MANAGING THE RISKS, SHARING THE REWARDS

OMEX is an insurance reciprocal.  That means its members pool, or share, in each other's insurance claims.  In 1989, it was originally created by a group of Toronto-area municipalities in an attempt to collectively take control of their insurance needs and deal with escalating premiums.  Unlike pooling arrangements, Reciprocals are licenced as insurance companies and regulated.

OMEX has a stable reinsurance program with insurers that meet the strict financial requirements of our reinsurance broker, Marsh Canada.  We transfer to the reinsurers a significant portion of the risk assumed from our insureds in order to protect the financial stability of the risk sharing group.  The risk-sharing layer is funded by the members through their premiums

Each member must sign the Reciprocal Agreement outlining how the reciprocal will operate and the roles and obligations of the various parties.  OMEX Members share in both the risks and rewards of being part of a reciprocal.  Reciprocals have many benefits:

• not-for-profit
• members are able to participate in strategic decisions about how the reciprocal will operate
• friction costs such as sales commissions and broker fees have been reduced or eliminated
• tax free status allows investment income to accrue for the benefit of the members
• surplus funds can be redistributed back to the members
• most importantly, the members have more control over how the reciprocal is run and what coverages will be provided as part of the insurance program offered

Service Philosophy

OMEX maintains a commitment to fast, responsive, expert service and advice.  Our members ask for this approach and we are dedicated to providing it.  We have a comprehensive understanding of the unique needs of our municipal members and provide creative solutions in real time.  When our team of professionals does not have the answer in-house, we source it from our network of insurance and risk experts who provide ongoing market knowledge, brokerage expertise and engineering and risk services.

How We Manage Risk

The risk management services discussed in this section only serve as an example of what we provide to our insured municipalities.  Depending on the level of expertise within each municipality, we either act in the capacity of the risk manager, or supplement existing expertise that you have on staff.   All of the risk management services provided by OMEX staff are included in the annual premium--there is no additional fee.

• Member Education - OMEX arranges numerous seminars and workshops for its members on a wide variety of topics including road maintenance, claims handling, managing volunteers, insurance strategies for procurement contracts, construction insurance and the importance of obtaining certificates of insurance.
  
  
• Risk Management Advice - OMEX has an in-house risk manager who is available to assist municipal staff in addressing a wide variety of issues including contract negotiation and review, insurance coverage availability, interpretation of policy wordings and risk control inspections.
  
  
• CheckPoint Ontario website - OMEX staff devoted a considerable amount of time to the development of a municipally-oriented risk management website.  It is specifically tailored to address the unique risks associated with municipal operations.  This website is provided to the OMEX members at no additional cost. To view this site, please click here.
  
  
• Risk Management Bulletins/Alerts - OMEX keeps their insured municipalities informed on a wide variety of insurance and risk-related topics through the Risk Alerts that are distributed on a regular basis.  A library of Alerts is included in the member-only section of the OMEX website.

How We Handle Claims

OMEX has considerable expertise in handling municipal claims of all types.  As OMEX is not-for-profit, our claims handling approach is to find ways that your insurance policies can work for you and respond when you have had a loss.  We offer a complete municipal insurance program so are familiar with claims involving catastrophic bodily injury, property damage affecting your facilities, municipal fleet and transit operations and municipal errors and omissions.  We have developed a detailed Claims Management Manual that serves as a guide to OMEX, members, defence counsel and designated adjusters.

Your choice
We handle claims much like a traditional insurer except that you can be involved in the process as much, or as little, as you choose. This flexibility is important. Many municipalities welcome the chance to finally have detailed claims information available to them and a say in developing strategy on how their claims are handled.  In particular, OMEX consults with you on those claims likely to be sensitive or precedent setting in nature. Other municipalities with limited resources prefer that OMEX arrange adjusting services and oversee the entire process on their behalf.

Funding claims
OMEX monitors the claims closely to adjust reserves and ensure that sufficient funds are set aside for their ultimate settlement. Your outstanding claims liabilities are reviewed in consultation with you, the adjuster, defence counsel and OMEX.

Access to your file
We believe that each municipality should have access to its own claims information on a timely basis so they can better understand what is causing their claims and put appropriate loss control efforts in place. We can prepare claims reports for you.  This allows you to track the claims from start to finish. This knowledge enables you to be proactive in taking steps to prevent similar claims in the future.