SFM Agent Agenda

We have totally redesigned the SFM Agent Agenda, using feedback from you and your peers as our guide. Your comments are welcome. Please email us.   — Editor

In 2010, SFM served a record-high 15,013 employers in its five core states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota, including insureds and self-insureds.

That represents solid growth in SFM's customer base and generated $109 million in written premium.

In addition, SFM began servicing employers insured by the Minnesota Assigned Risk Plan.

94 percent of SFM's policyholders renewed in 2010, sustaining SFM's consistently high performance over the years in retaining policyholders.

"SFM's high customer retention is a measure of strong customer satisfaction, and we're proud of that. We continue to be strong despite the soft market and difficult economic conditions. We know we can count on you, our agents, to work with us, and we thank you for being our partner. We are looking forward to working with you and to a strong 2011," Steve Sandilla, SFM vice president, Strategic Business Operations, said.

New policyholders
SFM welcomed 2,765 new policyholders. They accounted for nearly $22 million in premium, including $3 million in premium from former policyholders returning to SFM.

Charges were up 7 percent, continuing the sharp trend that has produced a 32 percent increase in charges against employers over the past four years.

The fastest-growing charges are disability discrimination and employer retaliation, up 62 and 61 percent in four years.

Charges of disability discrimination rose a steep 17 percent in 2010 alone. That follows recent federal legislation making it easier for employees to claim they are disabled.

Employer retaliation, now the most frequent charge and growing fast nationally, tends to be easier to establish before juries and results in higher settlements than most other allegations of discrimination, according to analysts.

Legal defense costs are high
Most cases against employers go no further than arbitration or administrative hearing. In those early stages of the legal process, legal defense costs typically run $22,400 to $40,500.

One of roughly every 10 cases against employers reaches a pre-trial settlement or goes to trial, generating employer expenses that typically run well above $200,000.

Smaller firms are target
The continuing sharp rise in charges is of special concern to small businesses. More than half of employment practices lawsuits are against small businesses, which may be more vulnerable than larger firms due to lack of dedicated human resource professionals and formalized employment practices.

Market opportunities
As an agent, you are encouraged to discuss the growing risks of employment practices with your small business clients and to recommend employment practices liability coverage through SFM. SFM's EPL coverage is designed for small businesses and is easily available as an endorsement to the SFM workers' compensation policy.

Combining EPL coverage with workers' compensation under SFM provides advantages. For instance, when an employee files a claim, whether for workers' compensation or employment discrimination, the two risks can easily interconnect and produce a more complex situation. SFM's expertise helps significantly in managing and resolving the larger scope of interconnected issues to produce lower overall cost to the employer. This is additional value that SFM brings to employers and their agents.

Sales resources

• EPL quote. Take advantage of the EPL quote that SFM sends to you as part of the workers' compensation policy renewal for small business accounts. The quote includes basic talking points on EPL. Pricing starts as low as $26 per employee.
• EPL sales sheet. This is a more extensive one-page walk-through piece you can use to discuss EPL with your client. Order copies in SFM's Resource Catalog by typing "EPL" into the search box.
• Website. Direct clients to the EPL Coverage page in the Employers section of SFM's website. This includes a new EPL resource center offering a legal hotline telephone number, employee training modules, model employment handbook policies and other useful employment resources for small businesses, available at no charge as part of SFM's EPL coverage package.

Use SAM
You can easily add the EPL endorsement when you are submitting the workers' compensation policy online through SFM Application Manager.

Questions
If you have questions about employment practices liability coverage, email us.

SFM requires agents to provide signed election or rejection forms at the inception of the initial policy period stating the policyholder's intent regarding election or rejection of coverage. Additionally, any time a change is to be made to the election or rejection decision, a subsequent form must be signed and submitted to SFM.

Download forms from SFM's website.

New and upgraded features of CompOnline will give users the ability to:

• Customize their workers' compensation loss analysis and management reports.
• Sign up for email alerts on changes in claims status or reserves.
• View current claims activity in a convenient dashboard overview.

Among the features redesigned for ease of use and enhanced options:

• Sign up to receive periodic reports on the organization's loss trends and loss history.
• Manage claims by location.
• Track progress on specific claims.
• Access prior First Reports of Injury.
• Look up policy and premium information.

The new version of CompOnline is expected to be released in the second quarter.

Enhancements were made based on policyholder feedback. The new loss runs will be more applicable to the size of business. For example, detailed loss runs will be sent to large employers with multiple claims, while small employers with few claims will receive a more basic loss run for ease of use.

Agents are encouraged to use the loss runs as a risk management tool. Agents can subscribe to receive client loss runs through CompOnline®. Questions, please contact your SFM underwriter at (800) 937-1181.

Agencies bound more than 1,600 new policies through SAM, accounting for more than $6.7 million in premium.

The number of policies submitted through SFM's online system accounted for nearly half of all applications submitted to SFM in 2010.

Premium on business submitted through SAM ranged from minimum premium to more than $300,000.

SFM encourages agents to submit business of all types and sizes through SAM.

SAM enables agents to quote and bind policies, preview pricing, fine-tune the quote, attach supporting documents, and communicate with the underwriter. Learn more about SAM.

The webinar, "Responding to work injuries," is set for 11 a.m., Wednesday, April 27.

The free webinar is designed especially for new SFM policyholders or claims coordinators new to handling workers' compensation claims in their organization.

SFM claims and legal experts will walk policyholders through their responsibilities in handling and reporting work injuries, and practices that save time and expense. A question-and-answer session follows.

SFM clients can register online.

SFM, which handled 1,816 lost-time claims during the 12-month period, ranked No. 1 in prompt action among all Minnesota insurers with more than 250 claims.

SFM's consistently high performance over the years reflects its responsiveness on claims from when they are reported on through to their resolution, ultimately helping control claim costs.

The annual state report tracks insurers' timeliness in paying or denying lost-time claims within the statutory 14-day period.

The Independent Insurance Agents of Wisconsin convention is scheduled for May 11-12, Wisconsin Dells, Wis.

SFM also looks forward to talking with agents at its exhibit booth.

If you can't make the event, consider being an event sponsor.

This is a major fundraiser for the Foundation, now in its third year of providing higher education scholarships to children of parents injured or killed on the job. The Foundation awards scholarships of up to $5,000 per year to each student, renewable for up to five years.

Janelle Krainz, senior marketing underwriter, has six years of workers' compensation experience. She also holds the CPCU designation and is working toward completing her CIC.

Pam Stenfors, medical-only claims representative, has 14 years' experience managing claims. The addition of a medical-only claims adjuster increases SFM's local service presence.

Both Krainz and Stenfors work out of the Brookfield area.

SFM Senior Defense Counsel Kathleen Bray is scheduled to present "A practical ethics session for the workers' compensation attorney" at the Minnesota State Bar Association's Workers' Compensation Institute in April.

Her presentation includes handling potential conflicts of interest and what's permissible in investigations.

Senior Defense Counsel John Hollick is scheduled to present on handling construction claims.

Strengthening loss prevention, reinvigorating safety committees, and "Hunt for the red elbow" relating to ergonomics are among the topics to be presented by SFM Loss Prevention Specialists Joe Morin, Luke Sammon and Gary Kaurala at the Minnesota Safety Council's Safety and Health Conference.

The conference is scheduled for May 11-13 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.