The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America announced that a new report addressing problems involving certificates of insurance is now available online.

The 53-page white paper, "Certificates of Insurance: Issues and Answers," is a response to a variety of factors, said Alexandria, Va.-based IIABA.

According to the organization, there has been an escalation of errors and omissions claims and problems involving certificates of insurance and related forms, as well as announcements by Freddie Mac and other lenders they will no longer accept Evidence of Insurance forms from ACORD insurance data standards group.

A free executive summary of the paper can be found on the Virtual University (VU) at http://www.iiaba.net/vu. The complete report and an order form can be accessed from that page as well, the group said.

According to IIABA, there are three major recurring problems involving certificates of insurance:

o The unwillingness of insurers to provide notice to certificate holders of cancellation, despite the "we will endeavor to" language in most certificates of insurance.

o Onerous insurance requirements by large contactors, huge corporations, governmental/public entities, etc. that cannot be met by coverages typically available in the admitted marketplace.

o Certificate fraud by agents and insureds (including the indication of coverages or conditions that don't exist) so an insured subcontractor can get a construction job or get paid for one.

The new VU white paper addresses these and related issues, providing analyses of the problems and insights to help agents and brokers deal with them, said IIABA.

"This new paper is an extremely useful and educational resource for agents and brokers," says Madelyn Flannagan, IIABA vice president for education and research. "We are very excited to offer this resource both to our members and to any interested parties, because this is an important issue and clearly will continue to be in the coming months and years."

The paper is available free to IIABA members and paid VU subscribers, and, for a $75 fee, to nonmembers and nonsubscribers, the group noted.

Special Reports /

IIABA Announces Report On Certificates Of Insurance

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