This page includes general updates regarding the Commercial General Liability Insurance and Directors and Officers Liability Insurance for the participating FMCBC Member Clubs. Please note that the coverage territory for FMCBC's current policy is for Canada only and the FMCBC is working on having this extended to the US as per our previous policy.
February 2012 The FMCBC has recently negotiated through our broker at Integro to reduce the guest fee to better reflect the risk posed by non-member guests on club sanctioned trips. Based on numbers provided by the clubs last fall the FMCBC calculated that 8% of trip participants for our clubs are guests and suggested changing the guest fee from a $6 per guest charge to a premium based on 8% of our membership. Our insurer has agreed to this which means a reduction from a possible $4100 charge for 2011-2012 (based on estimated numbers provided by clubs) to a much lower $1100 premium for all guests. With this change, there is no longer a need for clubs to collect a $6 fee from guests, but the $1100 premium will need to be covered and the committee is discussing how best to handle this for 2011-2012. For 2012-2013 the guest premium will be covered by a $.50 increase in dues from $6/member to $6.50/member. This brings us back to the same rate as 2010-2011. The committee will be having a meeting with our broker from Integro, Mathew Binkle on February 22nd to discuss our policy for 2012-2013 and how we can incorporate US Coverage for clubs who are seeking this coverage. November 2011 A revised incident reporting form which clubs can now use instead of the one originally supplied by Integro is now available. Either form is fine to use, but this one is a simplified version. People should be encouraged to fill it in as completely as possible if an incident should occur and we suggest that a few copies be kept in the first aid kit used for club trips.
The Incident Reporting Form is to be used for any significant incident, injury, etc. which occurs during a club sanctioned trip or event and which could result in an insurance claim. Any situation where significant first aid, or a doctor or hospital visit is required would require a form to be submitted to the FMCBC. If in doubt, please fill out the form and then contact the FMCBC for clarification. Please mail completed forms to PO Box 19673, Vancouver, BC, V5T 4E7 or email to admin.manager@mountainclubs.org. Please keep a copy for your records.
September 2011
Email sent on August 30th to all FMCBC Directors of Clubs who participate in FMCBC's CGL insurance:
Under our previous Commercial General Liability (CGL) Insurance Policy, guests were allowed on up to three trips before needing to purchase liability insurance. With our new Policy (effective May 1st, 2011) our member clubs are now required to collect (or pay from club funds) $6 per guest from the very first trip and which is good for the length of the policy (until April 30th 2012). This is not the FMCBC’s preferred system as it makes work for our member clubs, but it is a condition set out by our Insurer because we hold a group policy (not individual policies) and every participant is required to be insured. This payment will only be required one time per guest and will cover him/her on all your club sanctioned trips until the FMCBC renews its policy on May 1st, 2012 at which time all members will renew and guest coverage will expire.
In order to administer this policy without requiring that clubs make multiple payments throughout the year, the FMCBC will reconcile with the clubs in March, 2012 and guests will be counted at that time. Clubs should keep a list of all guests and submit this list with their membership list in March. Once each club has submitted their total number of members and guests for the year the FMCBC will perform a search for duplicate payments (people who are members of more than one club and have paid insurance dues more than once), will subtract this amount from the club’s total owing for the year and invoice the club accordingly if any payment is due. Conversely, if a club has overpaid for the year, the amount will be deducted from the club’s insurance dues for the following year.
Our recommendation is to keep track of the names of all guests (you should already have this information from your waivers) and then pay for these guests out of club funds in March. For smaller clubs this might not be a feasible option and actually collecting the fee at the time of the trip might be the best way to ensure your club has the funds to cover these additional people at the end of the year. If your club decides to go this route (charging $6 directly to your guests), the FMCBC has developed a guest form which you can use. This guest form explains the reason for the $6 fee and the benefit of having the insurance coverage. If your club decides to pay for guests out if its own funds this form is not needed. If you use the form please tear off the bottom piece and give it to your guests as a receipt and a way to contact me if they have any questions.
Now for some backtracking: Please count all guests who have participated in a club sanctioned trip since May 1, 2011 when submitting your information in March. Due to the delay in producing this New Guest Policy Procedure, the FMCBC will try to assist its clubs with any guest insurance payments between May 1st, 2011 and August 31st, 2011. We will work with each club to make this as smooth a transition as possible and will try to establish a better scenario in the future.
REMINDER: In addition to paying insurance dues and recording guests, guests must sign a waiver to participate on a club sanctioned trip. Please be sure that this happens, that the guest has time to read the waiver and that all waivers are stored for a minimum of five years.
Thanks!
