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Habitat Magazine: Jason Schiciano discusses the NY Scaffold Law
00:00 [Music]
00:13 my name is Jason sky Johnno and I’m
00:16 president of Lovett first associates in
00:18 Tarrytown New York I wanted to talk
00:21 about a topic today that a number of
00:24 boards of condominiums and coops are
00:26 unaware and it’s a topic that can
00:29 drastically affect their liability
00:31 exposure and ultimately their insurance
00:33 premiums for many years to come if it’s
00:35 not properly addressed the topic is
00:38 related to a law and New York State
00:41 called the New York State scaffold law
00:42 New York is the only state in the United
00:45 States of America that has this type of
00:47 law and basically the law says that if a
00:51 worker for instance for a contractor
00:53 working at the condo or co-op building
00:56 is injured particularly in a fall from a
00:59 height like a ladder or a tree or a roof
01:02 that the building will be absolutely
01:04 liable for that contractor’s injuries in
01:07 a court of law under a liability suit so
01:10 obviously the law has huge implications
01:13 and risks for buildings many boards are
01:16 under the assumption mistakenly that if
01:19 the board or the managing agent collects
01:22 a document called a certificate of
01:25 liability insurance and if that document
01:28 lists in the description box that the
01:33 building and the managing agent and
01:35 board are additional insurance on the
01:38 contractors general liability policy the
01:41 board assumes that they’ve got
01:42 protection and that one of the
01:44 contractors workers is injured that the
01:46 board in the building will be protected
01:49 by the contractors insurance policy
01:51 because this thing says their additional
01:53 insured in fact if you read the words
01:57 that are highlighted at the very top of
01:58 this document they say this certificate
02:01 is not worth anything it transfers no
02:04 rights no protection to the additional
02:07 insurance and it specifically says that
02:10 if the certificate holder is an
02:12 additional insured
02:13 the policies of the contractor must be
02:16 endorsed well what does that mean
02:18 endorsed most contractors general
02:22 liability policies have what’s called an
02:25 additional insured endorsement that
02:28 states that the contractor is allowed to
02:31 name anyone that the contractor wishes
02:34 as an additional insured any entity any
02:36 building any person as an additional
02:38 insured as long as the contractor agrees
02:41 to do that in a written agreement before
02:44 the work is started and before the
02:46 accident happens
02:47 that’s called a blanket additional
02:49 insured we’re required by written
02:50 contract endorsement such as this so the
02:54 thing is this certificate of insurance
02:56 is absolutely not
02:59 a written agreement a written agreement
03:01 states the parties and is also signed by
03:04 the parties to the agreement so in order
03:08 for a board and a building to be an
03:11 additional insured on a contractor’s
03:13 general liability policy in addition to
03:16 the certificate of insurance you need an
03:19 agreement two pieces of paper working
03:21 together the agreement which your
03:24 attorney should really write up in
03:26 review before it’s used it needs to
03:28 state a few things the contractor’s name
03:30 the type of work to be done the client
03:33 or the building the location of the
03:36 building and usually the managing agent
03:38 you’ll want to name is additionally
03:39 insured as well along with the board of
03:40 directors the agreement should state
03:43 that the contractor agrees to indemnify
03:46 and hold harmless the building the board
03:49 in the managing agent and that also the
03:52 contractor agrees to name all of those
03:55 parties as an additional insured on its
03:58 general liability policy the contractor
04:01 should also maintain workers
04:02 compensation in this agreement requires
04:04 that as well because a contractor such
04:06 as a sole proprietor working without
04:08 workers compensation adds even more risk
04:11 and liability to the building so with
04:13 these terms the contractor signs the
04:15 agreement and then the managing agent
04:17 can sign the agreement on behalf of the
04:19 managing agent and the building that
04:21 that he or she represents and now you
04:24 have a written agreement this agreement
04:26 does
04:26 have to be a separate agreement it can
04:28 be embedded into the contract for work
04:30 along with how much the works good at
04:33 cost and what with the scope of the
04:36 works going to be or can be separate but
04:38 there needs to be an agreement as the
04:41 endorsement states so now that you know
04:44 what’s required to be an additional
