Services Provided

• Marketing

  • The foundation for an effective and efficient risk transfer program begins with a comprehensive review of the insurance marketplace, regardless of the line of coverage or specific industry. With over 40 years of insurance industry expertise, GSM will access their strong relationships in the marketplace to facilitate and propose a full range of coverage options tailored to the needs of our commercial insurance customers. In that process of marketing, the basis for all insurance placements begins with an interview with our clients to establish appetite for risk and liability. The process outlined below will be followed by GSM to support conversations with the underwriting community to elicit competitive and broad insurance coverage for our customers.
     
    • Identify and quantify exposures
    • Manuscript and negotiate policies
    • Provide the most comprehensive scope of coverage
    • Obtain the best pricing available
    • Prepare the requisite technical data and documents
    • Expedite insurance submissions
    • Use additional financing and risk transfer solutions such as captives and cash flow programs when required
    • Communicate the financial benefits of risk transfer
    • Analyze insurance coverage and claims to obtain favorable coverage terms

• Program Design

  • Depending on the risk and needs of our clients, commercial and industrial insurance programs can include some, or all, of the following lines of coverage
     
    • General Liability
    • Errors and Omissions (Professional Liability)
    • Environmental Coverages
    • Property; including Real and Business Personal Property, Equipment, Builder's Risk
    • Director's and Officer's Liability
    • Workers’ Compensation
    • Commercial Auto
    • Umbrella Liability
    • Wrap Up; OCIP ( Owner Controlled Insurance Programs), CCIP (Contractor Controlled Insurance Programs)
    • Surety
    • Specialized Coverages; Efficacy, Financial Assurance, Aviation, Foreign, Railroad Protective, Representation and Warranties, Force Majeure ( Acts of God), Fidelity and Fiduciary Liabilities.
       
    GSM will utilize all of its experience to recommend a combination of these various coverages to help mitigate risk exposure and liabilities through the use of insurance. In that endeavor, participation of our clients is encouraged to set appropriate bench marks for deductibles and retentions, limits of insurance, duration of policy term, financial incentives and cash flow participation and contractual mandates and obligations.

• Certificate of Insurance Administration
  and Contract / Agreement Review
   

  • Request for evidence of insurance or certificates are normal daily administrative functions for GSM and our clients. However, if not completed correctly or timely, these can become very stressful and in some situations cause delays in working. GSM has simplified the request process (Click Here for a printable copy of Request for Certificate of Insurance Form) with online access for the request and when appropriate direct communication with certificate holders to clarify and validate specific coverages and endorsements. This intervention by GSM, on behalf of our clients, has proven successful and in many instances resolved miscommunications.
    
    Along with issuance of certificates of insurance, GSM encourages our clients to include contracts and agreements and the specific Insurance section of those documents for review and compliance with risk and insurance specifications. We find that an examination of the Insurance will identify potential discrepancies and noncompliance of lines of coverage and/or inadequate limits that can be addressed at the onset of the project or specific work being let. Potential additional insurance costs can be proposed and, many times, successfully included in the contract terms and conditions. Recommendations in this area to our clients are welcomed and a broking service we feel strongly supports the risk identification process for our customers.

• Risk Management & Loss Control

  • Managing risks, for many companies, is not anticipated and proactively pursued. This, in part, is due to the misconception of perceived costs and the fallacy that only large organizations have allocated resources to dedicate to this practice. However, in addition to the traditional methods of analyzing loss experience and potential future liabilities to reduce the overall costs of risk, GSM strongly encourages the benefits of evaluating and modifying internal attitudes and behavior to help alter your organization's views toward safety. For most organizations, the process of addressing risks can appear to be onerous, time-consuming and costly. GSM can provide the resources that will help identify key threats and efficient methods to implement effective risk management procedures to avoid potential disastrous consequences. Our goal is to work together to provide the most cost effective means for managing risk, while obtaining the desired results of fewer incidents, greater productivity, a safe and healthy working environment and the reduction of insurance costs. For many firms, GSM will coordinate our efforts and help initiate the identification process with some simple fact finding questions:
     
