The Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency, a leading national provider of Errors &
Omissions insurance to Real Estate Agents, Appraisers, Accountants, Attorneys
and other professionals, announces an exciting new feature to its acclaimed
website www.landy.com. The new POLICY MANAGER system allows both Landy
Agency clients, as well as insurance producers for the Agency, to obtain renewal
applications, in force declaration pages and policies and more, directly from its
website. Currently available for Real Estate Agents & Brokers and Real Estate
Appraiser policy holders, POLICY MANAGER’s availability will soon be broadened
for access to Accountants’ policy information as well.
The Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency, in operation since 1949, is known for
exceptional service and the POLICY MANAGER system enhances Landy’s “ease of
doing business” reputation.
“With the POLICY MANAGER feature of our website, we are giving our clients
and producers a quick and easy way to obtain important documents when they
need them”, states Betsy A. Magnuson, President of the Landy Agency. “We have
always focused on ways to provide quality insurance services in the most effective
way. Today’s professionals require quick and efficient methods to run their
businesses, and we believe the POLICY MANAGER system offers this additional
level of service.”
For more information about the POLICY MANAGER or the Herbert H. Landy
Insurance Agency, call 800-336-5422 or visit www.landy.com.
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June 2-3: John Torvi attending and exhibiting at the New Jersey Society of CPA’s Annual Conference in Atlantic City
June 7-8: John Torvi attending and exhibiting at the CA Society of CPA’s Annual Conference in LA.
June 18: John Torvi attending and sponsoring the NH Assoc. for Justice Annual meeting and Dinner in Concord, NH.
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Thank you to all of our friends and clients, as well as REALTOR association partners, who visited theLandy Agency booth at the National Association of Realtors Mid Year Conference in Washington, DC last week. We appreciate your support! We also look forward to assisting all the many Real Estate agents & brokers who are considering choosing the Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency for their Errors & Omissions insurance
Pictured are Kathy Exson, Second Vice President at GenStar, and John Torvi, Director of Marketing & Sales at Landy.
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We are pleased to announce that The Landy Insurance Agency has been chosen as the Official Affinity Partner for the New Hampshire Association for Justice, to provide their members with Lawyers Professional Liability insurance. We thank the NHAJ for this honor and look forward to working with them.
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On this edition of The Landy Law Letter, host John L. Torvi, from the Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency of Needham, Massachusetts welcomes Dan Reed, Second Vice President of Travelers Bond & Financial Products, Professional Liability and Joe Schmitt, Managing Director of Travelers Bond & Financial Products Claim, to discuss the latest in Risk Management. The discussion centers around risk management techniques for attorneys and law firms that can help an attorney to try to prevent legal malpractice claims and result in better practice management.
Click here to listen to the Podcast.
Special thanks to Legal Talk Network for helping with this Podcast.
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What Lawyers Should Look for in Liability Insurance
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Margit Batchelor reached the 25th Anniversary milestone as an employee of the Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency on February 19, 2010. We all know Margit is the Manager of our Accountants Professional Liability program, but read on to find out more about her life outside the Agency.
Margit – The Early Years
Margit was born in Demmin, a small town in Northern Germany – the younger of two daughters in the Schneider household. The family soon escaped the Russian-occupied portion of Germany. Margit grew up in West Berlin, where her insurance career began. She attended an educational program for bank and insurance professionals, apprenticed with an insurance company, and graduated with the German equivalent of the American CPCU designation.
Berlin was an exciting place to be, but the surrounding wall made Margit dream of the world beyond. In 1972, she emigrated to Toronto, Canada. There, she initially worked as a personal lines underwriter for Kemper Insurance, followed by a position as reinsurance underwriter for Munich Reinsurance. In 1979 Margit married Frank Batchelor from Pittsburgh, and they moved to Seattle, where Margit quickly found a position with a reinsurance broker. Their first daughter Kristina was born in 1981. Frank’s job took the family to Wellesley, MA in 1982, where they still reside. In 1986 daughter Andrea was born, but prior to that, another life-altering event took place!
Margit Joins the Landy Agency
Margit decided to return to work after an extended maternal leave. She met Betsy Magnuson, who directed her to Herbert Landy, Betsy’s father. The Landy Agency was very small at that time and did not really have a job opening. However, Mr. Landy was very kind and hired Margit to work in the agency’s licensing department. Within weeks, she switched to underwriting prospects for Accountants Professional Liability – and hasn’t stopped since. She worked her way up to the Underwriting Manager position for the Accountants Program and truly enjoys her work, especially the daily interaction with clients and producers nationwide.
