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2018 Agent Study reveals the level of satisfaction with insurers, and how producers perceive the quality of commercial carriers. In 2017, NU forged an alliance with the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) and Flaspöhler | NMG to conduct the inaugural Independent Agent Study — a research project designed to annually take the pulse of independent Property & Casualty insurance agents throughout the U.S. and provide revealing insight into the demographics, books of business and challenges they face, and reveal their most highly rated carrier partners. Today, we look at the findings around how respondents rate their level of satisfaction with their commercial P&C carrier partners, and the various criteria by which producers perceive the quality of those commercial carriers. When asked what indications of quality they value most in a commercial P&C carrier, 64.3% of our study respondents said “ease of doing business,” which was the No. 1 response. That was followed by “fair, timely claims handling” (46.1%) and “strong, knowledgeable underwriting” (38.7%) “superior customer service” (37.4%) and “consistent underwriting” (36.5%). What do those numbers reveal? That independent agents want to serve their clients quickly, effectively and with minimum agony. Carriers would do well to consider in their own workflows what can be done to better facilitate meeting those goals. When asked to rate their overall level of satisfaction with the commercial carriers they use, 36.8% of respondents said they were “very satisfied” while 52.5% said they were “somewhat satisfied.” While only a small percentage openly said they were unsatisfied, that “somewhat satisfied” segment warrants further listening by carriers. Food for thought: What can be done on both sides to improve those relationships? Flaspöhler has long conducted its own larger annual study of agents (the Flaspöhler | NMG Producer Study) on behalf of key P&C carriers, which use the results to help them best meet agent needs. The data included in the study featured in NU and on PropertyCasualty360.com this month are extracted from Flaspöhler’s larger research study (upward of 300 pages), which the firm makes available to rated P&C commercial lines carriers. (Contact [email protected] for more information.) https://www.propertycasualty360.com/2018/03/12/are-agents-really-that-satisfied-with-their-pc-car

The state auditor says he wants Medicaid providers to insure that they’ll do the work the state is paying them for by putting up some money to prove it. He’s backing a bill that he says will help the state recover money spent on fraudulent payments. Auditor Dave Yost said in December that his team found overpayments to 133 Medicaid providers since 2011 that added up to nearly $35.7 million with interest – and that more than 90 percent of that money hasn’t been paid back. Yost said he wants professional Medicaid providers to have to acquire surety bonds as insurance to back their work. “Indiana, Texas, Florida and New York already use an approach like this, and we think Ohio needs to do this too,” Yost said. Transportation and home health care agencies would be required to secure $50,000 surety bonds, and home health aides $10,000 bonds. The bill would also require Medicaid providers to complete certification before payment. Yost said most overpayments are the result of insufficient documentation or uncertified care. http://wvxu.org/post/auditor-wants-surety-bonds-medicaid-providers-saying-most-overpayments-dont-get-paid-back#stream/0

The state’s budding cannabis industry gets a push in the right direction via a new surety bond issuance. The cannabis industry continues to struggle for recognition in the U.S., even as more enlightened policies in Canada have tilted the competitive advantage in that country’s favor. But a new surety bond approval from the California Department of Insurance is giving the state’s cannabis industry a push in the right regulatory direction. The department approved a surety bond issuance from Continental Heritage Insurance Co. Continental is also offering surety bonds to licensed cannabis businesses in Ohio. Surety bonds provide cannabis industry players of a way to make sure they can can comply with relevant regulations. For instance, if a company’s product was contaminated, the bond would allow the company to cover costs of destroying or otherwise disposing of the product. Such material could not just be thrown in the trash. In the case of California, the insurance regulator department appears aggressive in its support for the cannabis industry — and making sure it’s properly insured. When it comes to U.S. cannabis businesses, Canada has a competitive edge as medical marijuana is legal at the federal level, and recreational use will likely be legalized this year. Consequently, institutional capital is flowing into Canadian cannabis businesses. Last year liquor company Constellation Brands (STZ – Get Report) invested more than $200 million in a cannabis company, and another company set its self up for the $1 billion acquisition of CanniMed Therapeutics Inc. that was funded partially by a large PIPE transaction. California’s position may create a conflict with the federal’s government’s hostile policy changes on cannabis as delineated by attorney general Jeff Sessions, but that may not be a problem at the moment in the Golden State. The federal government in the U.S. has been known to alternate between passive and aggressive policies on cannabis enforcement. This regulatory uncertainty is one of the factors that makes institutional investment in the industry highly problematic. “Californians voted to legalize the adult-use of cannabis in 2016 and the medical use of cannabis in 1996,” a California Department of Insurance spokesperson told the TheStreet. “The department will continue to encourage insurers to write cannabis insurance products for the cannabis industry.” They added, “Moreover, as long as the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment is in effect, which it is until March 23, the federal government cannot use federal funds to prosecute state-compliant medical cannabis businesses.” The insurance department has its own goals. “Cannabis businesses should have insurance coverage available to them just like any other California business,” Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones said in a Feb. 21 news statement. “As Insurance Commissioner, my mission is insurance protection for all Californians, which includes insurance for California’s legalized cannabis businesses. I encourage more insurance companies to file cannabis business insurance products with the department to meet the needs of this emerging market.” It remains to be seen how much of a conflict will develop between California and the U.S. federal government. https://www.thestreet.com/story/14501469/1/cannabis-surety-bond-hits-the-market.html