Welcome to the MSO Update March 2009!

In this issue you will read about highlights from 2008 and first quarter 2009, and read a special section on the great team at MSO. Also we have selected pictures from our successful Educational Seminar in October and the Tech Meeting in December.

2008 was a year of growth and change here at MSO. The following is a list of just a few of the accomplishments:
• We were approved as a rating bureau in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, North Carolina, and South Carolina. We began the process of program filings in the new states.
• We added a new member, Loudoun Mutual Insurance Company. Welcome to Chris Shipe and his team based in Waterford, Virginia.
• We received excellent ratings on the Annual Member Survey in all service and program categories.
• We developed new marketing material which included the MSO News Brief, product marketing pieces, press releases, sponsor brochure, and partner marketing pages. All this material continues to be produced on demand at low unit costs.
• We expanded our database of contacts and upgraded the contact database software. This allows MSO to track every contact with members, prospects, and vendor partners.
• We launched a National State Filings Service to leverage the expertise of the MSO Analysts in SERFF filings. 19 states now require SERFF so we are well positioned to take advantage of this marketspace.
• We established vendor partner relationships with two companies: CDS Business Mapping, LLC, offering RiskMeter Online and InsurCard, a subsidiary of Service Network Design, LLC.
• We updated software and hardware to further optimize our work environment. We continued to expand the E-Services offerings and many members now interact with MSO almost exclusively through the Internet. Given the rapid pace of change with technology this will be an ongoing effort at MSO.
• We marketed our products and services to many new prospect companies. We attended many industry association meetings and participated as a sponsor on many others. As part of our marketing efforts we reached out to various independent agent organizations in new and existing states to create awareness and interest in MSO offerings.
• In 2009 we will maintain our high quality service to existing members while we market and sell to new prospective member companies. We will continue our review of vendor partners and add services which are of value to our members. For programs we are planning a full review of all MSO offerings. We anticipate new specialty program filings during the year.

Just over a year ago I joined MSO to work with the team to take MSO to the next level of growth. We are well on our way and we really appreciate the support from our Board of Trustees, our member companies and their teams, and our many vendor partners.

Happy Spring 2009!

-- Jan Scites, J.D., CLU, ChFC; CEO

After watching many news reports and reading many articles on the economic situation we are in, I am very comfortable with my carefully thought out conclusion that we are surely in an economic mess. I have also determined that the whole situation will improve and be back to the good times on Tuesday in the third week of September 2009. If you believe that I can arrange to sell you some ocean front property in Arizona. It is amazing that the same leaders, corporate and legislative, who watched all this happen, couldn’t remember how to say the word “stop” until after it was too late. Now with perfect 20/20 hindsight they are firmly condemning everything that they allowed to happen.

The reality is that several of the big players and losers in the downturn had a direct hand in what happened or at least the size of what happened. Unfortunately for the insurance industry several of those companies had the word insurance in their name. There is even a move to blame the insurance industry’s limited anti-trust exemption as a major factor creating this economic turmoil. So now, the entire industry is unjustly getting painted by the same brush.

MSO has been fortunate to have associations with very good and stable property & casualty insurance companies. Many of these companies have been around for well over 100 years. Their interest is in really caring for their policyholders and working to see their company grow and still be around another 100 years from now. It is in knowing these companies and the good people that run them that makes you feel good about being in the insurance industry.

Now, moving on to what is happening at MSO. During the remaining part of 2009 and into 2010 we will be doing some serious reviews of all the MSO programs. This doesn’t necessarily mean that there will be major changes to the programs or any change at all. What it means is that we will be looking at each part of all programs to determine if anything needs to be improved. As part of this review we will be considering how best to handle the issues that were not around when the programs were developed. As an example, one of those issues is the green initiative, as in green buildings and green construction techniques. Existing programs need to be adjusted to be sure that there is the proper amount of coverage provided to meet the added costs. Also since many of the methods being used are fairly new there needs to be a way to watch for related potential liability issues that the policies don’t currently address.

There is the old saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” Well, we are not looking to fix something just for the sake of fixing something. What we will be doing over the next several months and into 2010 is giving the various programs a tune up. In doing that we may come up with some new ideas and changes to how things are handled. We will be developing a specialized program or two focused on a segment or segments of the market, such as restaurants or bed and breakfasts. As we have done in the past the modifications made, where possible, will be developed as options so a subscribing company can choose which items best fit their book of business and what is the best timing for adoption of the changes. One of the key features of MSO is our willingness to work with the company to develop the best customization of the MSO program. As we progress in the fine tuning of the MSO programs we look forward to continuing that practice.

-- James Townley, CPCU; President/COO