Jodi Appleton Administrative Manager FMCBC August 2011 Waivers for all clubs have been approved with the exception of those clubs who were using the Sports Underwriters waiver. These clubs have been supplied with a general waiver from our Insurer which they should use instead. Jodi and Monika will be working with Robert Kennedy on the Universal Waiver this Fall. With our new CGL Insurance policy, guests are required by our Insurer to pay into FMCBC's coverage ($6) from their very first trip (our previous policy included 3 free trips before having to pay). Jodi is drafting a Guest Policy to assist clubs with this new system. The FMCBC does not expect or want payment throughout the year for guests who participate on a club sanctioned trip, but we do need our member clubs to well document these guests and have them sign a waiver. All outstanding funds for guests will be reconciled in March. Another requirement of our Insurer is to have all incidents (injury/damage to person or property) recorded and submitted to our broker. Our broker supplied us with an Incident Reporting Form which many people have commented on is too complicated so Jodi and the Insurance Committee are in the process of revising the form. A new Incident Reporting Form should be ready for all clubs in early September. The Insurance Committee will also begin work on the FMCBC's Risk Management Program as recommended to us by our broker. During the process the committee will be requesting input from clubs participating in FMCBC's CGL Insurance policy regarding best practices for safety. For Club and Member information, the following activities are covered by our current policy: · Hiking - on and off trail (see Note 1) · Snowshoeing - on and off trail (see Note 1) · Water Sports (non-motorized) – Kayaking, canoeing (no grade two or greater), boats (under 9 metres) · Climbing - indoor, wall, rock, ice, alpine, sport and mountain · Backpacking - overnight and multi-day; on and off trail (see Note 1) · Bicycling (non-motorized) – day and multi-day; woodland trail, gravel and paved road tours · Mountain Biking - unpaved forestry, paved roads, park roads, trails · Backcountry skiing, backcountry snowboarding and touring (see Note 2) · Cross country skiing · Horseback riding on marked trails · Mountaineering – glacier travel, rock, snow, ice and mixed, roped and unroped (see Note 2) · Trail building, clearing and maintenance on Federal and Provincial Parks, Crown Lands and Private Lands · Building, maintaining and operating backcountry huts for member and non-member use · Club organized instructional programs or skill refresher programs (see Note 3) · Trail or climbing route guidebooks · Club socials and meetings Note 1: These activities occur in a wide range of environments, including but not limited to, wilderness, mountains, urban and rural areas, coast, within and outside of parks, within and outside controlled recreation areas. Note 2: These activities typically occur in mountainous and wilderness terrain, often remote, and outside of controlled recreation areas. Chairlifts, helicopter and fixed wing aircraft are sometimes used for the limited purpose of access but in all other respects the activity is self-propelled. Note 3: Instructors can range from volunteer members, guides or certified or professional instructors
June 2011 On the morning of June 22nd, Monika Bittel and Jodi Appleton met with Lawyer, Robert Kennedy and Paralegal, Carol Metzner of Farris, Vaughan, Wills and Murphy LLP who have volunteered their time to guide the FMCBC in developing a Universal Waiver. Robert has had much experience in developing waivers and offered advice and tips on how to create a waiver that will protect the FMCBC and its member clubs, trip leaders and volunteers. Over the next several weeks Jodi will work with Robert on developing a draft waiver which reflects club activities and situations. There is much work to be done, but once completed this Universal waiver will be a useful resource developed by the FMCBC to protects its clubs and make its Risk Management Program a strong one. On the afternoon of June 22nd, Jodi Appleton, Brian Wood and Scott Webster met with Insurance Broker, Mathew Binkle and Senior Associate, Irene Bymoen to discuss FMCBC's current Commercial General Liability policy and how it could be improved in the future to better meet the needs of FMCBC's member clubs. The discussion was very open and the FMCBC was advised to work on developing its Risk Management Program over the next several months to put the organization in a better position to secure a policy that will cover all the needs of its member clubs. The FMCBC will begin work on this immediately, including the development of a Universal Waiver, and will be canvassing clubs for input during the process. Mathew is still looking for a market which will provide the FMCBC with liability coverage in the US and he understands the importance of obtaining this coverage for the FMCBC. This meeting enabled him to have a better understanding of the needs of the FMCBC and its history in trying to find a policy that works for all clubs, but is still within a reasonable budget. Mathew and Irene also recommended moving the Directors and Officers Insurance brokerage over to Integro which the FMCBC will do, but the Insurer (Royal and SunAlliance) will remain the same - only the broker will change and Mathew has provided a standard letter for the FMCBC to use to make this brokerage change. May 2011
The FMCBC Insurance Committee has now accepted on behalf of the FMCBC and its member clubs the Proposal for Commercial General Liability Insurance put forward by Integro Insurance Brokers in March 2011. Integro came through with the most comprehensive policy including Accident/Medical Coverage, coverage for all FMCBC member clubs’ activities and excluding warranties which would terminate the policy which was a major concern with the policy held last year with Capri Insurance.
Please note that for 2011/2012 the FMCBC's Directors and Officers coverage will continue to be through Capri Insurance.
IMPORTANT: The one item that Integro was unable to negotiate with the Insurance Company was CGL coverage in the USA. The FMCBC is currently working with Integro to see if it is possible to get USA coverage added, but please be aware that the CGL coverage through Integro is for Canada only at this time.
The FMCBC is currently negotiating whether club waivers will be sufficient for the Insurer or if a universal waiver provided by us or the Insurer will need to be signed by everyone. We will keep everyone posted on the results of these negotiations.
As soon as the FMCBC receives the policy a copy will be sent out to all participating clubs. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact Jodi.
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