Note: This visitor put up is by Brian S. Goodman. Brian is a companion on the Baltimore regulation agency of Goodman & Donohue, LLC. He can also be General Counsel to NAPIA.
Like a lot of you, I learn Chip Merlin’s weblog put up on daily basis in my position as General Counsel to the National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters (www.napia.com). So it was with nice curiosity that I lately reviewed his put up concerning the proposed new licensing Bill in Kentucky. Chip has requested for my ideas on this, which I’m joyful to offer.
Kentucky was one of many two states that led the cost with NAPIA for the Public Adjuster Model Act in 2005. That Model Bill has develop into a dominant influential mannequin statute all through the nation, and NAPIA (myself, Dick Burr, and others) labored very intently with the NAIC in drafting and passing this Bill. Of the 46 states that license public adjusters, over 20 of those states have enacted some iteration of the Model Act, together with Kentucky.
The largest change and concern, fairly frankly, is the brand new proposed payment caps set forth within the Kentucky Bill. NAPIA by no means advocates for payment caps, however whether it is clear {that a} state needs and feels that it wants a payment cap, we all the time work with the state legislature to make it possible for the payment cap is truthful and cheap and permits public adjusters to observe their occupation ethically and responsibly. Of the 46 licensing states, about 13 (as I recall) have a payment cap (e.g., Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, and others). The Model Act is silent on a cap, leaving it out of the Model and particularly leaving it to every particular person state. While NAPIA by no means advocates for a cap, whether it is inevitable, we imagine that it’s higher to have licensing with one so long as it’s cheap. Some organizations don’t agree with this strategy, nevertheless it has labored efficiently for our members by means of the years.
Even at this second, NAPIA is working laborious on this Bill to guard our members and the occupation, and that is an ancillary profit to becoming a member of the Association. We have a nationwide lobbyist and lobbyists in states the place there may be legislative exercise. There are different points on this proposed statute to run down and analyze, and we recommend that these studying this weblog who will not be members of NAPIA take into account becoming a member of. I’m not penning this to recruit members however to advise that NAPIA works laborious every day to guard the trade and guarantee that licensing payments are truthful, cheap, and protecting of the occupation and of all insureds who maintain property loss.