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Posts Tagged ‘personal risk management’

The International Risk Management Institute (IRMI) is regarded by many as the premier authority in providing expert advice and practical strategies for risk management, insurance, and legal professionals.  

I was honored when Robin Olson, the principal research analyst for IRMI’s Personal Risk Management and Insurance practice contacted me and asked me to provide a peer review for an article he was preparing for a leading insurance industry trade publication, The CPCU e Journal, published by the CPCU Society.  This 18 page white paper, Personal Lines Insurance Coverage Gaps – Analysis and Resolution, was written to educate insurance and risk management professionals, and offers very detailed insights into this very broad topic. 

While this article is surely not recommended late night reading, several insurance-geek friends of mine have called to congratulate me for my work being cited (on pages 2, 4, 7, 9, 16, 17 and 18) with the likes of Freakonomics authors Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner as a research source for this paper. 

Let me know if you actually read all 18 pages, and I will write a check to the charitable organization of your choice for your interest and efforts!  Meanwhile, please realize that if it takes 18 pages to educate insurance professionals on the common gaps in protection, then it requires a lot of close attention to many details for insurance professionals to design and manage a well crafted insurance program. 

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Co-authored by security experts Douglas R. Kane and Paul Michael Viollis, Sr., Ph.D. Silent Safety is a must read for those who provide counsel to affluent and highly affluent clients. Subtitled “Best Practices for Protecting the Affluent”, this great new book reminds us that as the financial crisis continues to make headlines, the hidden dangers facing many affluent families are often largely ignored. Despite the fact that significant wealth attracts considerable unwanted attention and exposure for many families, the appropriate countermeasures are often only implemented after costly, disruptive or embarrassing events unfold.  The authors offer many solutions to avoid this scenario.

The authors’ firm – Risk Control Strategies (RCS) – is a leading threat management, investigative and security consulting firm specializing in serving the affluent community, corporations and governmental agencies. Silent Safety serves as a personal security best-practices reference tool for affluent families and their trusted advisors. The book shines a spotlight on the many risks facing affluent families every day. Silent Safety provides pragmatic advice and strategic countermeasures that can be immediately deployed to contain a crisis, as well as recommendations to preemptively mitigate risk. This book will provide the reader with Risk Control Strategies’ proven methodology for protecting the wealthy and providing them with peace of mind.

To more closely examine the RCS suite of security services, visit their web site at www.riskcontrolstrategies.com  To request more information about Silent Safety, contact silentsafety@sandowmedia.com.

Finally, should you wish to meet with one of the partners of this fine firm, please contact me and I will arrange an introduction.

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 I’m often surprised by the number of wealthy families I meet who buy only “best in class” services and products, yet accept far less than this standard from the organizations that are responsible to manage their family’s healthcare experience.  While it often seems that we have little real control over the quality of our family’s healthcare experience, several new organizations are helping their members to receive far greater control than most would have imagined possible. 

PinnacleCare is one of a new breed of “private patient advocacy” service providers that empower their members to take back control of the entire healthcare experience.  PinnacleCare members receive efficient access to the finest healthcare experiences, expert guidance through the complex healthcare system and the assurance of leading the healthiest lives possible, whether at home or while traveling or living abroad. 

I’ve had the opportunity to meet with representatives of this fine organization, and urge all professional advisors serving HNW families to learn how this firm can help you and your clients.  Click this linkto access a video about PinnacleCare’s services, or this link to be directed to the section on their website that details the many membership options available.  

As always, feel welcome to contact me for a personal introduction to this firm, or a short list of other organizations with similar services, and a great article from the Wall Street Journal summarizing this topic.  

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It’s no coincidence — insurance carriers who have always invested heavily on advertising to attract new insurance buyers are spending even more to do so this year, and are attracting more buyers with what can best be described as a very compelling “save money now” message.  

Because the many differences between insurance policies are so difficult to evaluate, many consumers are too often enticed to prioritize lower premiums over the harder to discern quality of protection that is provided.  Informed consumers should seek assistance to closely examine HOW cost reductions are being achieved.  A reminder: although buying insurance coverage is not a lot different than other purchases, the axiom “you get what you pay for” usually only becomes apparent after a loss.  While the “save money now” pitch has short term appeal, the real question is at what cost down the road? 

