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| RiskMeter Online eNewsletter |
| Members of NAPSLO, AAMGA, CIWA, FAIA |
December 2005 |
Focus On: Flood Exposure
Aerial Photo Updates
IN, MI and MO Just Added to Distance to Fire Station Report
CDS Wildfire Updates
Upcoming Events - Meet the CDS Team!
Online Training Schedule!
Test Drive ANY Risk Report for One Month Free!
Welcome to Our Newest Customers!
Request a Hardcopy of the Newsletter
Contacts
Questions or Comments?
Help a Friend or a Colleague
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| Focus On: Flood Exposure |
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Hurricane Katrina proved to many carriers that floods
can be much more severe and widespread than most
people believe. Many of the flood losses from Katrina
were outside of the 100 year flood plain. Storm
surges also created widespread flooding.
How well are you managing your flood exposures?
Here are a couple things to keep in mind...It is
estimated that 30% of flood losses occur outside of
the 100 year flood plain. Remember that the flood
maps are based on models; models are never
perfect. CDS believes that excess flood writers
should be aware of locations that are near flood
zones, too. Unlike the standard FEMA NFIP,
excess
coverage means that your money is at stake. The
flood waters probably will not stop exactly at the
edge of the flood zone. Knowing that a risk is
near a
flood zone may save you a very expensive flood loss
in the future.
Also, some insurers and vendors are still using flood
data commonly known as “FEMA Q3 flood data."
The reason that it is used by some people is because
it's cheap. However, there are two major
problems with it. First, the data that was released
is incomplete. The Q3 Flood Data covered roughly
1,500 counties. However, there are over 3,000
counties in the US. So Q3 data doesn’t provide
nationwide coverage. Secondly, the data was
originally released in 1994, and no updates have been
released, and none are scheduled. How many
changes do you think there have been since 1994?
The answer is thousands, if not tens of thousands.
In Florida, 56% of the flood panels have been
changed
since 1994! This means there are many, many more
properties at risk than shown on the Q3 maps.
We
seriously suggest if you are using Q3 data that you
talk to us about alternatives. If your brokers
are
providing flood zones, make sure they’re not using Q3
data.
How can the RiskMeter Online help you to better
manage your flood exposure? First, our data
comes
from one of the leading providers of flood
certifications to lenders. Our maps, although
they
are shaded differently, exactly match the official
FEMA Flood Panels. Also, our data is updated
monthly, which will enable you to leverage the most
up-to-date information when running a report.
Second, we can set a parameter to tell you
if you are near a flood zone. So if you are close, you
can see how far away you are. Third, if we don’t
get an automated hit, you can ask for a manual
determination. This means that someone will perform
research to ensure that you get the right flood
zone. While a little more expensive, it means you will
always get an answer.
Note: CDS provides some cutting-edge
features with its Flood reports. The first feature,
elevation reports, allow you to check the difference
in elevation between water and the location in
question. The second feature, aerial photos, enable
you to verify the location of a policy. This is
extremely helpful in rural or new construction areas.
Using both of these tools can help you get a better
understanding
of your flood risk.
Are you worried about existing risks and the
potential
for floods? CDS can run through a schedule or
entire
book of business for you. Additionally, other reports
can be run in batch, like distance to coast,
elevation, wind pool eligibility and more.
Look for more flood enhancements from CDS in the
future. If you have any questions, or would like more
information on RiskMeter Flood Reports, contact CDS
at 617.737.4444 or Dan Munson
(dmunson@cdsys.com)
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| Aerial Photo Updates |
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We’ve received many inquiries about how up-to-date
our aerial photos are. CDS takes great pride in
constantly updating the RiskMeter Online Web site to
provide you with the most recent photos and data!
New aerial images are added regularly. Below is a list
of recent updates and additions.
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| Market
Name |
Photo
Date |
Resolution |
Gulf Coast
(AL, LA, MS) |
Sept 05 |
30 CM |
| TX |
Sept 05 |
30 CM |
| Monterey,
CA |
July 05 |
30 CM |
| Yuba County,
CA |
May 05 |
30 CM |
| Riverside,
CA |
Feb 05 |
30 CM |
| Los Angeles,
CA |
Feb 05 |
30 CM |
| Miami, FL |
Jan 05 |
30 CM |
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When using the aerial images there is
a way to get the date when the photo was taken.
You’ll notice under the aerial image there are several
icons. One says, “More Info.” If you click on this
icon a new window will pop up, which will give you
the image date! In addition, there is a field that
gives you the image resolution in meters. This tells
you how detailed the image is or how small an object
you may see. The smaller the resolution, the more
detailed the base image is.
