Insurance
Why It’s Imperative to Get Life Insurance Now
The importance of making sure you have adequate coverage before you think you need it
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Insurance
How to Pick the Right Propane Insurance Agent & Best Policy
A guide to choosing coverage that serves as a signpost for your leadership team -
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Insurance
What’s the Greatest Risk Your Company Faces?
Reduce the risk of a cyberattack on your company with a cyber liability policy -
Insurance
Don’t Shoot the Messenger — Insurance Premiums Are Up
3 reasons for the increasing costs and 7 ways to mitigate their effects -
Safety
Tie It Down, Lock It Up, Hide The Keys, Light It Up
Marketers need to be vigilant at their plant sites to prevent loss of equipment -
Insurance
“Oh, No! The Claim’s Not Covered!?”
By Frank Thompson… This statement drives fear into every propane marketer and their insurance agent’s heart. However, this statement that a claim is not covered could be you, if you are providing dispenser equipment to a non-owned bottle fill site. The insurance company wants you and your company to be able to sell more propane. They have asked numerous questions about your safety procedures in order for you to get a quote from them. They must be satisfied that you are capable to sell and deliver propane safely before they insure you. Their quote provides property, general liability, and auto coverage for your company. It does not cover the interest of non-owned third parties that utilize your equipment to sell and dispense propane. An example... -
Feature Articles
The Actions We Take Affect Ourselves And Many Others
By Frank Thompson… I recently devoted some time to reflection upon my time in this industry. Twenty-six years insuring propane marketers. Twenty-six years of working with good people who make their living selling a fuel that is clean burning and renewable. Twenty-six years of learning the propane business and applying what I have studied and learned about risk management and insurance to the industry. Have I made a difference? I can look back at some monumental occasions when what I knew kept a company in business. For example, there was the explosion and fire that destroyed a major fuel distributor in 2006. Because I had asked them to increase their property values and business income, which they did, their business was able to rebuild and... -
Insurance
Insurance Headlines: “Premiums Are Going Up”
By Frank Thompson… The email on June 10 from “Property and Casualty 360” ruined my day: Insurance “carriers are faced with claims related to cybersecurity, COVID-19, the riots and demonstrations, tornados, flooding, and the economy.” What they were trying to tell their readers is simply that insurance premiums are going up. There is no more “soft” insurance marketplace where one could expect a reduction in premium from the prior year; in most cases, the insurance renewal premiums are going to increase substantially. Let’s take a look at how each of the above perils is impacting the insurance industry. COVID-19 hit, for most businesses, the middle of March. By the beginning of April, most states were in lockdown, with businesses required to either close their doors... -
Feature Articles
Workers’ Compensation Dilemmas For Propane Marketers
(July 8, 2020) — An article in the June 2020 issue of BPN, “Workers’ Compensation Dilemmas” by Frank Thompson, provided an example of an employee doing clerical or outside salesperson’s duties along with filling propane bottles. It stated that if the propane marketer kept Verifiable Time Records, an independent workers’ compensation (WC) auditor would be allowed to utilize a lower WC code for the majority of the employee’s payroll. The National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) reports that this would not be allowed: “Whether or not separate verifiable records for time spent in the office vs. time filling propane tanks were kept, a division of payroll would still not be allowed per NCCI Basic Manual Rule 2-G. The employee would be assigned to the appropriate...