The biggest changes she has seen over the years are the amazing advancements in technology, as well as the agency’s growth.
Margit – Today and Tomorrow
Margit enjoys being part of her daughters’ lives and visiting family in Toronto and Pittsburgh. Frank is an accomplished trombone player, and both take pleasure in his traditional jazz band concerts and working out on the dance floor. They spend the occasional weekend in Vermont, enjoying craft fairs and the great restaurants there. Margit and Frank love to travel and have managed to cover much of Europe, the US, New Zealand and Australia over the years.
Retirement is not on the “to do” list yet – although – spending time on hobbies would be terrific!
We are all fortunate to enjoy her friendly spirit and dedication here at the Landy Agency. The next time you see her, take a minute to congratulate her and offer your good wishes for the future.
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The many consequences from the current economic downturn have impacted all aspects of the real estate profession. Real Estate Appraisers have not escaped this and are experiencing significant changes in how they conduct business. New (and constantly evolving) regulations from the FHA, HVCC guidelines and the changing relationships with appraisal management companies are forcing Real Estate Appraisers to reevaluate ways to successfully run their businesses. Another important issue impacted by all of this is insurance, and specifically errors and omissions insurance for Appraisers. Significant increases in claims activity have resulted in some insurers dropping this line of coverage altogether. Tighter underwriting guidelines and premium increases from most other insurance companies have made it more difficult for some Appraisers to obtain quality insurance coverage.
While we must acknowledge these realities, the Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency is pleased to note our continued support of Real Estate Appraisers in Massachusetts and throughout the United States. As we celebrate our 60th year of operation, we have reaffirmed our commitment to providing high quality, cost-effective errors and omissions insurance to Appraisers and all Real Estate professionals. The Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency is proud to be affiliated with MBREA as its preferred provider of Appraisers’ Errors and Omissions Insurance, and other professional appraiser and real estate associations across the nation. As the National Administrator for an A++ (AM Best) rated carrier, we are able to offer an exceptional combination of coverage options, competitive pricing and a level of experience and service not often matched in the insurance business today. As a family owned and operated business, our sixty years of success is the direct result of a clear focus on customer service and knowledge of both insurance products and the issues that affect our clients in the real world.
Errors and omissions insurance plays a critical role in the business plan for Appraisers. The particular nature of real estate transactions, whereby multiple professionals are involved in the facilitation of the sale, increase the possibility of the Appraiser being brought into a suit for actions of other parties. Importantly, having the right type of policy and understanding what is, and is not, covered is critical. Errors and omissions insurance policies have unique and important features that all policy holders should be aware of. One of the most important is Retroactive (also called Prior Acts) coverage. This feature provides coverage back to a specific date noted on your policy Declarations page. Any appraisals done back to that Retroactive date would be covered under your policy, as long as that policy remains in force. Gaps in coverage could cause the loss of Retroactive coverage, making the Appraiser vulnerable to claims against past appraisals. If you switch coverage to a new insurer, most insurance companies will honor your Retroactive date as long as there is no gap in coverage. Errors and Omissions insurance is a Claims-Made policy, meaning that it is your insurance carrier at the time a claim is made, not at the time of the alleged error that will handle the claim. Appraisers also need to be aware of the definition of an Insured, the definition of Professional Services and any and all Exclusions.
The definition of “who is an insured under the policy” is critical and not as obvious as it seems. A business may be organized as a sole proprietorship, LLC or S-Corporation. It is important to discuss with your insurance representative the details of your business structure and how to properly insure it. If subcontractors are used, are they listed in the definition of who is an Insured? The definition of Professional Services also requires scrutiny. That definition should accurately reflect what services a business performs. If an Appraiser provides services outside of that definition, coverage may not be there. The third key section of the policy is the Exclusions section, which outlines specifically what is not covered under the insurance policy. For example, some policies may exclude commercial real estate appraisals, or claims brought by financial institutions.
The issues noted above clearly require more elaboration beyond the scope of this article. The professionals at the Herbert H Landy Insurance Agency are happy to share their knowledge and expertise to assist you with securing coverage that fits your needs, so take a moment to review your errors and omissions policy with us. We offer coverage for individual Appraisers and for firms of all sizes. We stand by our commitment to the Appraisal industry, our professional affiliations and our clients, and look forward to the next sixty years!
The material presented above is for informational purposes and does not imply or guarantee insurance coverage from The Herbert H. Landy Insurance Agency or any other insurance provider. You should contact a qualified insurance representative to review and discuss specific aspects of any policy coverage and the insurance needs of your business.
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