My suggestion: rather than moving coverage to carriers whose central theme is “save money now”,  first explore the many opportunities to make high quality insurance coverage more cost efficient.  Professional risk advisors have a variety of strategies to help their clients structure quality insurance coverage that is also cost efficient.  One of the most overlooked strategies we offer our clients is described in this link to a one page summary

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Shocked MonopolyWith alarming frequency, the media reports heart wrenching stories of insurance consumers who have had a significant property or liability loss, only to learn after the loss that the insurance policy they have purchased does not provide the proper coverage.   

While the reasons for an uncovered loss vary, I provide this one page overview  that details the three leading causes for uncovered personal property and casualty losses, and the solutions that are available to help prevent them.  Why not help those you know to examine these solutions —- before a loss occurs.

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This summer several newspapers reported the results of studies documenting what we all know to be true: the use of cell phones while driving is dangerous.  Of course, there are many variables that increase or decrease risk, but the common perception that hands-free use of cell phones while driving is safe has been proven to be a myth.

I don’t offer this information with any great expectation that others will substantially change their use of cell phones while driving. BUT – after reading the research, I know I have been compelled to re-think my perception that my blue tooth enabled cell phone conversations while driving were a lot less risky.  They are risky, and research has proven that yours are as well.  I encourage you to  read the research provided in this great article and share it with those you care about. 

I knew someone who was involved in a very bad auto accident. He shared that the worst part of his long recuperation was knowing that he could have exercised greater precaution and avoided the accident altogether. He shared that while he was laying in the hospital, thankful to be alive, he remmbered the common practice in his youth of being able to “call for a do-over”, and how much he’d give to have a “do-over” .  Knowing real life does not provide us “do-overs”, I’ve instead decided to dramatically change how I use my cell phone while driving.

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No More Clutter !

No More Clutter !

 I am fortunate to have been asked to contribute an article by Private Asset Management, a publication of Institutional Investor that is focused exclusively on investment management, financial and advisory services to the high-net-worth arena, and especially on delivering breaking news before it appears anywhere else.   

While property and casualty related topics are not often covered by this fine publication, the editors have found that subscribers do have an interest in P&C topics that are both newsworthy and relevant to protecting the assets of high-net-worth clients. This brief article that I have authored explains how a simplified, effective and cost efficient coverage solution has been developed to replace the clutter, confusion and expense associated with the multiple insurance policies purchased by families who own valuable residences and personal possessions often located in several states.  Please contact me for more information about this innovative solution.

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ex pointIn this great article, Paul Sullivan, the Wealth Matters columnist for The New York Times, examines the many issues posed by the title: How Do I Know You’re Not Bernie Madoff?

With a close understanding of the heightened desire among affluent and high net worth insurance consumers to better vet who they are doing business with, Ace Private Risk Services has introduced an outsourced background screening service for financial advisors and contractors (in addition to domestic staff). While I have not yet “vetted” the firm they will be using to perform the “vetting”, the firm’s web site includes a reference from a former U.S. President. Click here to read a press release  offering details of this new service, or contact me for more information.

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simplify4For families (especially multi-generational families) who own many residences in different states, it can be overwhelming trying to keep track of all the insurance coverage protecting each home, every outbuilding, and the personal contents and valuables located in each residence.

NOW: imagine replacing those many policies with a single “Family Blanket Policy” that aggregates the various forms of coverage provided by each of the policies currently covering all of an extended family’s residences, outbuildings, and personal possessions.  Of course, to be viable this innovative solution would need to provide world class coverage and claims service, and be backed by a carrier with superior financial stabilityInsurance, simplified: this innovative new solution exemplifies the benefits of “less is more”.

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missing-piece1…there is an insurance solution, if you know where to look (and who to ask). Meanwhile, I’m often surprised to meet prospective clients who have been told by other insurance brokers “there’s no coverage available”.  In the vast insurance marketplace, that is rarely the case!

With a great deal of turmoil in the financial marketplace, we’ve been asked to secure insurance coverage for a wide range of risks labeled “uninsurable” by other brokers. While the choices may be few, we can likely secure or direct you on how to secure insurance protection for even the most unusual risks.

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