MANAGING THE RISKS, SHARING THE REWARDS

How We Work

OMEX is an insurance reciprocal. That means its members pool, or exchange, their insurance coverage and share in both the risks and rewards of being part of a reciprocal on a basis determined by the members as outlined in the Reciprocal Agreement.

Reciprocals have many benefits:

• not-for-profit
• frictions 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
• capital and surplus requirements imposed on traditional insurance companies have been reduced or eliminated
• 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.

During 2004 and 2005, all members of OMEX participated in a Strategic Planning Review that resulted in a multi-year strategic plan approved by the Board of Directors in April 2005.  This document has proven to be a valuable tool for both staff and the Board to ensure that OMEX is managed in accordance with the goals established by our municipal members.

How We Manage Risk

The risk managment 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 additonal fee.

• Seminars and workshops - OMEX arranges numerous workshops for its members on a wide variety of topics including road maintenance, claims handling, managing volunteers, insurance strategies for procurement contracts, and the importance of obtaining certificates of insurance.
  
  
• Risk Management Advice - OMEX 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 have devoted a considerable amount of time to the development of a municipally-oriented risk management website.
  
  
• Risk Management Bulletins/Alerts - OMEX keeps their insured municipalities informed on a wide variety of insurance and risk-related topics.
  In addition, OMEX issued an RFP for Independent Appraisal Services on behalf of our member municipalities to assist them in contracting for independent insurance valuations on a cost-effective basis.  Many municipalities have now contracted with the successful proponent, CGI, to have valuations done on their properties to ensure the adequacy of their values and a complete inventory of their insured properties.
  
  

How We Handle Claims

OMEX has considerable expertise in handling municipal claims. We have developed a detailed Claims Management Manual that serves as a guide to members and their 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 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 ensures that all claims are properly reserved and 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 reports for you and send them promptly.  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.

Claims Management System
Many members have indicated to us that they either do not have an in-house claims management software package or are seeking a better one to help them track claims and monitor certificates from outside parties. OMEX has made available to its members, a state of the art claims and certificate system (CCS) developed by York Region to assist our members in this regard.