04:46 insured you might think well that sounds
04:49 pretty easy the fact of the matter is
04:50 most boards rely on their managing
04:53 agents to collect this type of
04:54 documentation and the problem with that
04:57 is if you have a typical managing agent
05:01 and in some cases these numbers are
05:03 actually understated but let’s say a
05:05 managing agent manages 40 buildings
05:07 let’s say and this wouldn’t be unusual
05:09 25 different contractors service that
05:12 building service one building plumber
05:15 roofer electrician brick pointing guy
05:20 masonry guy painter etc 25 contractors
05:24 and I already explained you need at
05:27 least two documents could be if the
05:30 additional or if the workers comp roof
05:32 is on a separate piece could be three
05:34 documents but let’s say two times 40
05:37 buildings times 25 contractors that’s
05:38 2,000 documents that that managing agent
05:41 needs to maintain for the 40 buildings
05:43 that his firm is or her firm is agent
05:47 for that’s a lot of documents and well a
05:51 lot of managing agents say that they do
05:53 this process well the fact of the matter
05:55 is it’s a very difficult process to do
05:58 well and completely all of the time
06:00 especially if you’re getting
06:02 certificates of insurance for each and
06:05 every policy or because the policy
06:06 renews each and every year and then you
06:08 should have a certificate of insurance
06:10 updated to show the current policies
06:12 enforce for each and every contractor so
06:16 the point of this discussion is that
06:19 boards may not be aware of the exposure
06:23 by not getting these documents in place
06:26 properly these are called risk transfer
06:28 documents and the risk in not doing this
06:31 properly
06:32 however small it is it’s a risk and it
06:35 can be severe is that if a contractor’s
06:37 employee is injured it
06:40 building and falling off of a ladder for
06:42 instance and is unable to work for the
06:45 rest of his life or her life he’s gonna
06:48 sue and because of the scaffold law
06:50 which is unique to the New York that
06:52 worker will win that lawsuit even if
06:55 he’s drunk
06:56 even if he’s been affected by drugs even
06:59 if he forgot all of his safety equipment
07:01 and broke all of the rules the building
07:03 will still be absolutely liable under
07:05 this law the only way to protect is
07:08 either the building’s insurance which if
07:11 the building’s insurance has to pay that
07:12 claim premiums are going to go through
07:14 the roof for the next five years the
07:15 quality of insurance the building will
07:17 be able to go get will go down or
07:20 ideally the contractors insurance and
07:22 the only way you get the contractors
07:24 insurance is making sure he has the
07:26 insurance with the certificate and
07:28 making sure you’re an additional insured
07:30 through the agreement I discussed
07:33 [Music]
00:13 my name is Jason sky Johnno and I’m
00:16 president of Lovett first associates in
00:18 Tarrytown New York I wanted to talk
00:21 about a topic today that a number of
00:24 boards of condominiums and coops are
00:26 unaware and it’s a topic that can
00:29 drastically affect their liability
00:31 exposure and ultimately their insurance
00:33 premiums for many years to come if it’s
00:35 not properly addressed the topic is
00:38 related to a law and New York State
00:41 called the New York State scaffold law
00:42 New York is the only state in the United
00:45 States of America that has this type of
00:47 law and basically the law says that if a
00:51 worker for instance for a contractor
00:53 working at the condo or co-op building
00:56 is injured particularly in a fall from a
00:59 height like a ladder or a tree or a roof
01:02 that the building will be absolutely
01:04 liable for that contractor’s injuries in
01:07 a court of law under a liability suit so
01:10 obviously the law has huge implications
01:13 and risks for buildings many boards are
01:16 under the assumption mistakenly that if
01:19 the board or the managing agent collects
01:22 a document called a certificate of
01:25 liability insurance and if that document
01:28 lists in the description box that the
01:33 building and the managing agent and
01:35 board are additional insurance on the
01:38 contractors general liability policy the
01:41 board assumes that they’ve got
01:42 protection and that one of the
01:44 contractors workers is injured that the
01:46 board in the building will be protected
01:49 by the contractors insurance policy
01:51 because this thing says their additional
01:53 insured in fact if you read the words
01:57 that are highlighted at the very top of
01:58 this document they say this certificate
02:01 is not worth anything it transfers no
02:04 rights no protection to the additional