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| IN, MI and MO Just Added to Distance to Fire Station Report |
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CDS has just added Indiana, Michigan and Missouri to
its
Distance to
Fire Station
report. This brings the total number of states to 28!
Within the next few weeks Nevada will be
added as well.
The distance between a property and the primary fire
station directly affects your loss ratio. Regardless of
the training, personnel or equipment at a station, if
an insured location is greater than 5 miles from a
station the chance of a large loss is inevitable. By
simply typing in an address, you will get: driving
distance to local responding fire stations, names of
the stations
and staffing (career or volunteer).
We will continue to add more states until we meet
our goal of providing nationwide coverage. We want
your feedback to see which states we should add
next. If there is a state you would like to see us
add, please contact Jamie Munson at 860.854.6125
or
jmunson@cdsys.com. In addition, we also have
responding fire district boundaries for the following
states: CA, FL, HI, IL, KS, MS, ND and VA.
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| CDS Wildfire Updates |
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In order to provide you with the most accurate
wildfire reports as possible, we have been manually
updating our wildfire model on a weekly basis. Over
the last two years alone we have made 15,000
updates! Some of the counties we have recently
updated are: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San
Diego and Ventura. We will continue to update our
wildfire data, and if you run a report that has been
affected by a new development and it is not shown,
please Email Charles Kane at
ckane@cdsys.com with the address
and the
result you received. Thanks in advance for your
cooperation.
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| Upcoming Events - Meet the CDS Team! |
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CDS will be exhibiting at the following upcoming
conferences. Whether you're a customer or
prospect, we'd love to meet with you onsite at these
exceptional events! Feel free to stop by our booth
or if you wish to schedule an appointment, please
contact Dan Munson at 617.737.4444
(dmunson@cdsys.com) or Bradley Sherwin at
617.737.4444
(bsherwin@cdsys.com)
CIWA Wholesaler Industry Day
January 12 - 14, 2006 *La Jolla, CA
Napslo Mid-Year Educational Workshop
February 16 - 18, 2006 *Phoenix, AZ
RIMS Annual Conference
April 23 - 27, 2006 *Honolulu, HI
AAMGA Annual Meeting
May 7 - 11, 2006 *Maui, HI
IASA Annual Conference and Business Show
June 4 - 7, 2006 *Boston, MA
FAIA Convention & Expo
June 15 - 17, 2006 *Orlando, FL
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| Online Training Schedule! |
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In order to help you utilize the RiskMeter Online more
effectively, we are now offering FREE Online
training.
This is a great way for your organization to have its
most pressing questions answered, learn about
reading various risk reports and how to utilize
cutting-edge features, such as: Birdseye
Geocoding, One Click Ruler and Manual
Placement. To register for an upcoming
Webcast, click on one of
the links below or for more information, contact Maria
Francis at 617.737.4444 or
mfrancis@cdsys.com
National
Thursday, December 8, 2005
1:00 pm- 2:00 pm (EDT)
https://cdsys.webex.com
Western Risks
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
1:00 pm- 2:00 pm (EDT)
https://cdsys.webex.com
National
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
1:00 pm- 2:00 pm (EDT)
https://cdsys.webex.com
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| Test Drive ANY Risk Report for One Month Free! |
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Would you like the opportunity to evaluate any one
of our risk reports without obligation? You can now!
For a limited time you will be able to test-drive any
RiskMeter Online report for FREE! Take advantage of
this exceptional opportunity to see how a particular
risk report can benefit your organization. To add a
FREE, one-month risk report to your account, please
call 617.737.4444.
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| Welcome to Our Newest Customers! |
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Carriers
- American Resource Insurance Company
- Beazley USA
- Berkley Mid-Atlantic Group
- Capital Indemnity
- Golden Bear Insurance Company
- Marsh Inc
- Universal Underwriters
MGAs
- EPG Insurance
- Evergreen Indemnity
Agents
- A&J Insurance
- Continental Special Risks
- CornerStone Ins
- FJR Corp
- Hillbrook, Ragal, and Hobbs Co
- Paul A Kline Ins
- Shaver Insurance Agency
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| Request a Hardcopy of the Newsletter |
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Having a hard time managing your inbox? You can
now receive the RiskMeter eNewsletter via regular
mail. To get the latest issue of the RiskMeter
newsletter delivered to your office (when it becomes
available), please email Paul Ptashnick at:
pptashnick@cdsys.com
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| Questions or Comments? |
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If you would like more information on any of the
topics discussed in this newsletter, please contact
Dan Munson, VP of Marketing & Sales at:
617.737.4444 or
dmunson@cdsys.com
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| Help a Friend or a Colleague |
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Please forward this free newsletter to a friend or
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