    • What are my organization's foremost risk exposures and is there a plan to prioritize those liabilities?
    • How will a business interruption affect the internal framework of the company and our clients and customer base?
    • Are staffing of personnel or turnover adversely affecting the bottom line? Are the present health and safety plans sufficient to identify work place stress and mitigate hazard exposures for personnel in the office and in the field?
    • Is the company subject to federal and state regulations and are the current internal controls sufficient to avoid personnel breach of those mandates? And if non-compliant with regulatory laws does that translate to partial success of the firm?
    • Is the current insurance program sufficient protection to address keys risks of the company? Does the insurance program adequately reflect the philosophy of management for retained risk and alternatives to maximize reduction of costs?

    The answers to the questions above will become the basis for a risk plan that GSM will assist with the identification of key risks and controls to effectively manage those areas. Each company will have unique risks and GSM are advocates of proprietary methods to help monitor, reduce and mange these risks. GSM has found the universal element for success in this area is the acceptance and perpetuation by senior management in a way that encourages active participation for long term. Management's approach to risk management and loss control can be the cornerstone to achieving success and desired goals.

• Claims Mitigation and Advocacy Support

  • The importance of gathering accurate information to determine appropriate damages, in any claim situation, is vital for the recovery or defense of insurance indemnification and part of the broking services offered through GSM. The advocacy support of working closely with our clients, insurers, attorneys and claims administrators to ensure that claims are managed effectively, fairly and creatively is GSM’s commitment to success in this critical area for any risk transfer or commercial insurance program. Most companies cannot always predict with certainty the future regarding claims but through planning an effective process can be established to deal with simple and catastrophic incidents. GSM can begin that planning through answers to some questions such as:
     
    • Is there an established procedure in place to quickly gather pertinent information about a loss and if outside parties are involved can we retrieve that data without damaging existing business relationships?
    • Is there a comprehensive understanding of the current insurance program to streamline the preparation and filing process of the claim to expedite the representation and recovery of a loss?
    • Is there an updated valuation of the assets of the company (equipment, property, autos, intellectual property, and products) readily available to help account for the impact of the loss to the business?

    Despite the preparedness of a company, incidents occur and GSM will offer advocacy support in such areas as:

    • Claims preparation and submission
    • Management and reserve review and analysis
    • Benchmarking and measurement of specified goals and expectations for claim reserving and closures
    • Policy coverage interpretation
    • Review and analysis of loss information
    • Workers’ Compensation experience modification evaluation
    • Return to work programs
    • Assistance and support of due diligence for mergers and acquisitions
    • Loss development and claims assessment
    • Review and measurement of prior and continuing policies
    • Appraisal and consulting on potential portfolio transfer of claims inventory

• Alternative Risk Programs and Insurance Broking

  • As with many other businesses, the insurance marketplace ebbs and flows as a reaction to natural catastrophes and other significant events. Those actions siphon capacity and create avenues to address risk with non-traditional programs. Other firms have the need to review and consider those alternative risk programs based upon their financial strength, aptitude and mechanisms to control risk, domestic and international locations and dynamics of products and services offered. At GSM, we understand the need to continually educate our clients on transferring and financing risk and analysis of those innovative techniques and their suitability for each transaction.
    
    GSM has experience developing those integrated products, which in many instances include multiple lines of coverage. They require harmonization between broker and client and the effectiveness of the insurance product to address a specific problem. There are many forms that are recognized as belonging to this highly sophisticated approach to risk financing including:
     
    • Finite Insurance
    • Large Deductible Programs
    • Cash Flow Products
    • Retrospective Rated Plans and other Loss Sensitive Options
    • Basket Aggregate Stop Loss Plans
    • Self Insurance and Partial Self Insured
    • Captives and Rent-a-Captives
    • Structured Buy-Outs
    • Financial Responsibility and Assurance