02:07 insurance and it specifically says that
02:10 if the certificate holder is an
02:12 additional insured
02:13 the policies of the contractor must be
02:16 endorsed well what does that mean
02:18 endorsed most contractors general
02:22 liability policies have what’s called an
02:25 additional insured endorsement that
02:28 states that the contractor is allowed to
02:31 name anyone that the contractor wishes
02:34 as an additional insured any entity any
02:36 building any person as an additional
02:38 insured as long as the contractor agrees
02:41 to do that in a written agreement before
02:44 the work is started and before the
02:46 accident happens
02:47 that’s called a blanket additional
02:49 insured we’re required by written
02:50 contract endorsement such as this so the
02:54 thing is this certificate of insurance
02:56 is absolutely not
02:59 a written agreement a written agreement
03:01 states the parties and is also signed by
03:04 the parties to the agreement so in order
03:08 for a board and a building to be an
03:11 additional insured on a contractor’s
03:13 general liability policy in addition to
03:16 the certificate of insurance you need an
03:19 agreement two pieces of paper working
03:21 together the agreement which your
03:24 attorney should really write up in
03:26 review before it’s used it needs to
03:28 state a few things the contractor’s name
03:30 the type of work to be done the client
03:33 or the building the location of the
03:36 building and usually the managing agent
03:38 you’ll want to name is additionally
03:39 insured as well along with the board of
03:40 directors the agreement should state
03:43 that the contractor agrees to indemnify
03:46 and hold harmless the building the board
03:49 in the managing agent and that also the
03:52 contractor agrees to name all of those
03:55 parties as an additional insured on its
03:58 general liability policy the contractor
04:01 should also maintain workers
04:02 compensation in this agreement requires
04:04 that as well because a contractor such
04:06 as a sole proprietor working without
04:08 workers compensation adds even more risk
04:11 and liability to the building so with
04:13 these terms the contractor signs the
04:15 agreement and then the managing agent
04:17 can sign the agreement on behalf of the
04:19 managing agent and the building that
04:21 that he or she represents and now you
04:24 have a written agreement this agreement
04:26 does
04:26 have to be a separate agreement it can
04:28 be embedded into the contract for work
04:30 along with how much the works good at
04:33 cost and what with the scope of the
04:36 works going to be or can be separate but
04:38 there needs to be an agreement as the
04:41 endorsement states so now that you know
04:44 what’s required to be an additional
04:46 insured you might think well that sounds
04:49 pretty easy the fact of the matter is
04:50 most boards rely on their managing
04:53 agents to collect this type of
04:54 documentation and the problem with that
04:57 is if you have a typical managing agent
05:01 and in some cases these numbers are
05:03 actually understated but let’s say a
05:05 managing agent manages 40 buildings
05:07 let’s say and this wouldn’t be unusual
05:09 25 different contractors service that
05:12 building service one building plumber
05:15 roofer electrician brick pointing guy
05:20 masonry guy painter etc 25 contractors
05:24 and I already explained you need at
05:27 least two documents could be if the
05:30 additional or if the workers comp roof
05:32 is on a separate piece could be three
05:34 documents but let’s say two times 40
05:37 buildings times 25 contractors that’s
05:38 2,000 documents that that managing agent
05:41 needs to maintain for the 40 buildings
05:43 that his firm is or her firm is agent
05:47 for that’s a lot of documents and well a
05:51 lot of managing agents say that they do
05:53 this process well the fact of the matter
05:55 is it’s a very difficult process to do
05:58 well and completely all of the time
06:00 especially if you’re getting
06:02 certificates of insurance for each and
06:05 every policy or because the policy
06:06 renews each and every year and then you
06:08 should have a certificate of insurance
06:10 updated to show the current policies
06:12 enforce for each and every contractor so
06:16 the point of this discussion is that
06:19 boards may not be aware of the exposure
06:23 by not getting these documents in place
06:26 properly these are called risk transfer
06:28 documents and the risk in not doing this
06:31 properly
06:32 however small it is it’s a risk and it
06:35 can be severe is that if a contractor’s
06:37 employee is injured it
06:40 building and falling off of a ladder for
06:42 instance and is unable to work for the
06:45 rest of his life or her life he’s gonna
