy premium into wind
and non-wind components for specific rating purposes;
-
Updated windstorm or hail exclusion factors;
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Expanded deductible options;
-
New credits and surcharges reflecting how well
residences or dwelling units resist damage from high wind speeds;
and
-
The introduction of an experience rating plan
discussed in last week's Advisory.
The effective date of the new manual is
Nov. 1, 2008. AAIS will inform its Homeowners affiliates by
bulletin of company
action needed to adopt the manual.
Users of the AAIS
Inland
Marine Guide will receive revised forms and
rating procedures for the Riggers' Coverage
class in a bulletin to be issued Friday, June
27. The forms will be filed in 21 states that do
not exempt inland marine insurance from form
filing requirements; the filings carry a
proposed effective date of Jan. 1, 2009.
The Guide's base form for this class
primarily provides open perils coverage for property of others under the
insured's care, custody, and control. There is, however, a new
supplemental coverage for the insured's own loss of earned rigging
charges due to a covered loss to covered property. Also, two new optional endorsements are introduced:
-
One new endorsement provides coverage for
contract penalties incurred due to delays caused by covered perils.
-
The other new endorsement provides coverage for
expediting expenses needed to complete a project on time after
covered property is impacted by a covered peril.
The revised rating procedure for this class includes
a new step for rating those coverage options, as well as expanded risk
characteristics used to document selection of the basic load.
For information on affiliating with AAIS for use of
the Inland Marine Guide, contact Rick Maka, director of marketing, at
rickm@AAISonline.com or by
calling 800-564-AAIS.
Companies that use the AAIS
Homeowners Program and AAISdirect will soon
have access to a new Manual Implementation Guide.
The guide is scheduled to be posted on Friday, June
27 in the "Advisory Information" section of
AAISdirect.
Designed to help companies implement the AAIS
Homeowners Program, the new guide will incorporate the Homeowners manual
implementation tools announced last year: rating worksheets, rating
examples, and data sets in Microsoft Excel and XML format.
In addition, the guide identifies key features and
changes in the latest AAIS Homeowners manual to assist companies seeking
to convert from previous editions.
Also, two charts are provided that present policy
assembly information:
A "Frequently Asked Questions" section answers questions
some program users have regarding manual conversion.
July 18 is the deadline for insurers to provide
information to the Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA) on homeowners
and personal auto premium to be published in consumer rate comparison
guides.
In a recent
bulletin, the MIA provides Microsoft
Excel spreadsheets insurers are to use to indicate how much coverage
would cost under different "premium scenarios" (i.e., different amounts
of insurance, deductibles, territories, etc.).
