Their biggest challenge; however, is that they often lack the internal resources and staffing necessary to create, implement and monitor a comprehensive risk management and loss control program. Some policyholders turn to their insurance agent or broker for help, only to find that neither have the training or in-house staff available to provide them with a comprehensive analysis of their needs. Often, the agent or broker turns to the policyholder’s own insurer for a risk management and loss control evaluation.

“Only a handful of insurance brokerage firms, like The NIA Group, can provide risk management and loss control services that provide the policyholder with an objective analysis and recommendations that uniquely serve the policyholder and not necessarily the interests of the insurer,” notes Bill Cilente, executive vice president and product coordinator, Commercial Lines Division, of The NIA Group.

“NIA, via its in-house loss control department, Tower Consulting Services, works directly with a client’s risk management executive and its insurance company in order to be certain that a risk management and loss control program is directed at the policyholder’s specific goals,” notes Cilente. “We help clients determine their key risks and whether their current levels of insurance provides adequate protection to cover those risks. We look for ways to manage that risk by other means and to reduce insurance costs. We also provide the day-to-day counsel that policyholders need so we can meet their risk management needs down the road.”

NIA helps its clients develop a set process to evaluate risk and implement a strategy for including property loss control as part of its business plan. “Every company should have an internal risk management function that continually assesses exposures with the goal of preventing potential losses,” notes Cilente. “We can help a policyholder better understand the regulatory responsibilities and challenges within his specific business industry, including federal OSHA and state regulations, environmental requirements, emergency management needs and employment-related practices.”

Through Tower Consulting, NIA can thoroughly review a client’s claim management history, identifying trends in claims, the amount of time it takes to file workers’ compensation claims and how quickly employees return to work. The NIA team reviews existing return-to-work, safety and health programs, with an eye on continuous improvement in order to reduce costs related to claims and in a variety of gray areas where corporate time and labor become unnecessarily absorbed in solving problems.

“Ultimately, our goal is to evaluate risk in a similar fashion as an insurance company evaluates risk. The difference is that we create a risk management/prevention program that serves the interests of the policyholder first, enabling him to save on premiums and other costs that impact the bottom line,” notes Cilente.

For more information, contact Bill Cilente at (201) 845-6600 ext. 1330 or via email at wcilente@niagroup.com.