HomeMy WebLinkAboutMMIA Risk Management Bulletin (3)I MMIA
Montana Municipal Insurance Authority
PO Box 6669
Helena, MT 59604-6669
Please distribute to all appropriate personnel and post in a conspicuous place.
From:
John D. Craig -
Property Program Manager
Re:
February 9, 2006
To: Property Program Membership
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#09-06
Scheduling of Joint Ownership Property
Have you noticed how complicated public service is becoming? Municipalities have
moved from a daily struggle to an all out fight for survival and success. One case in
point is a trend to manage shrinking budgets through joint ownership of property. It
makes good sense to share in the utility of properties and their associated expenses,
but often lost in the complexity of these arrangements is the coverage for loss to peril.
This year's Property Program Renewal brought a unique discovery. Many communities
have scheduled jointly owned property. While this is a legitimate action and protects
their insurable interests, in-depth investigation often reveals a lack of mutual agreement
between the ownership parties. In the hustle to get the deal done, formal agreements
were not crafted. A handshake or phone call was good enough and no one followed up
to document the basic understandings of the deal. Personnel changed, institutional
memory was lost, and suddenly inefficiency creeps back in. These jointly owned
properties became double insured (costing everyone more than it should) or not insured
at all. In many cases, without an agreement, no one knows how to fix it.
Sound like someone else's problem? Well before you dismiss it, think about your
relationships with libraries, airports, drug taskforces, law enforcement centers/jailsl 911
and emergency response systems, rentals and leases, storage and records
management. There are a lot of ways to become jointly involved.
So how does one simplify and get back to basics? We probably can't, but we can avoid
future confusion with simple written agreements that spell out each party's
responsibility. If we all take a few of our precious moments to formally organize these
responsibilities, we can avoid loosing hours and days when, and if, there is a loss of
these properties. As always, the time for surprise is not after a loss.
Call if you have questions (800) 635-3089. We may be able to help with sample
agreements or discussions of past experience.
published as a service to our members. The articles are not a substitute for the Memorandum of Liability Coverage or other coverage
documents. All coverage determinations am made on a case-by-case basis, and can only be viewed on the unique facts of the claim presented.