NAMIC Looks To Shatter Stereotypes

Moreover, the nations largest commercial lines company, New York-based AIG, is an associate member. "This illustrates the breadth of our membership," Mr. Chamness said.

Mr. Chamness became NAMICs president last September following the retirement of his long-time predecessor, Larry Forrester. A graduate of Indiana University, Mr. Chamness came to NAMIC in 1995 after spending several years in Washington, D.C., both on Capitol Hill and with the federal government.

He was press secretary to a former Republican member of the House from Indiana, John Hiler. In 1990, he joined the first Bush administration, eventually becoming deputy assistant secretary for public affairs with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which was then headed by Jack Kemp.

Mr. Chamness said he met Mr. Forrester in 1995 and then joined NAMIC, rising to senior vice president of public relations and then executive vice president.

One of his goals, he said, is to build on the foundation established by Mr. Forrester as a well-managed, entrepreneurial association that seeks creative ways to serve its members.

For example, he said, in 1988, during the liability crisis, NAMIC created its own insurance company to provide professional liability coverage to its members. (He noted that the companyNAMICOwas recently upgraded from an "A-minus" rating to an "A" rating by A.M. Best.) Similarly, he said, NAMIC established its own bankAssurance Partners Bankto serve the business needs of its members.

Mr. Chamness said this reflects the continuing viability of the mutual company model. "It is one of the most successful and financially sound forms of insurance company organization," he said.

The model works even among NAMICs smaller members, who do not benefit from economies of scale, Mr. Chamness said. Smaller companies, he noted, are able to focus on a niche in the marketplace that they serve very well.

While there are downsides to not having a giant organization, there are many potential benefits from being able to focus on a particular niche, serve it for decades, and know it inside and out, according to Mr. Chamness.

NAMIC, he said, seeks to assure the proverbial level playing field for all its members, allowing all companies the opportunity for full and fair competition.

Thus, he noted, a vital issue for NAMIC is insurance regulatory reform. NAMICs goal, he said, is state-based insurance reform along the lines of the free market model in Illinois.

Regarding all the activity in Washington on optional federal chartering and federal standards, Mr. Chamness said that NAMIC has only one position, and that is to support state regulation of insurance. He noted that NAMIC has a committee structure that analyzes developments on this issue, but the associations position is to support state-based reforms that will create a better regulatory environment.

Another major NAMIC concern, according to Mr. Chamness, is tort reform. Indeed, he said, NAMICs Public Policy Program recently produced a White Paper on litigation abuse that identifies the effect on regulation and legislation. "To the extent that juries and courts approve bad law, they are eroding the due process system," Mr. Chamness said.

He added that NAMICs Public Policy Program is one of the associations major strengths, demonstrating its concerns with policy, not just politics.

NAMIC serves its members with a staff of 70, augmented by relationships with other organizations on the state and federal levels that have similar goals, including the other p-c trade groups, he noted.

Looking ahead, he said he hopes NAMIC remains a strong advocate for its member companies and finds creative and entrepreneurial ways to accomplish the tasks the members expect.

NAMIC President Chuck Chamness

Reproduced from National Underwriter Edition, January 16, 2004. Copyright 2004 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.