News & Links

by
Curt Pearsall, CPCU, AIAF, CPIA
President – Pearsall Associates, Inc. and Consultant to the Utica National E&O Program

There are many agencies that have not experienced an errors and omissions (E&O) claim in the last 10 years. Does that mean they are a good agency from an E&O standpoint? It certainly speaks to the fact that they must be doing some things well.

Unfortunately, many of those agencies seem to feel they are immune and that an E&O claim will never happen to them. And then one day, a lawyer shows up at their office and presents them with a summons and complaint. That is when they possibly discover that they were not as good as they thought.

When they look at the allegations being made against them by their client, typically the agency will discover that the claim could have been avoided or, at a minimum, the agency could have built a more solid defense to increase their chances of prevailing on the E&O matter.

When it comes to E&O, relying on luck is definitely not suggested. It is best to have some element of an E&O loss prevention program in place. Some agencies may feel that developing a strong E&O prevention program is an overwhelming task, so they do nothing. A better approach would be to start by designing and implementing a plan. Then, every year look to strengthen the program by adding new loss prevention measure or building upon the ones already in place. Read More...

Lauren Pachman

In a major win for PIA National and small-business insurance agencies across the country, final regulations were issued on Friday, January 18, by the U.S. Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) saying that, for the most part, insurance agents are permitted to take the 20 percent pass-through deduction provided by the tax law passed at the end of 2017. Specifically, the regulations state that “insurance cannot be considered a financial service” for the purpose of taking the 20 percent pass-through tax deduction.

PIA National lobbied for the passage of the tax bill at the end of 2017 largely because of its improved treatment of S corporations, also known as pass-through corporations. After the bill was signed into law, however, it soon became clear that the law was ambiguous as to the application of the pass-through provision to insurance agents. There was the possibility that the owners of independent insurance agencies who file as S corporations might not be able to take advantage of the deduction created by the law. PIA National immediately sprang into action, meeting with congressional offices to ask that they weigh in with the administration on behalf of agents. PIA National provided comments to Treasury and the IRS encouraging them to issue a regulation that would clarify agents’ opportunity to take advantage of the pass-through provision.

The final regulations state that specified service trades or businesses, including “financial services,” are not permitted to take the deduction. These final regulations state that, in general, “financial services” do not include insurance, and therefore that insurance agents are permitted to take the deduction. This interpretation supports PIA National’s position on this issue.

Please note, however, that Treasury and the IRS declined to issue a categorical exclusion of all services provided by insurance agents from the definition of “financial services,” because they recognized that some agents do engage in activities (such as managing wealth, advising clients with respect to finances, etc.) that are considered “financial services” for the purpose of this law. Those agents engaged in activities that are classified as “financial services” pursuant to the tax law are not eligible for the deduction.

The timing of the final rule makes it possible for pass-through entities to take advantage of the deduction in their 2018 tax filings.

Below you will also find a list of map information services that the Guilford County Planning and Development Department provides. All inquiries can be directed to Frank Park, the Floodplain Administrator at 336-641-3753.

Guilford County will assist in finding the following information:
• Whether the property is in an SFHA.
• The community number.
• The panel number and suffix.
• The date of the FIRM’s index (cover panel)
• The FIRM zone e.g., A, C, X, V, AE, A2, AO etc.
• The base flood elevation (the depth in AO Zones) where shown on the FIRM.
• The elevation datum used on the FIRM, if other than the NGVD.
• Any historical information about the property that we may have.
• Any information about streams and wetlands on the property.

More information is available at:

Guilford County Floodplain Management: http://www.myguilford.com/planning-and-development/watershed-protectionstormwater-management/floodplain-management/
National Flood Insurance Program: www.floodsmart.gov
NC Flood Insurance Rate Maps: http://fris.nc.gov/fris/Home.aspx?ST=NC
FEMA: https://www.fema.gov/national-flood-insurance-program

If you have any questions or comments please free to contact me at 336-641-5565 or Frank Park, Floodplain Administrator at 336-641-3753.