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Target Markets Program Administrators Association Program administrators The role of property and casualty insurance agencies in the relatively new program administration arena is to develop and market innovative programs through independent insurance agents and brokers to clients with particular needs. So says C.T. Kelly, president of the Abilene, Texas-based CIC Insurance Brokers, Inc. CIC’s area of specialization is the staffing industry throughout the United States. Included in that industry are temporary employees—those employed on an hourly basis and those on employee leasing arrangements. The agency’s package of coverages includes property, general liability, employee dishonesty bonds, and errors and omissions, as well as umbrella coverages, employment practices liability and workers compensation. “We are not a general business wholesaler,” insists Kelly. “We are program administrators, and the program administrator’s role is to put together a specific policy that covers the unique exposures for specific industries. Today, the term ‘program administrator’ has become widely accepted in the property and casualty insurance community, not only in the U.S. but overseas as well. Program administration has taken on a global aspect, with firms from London seeking to join the Target Markets Program Administrators Association. One reason for that is that the Association has accomplished what it set out to do—provide much-needed information to its members, specifically about program business. Networking opportunities abound, and that means the sharing of ideas for open discussion. Agency members of Target Markets bring a great deal to the table in that respect,” says Kelly. Gary Rimler, president of the risk management division for the Las Vegas-based FirsTier General Agency, Inc., says that agencies are the “architects” in designing and developing programs that are to be fulfilled by carriers and vendors. “Agencies identify the need for, and concept of, particular programs and then set out in the marketplace to create that coverage,” says Rimler. “Sometimes, the concept for a program is developed from a particular niche or specialty,” he says. Some of the programs that FirsTier offers are employment practices liability insurance, directors and officers, medical professional liability, lawyers professional liability and technology professional liability. “The whole concept of the program administration business centers on the creation and administration of insurance coverages for unique exposures,” Rimler explains. Consistency, longevity and profitability should be the hallmark of agencies operating in the program administration arena, according to Ben Francavilla, senior managing director for American Program Underwriters (AmPro), based in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. “With our focus on results, we have been able to administer programs that have exhibited longevity even in the face of volatile market conditions,” he says. “AmPro has been able to provide profitable returns to our carrier partners while, at the same time, providing our retail brokers with expertise and competitive insurance proposals in a variety of niche markets.” Andrew Potash, chairman of The Distinguished Programs Group, sums up the role of the agency in the program administration scenario this way: “When I think about our role as program managers, I ask myself why insurers would outsource their underwriting. It can only be because professional program managers provide expertise and focus in an area where an insurer doesn’t have resources in-house. Even where they do have in-house resources, we often complement or add to them by providing an additional distribution strategy that allows them to build market share faster.” * |
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