06:48 sue and because of the scaffold law
06:50 which is unique to the New York that
06:52 worker will win that lawsuit even if
06:55 he’s drunk
06:56 even if he’s been affected by drugs even
06:59 if he forgot all of his safety equipment
07:01 and broke all of the rules the building
07:03 will still be absolutely liable under
07:05 this law the only way to protect is
07:08 either the building’s insurance which if
07:11 the building’s insurance has to pay that
07:12 claim premiums are going to go through
07:14 the roof for the next five years the
07:15 quality of insurance the building will
07:17 be able to go get will go down or
07:20 ideally the contractors insurance and
07:22 the only way you get the contractors
07:24 insurance is making sure he has the
07:26 insurance with the certificate and
07:28 making sure you’re an additional insured
07:30 through the agreement I discussed
07:33 [Music]
2018 ANDRUS 90th Anniversary Gala Honoree, Jason Schiciano Acceptance
00:00 I had my music next year let it first be
00:22 50 years old honored by Andres and we
00:35 congratulate you on 90 years of
00:37 excellent history but I’m really
00:40 wondering how we’re going to get from 50
00:43 tonight but for me this night is really
00:48 about human connections a few years ago
00:52 I was talking to my friend and he
01:00 realized that together the wonderful
01:03 opportunity to make a connection between
01:05 love at first and animus and for the
01:08 past three years we’ve been leaving a
01:11 skeleton crew back at our office in
01:14 Tarrytown and those of you that were on
01:16 the skeleton crew raise your hand
01:18 thank you for a hanging back our
01:26 insurance clothing put on jeans and
01:30 t-shirts and headed over to Andres or a
01:33 workday that consisted of real work on
01:39 various projects in Andres and with the
01:43 systems of special Andrus people like
01:45 Fiona Stefan
01:48 Juliana Brianne Eric and Hector through
01:53 some hard work of bee sting or to a lot
02:04 of laughs our connections with Andres
02:06 have grown over each of our three years
02:10 there as we worked on site and beside
02:14 the students we’ve seen the wonderful
02:16 staff of an vez extends a hand to
02:18 connect to the young people that in many
02:21 cases have no other person in the world
02:25 with which to connect and I’ve seen
02:28 children look at their Andres teachers
02:31 and counselors as you and I looked at
02:35 our own parents when we were young and
02:38 that connection is strong and it lends
02:42 perspective
02:43 Andres makes an invaluable and an
02:47 indelible mark on each child that passes
02:50 through its gates sits in its inspiring
02:53 classrooms walks its beautiful gardens
02:56 and fields in calls Andres home for a
02:59 time on behalf of my wife Andrea my
03:03 sister-in-law of every level my partner
03:06 Ken first and his wife Sue in all of the
03:09 let first family here tonight we want to
03:12 thank Brian Murphy Jason Honaker the
03:14 board of directors in all of our friends
03:17 at Andres for allowing love at first to
03:20 connect with you we want to recognize
03:23 all of you for helping us get to this
03:26 evening and we are proud to participate
03:29 in your future success thanks very much
00:22 50 years old honored by Andres and we
00:35 congratulate you on 90 years of
00:37 excellent history but I’m really
00:40 wondering how we’re going to get from 50
00:43 tonight but for me this night is really
00:48 about human connections a few years ago
00:52 I was talking to my friend and he
01:00 realized that together the wonderful
01:03 opportunity to make a connection between
01:05 love at first and animus and for the
01:08 past three years we’ve been leaving a
01:11 skeleton crew back at our office in
01:14 Tarrytown and those of you that were on
01:16 the skeleton crew raise your hand
01:18 thank you for a hanging back our
01:26 insurance clothing put on jeans and
01:30 t-shirts and headed over to Andres or a
01:33 workday that consisted of real work on
01:39 various projects in Andres and with the
01:43 systems of special Andrus people like
01:45 Fiona Stefan
01:48 Juliana Brianne Eric and Hector through
01:53 some hard work of bee sting or to a lot
02:04 of laughs our connections with Andres
02:06 have grown over each of our three years
02:10 there as we worked on site and beside
02:14 the students we’ve seen the wonderful
02:16 staff of an vez extends a hand to
02:18 connect to the young people that in many
02:21 cases have no other person in the world
02:25 with which to connect and I’ve seen
02:28 children look at their Andres teachers
02:31 and counselors as you and I looked at
02:35 our own parents when we were young and
02:38 that connection is strong and it lends
02:42 perspective
02:43 Andres makes an invaluable and an
02:47 indelible mark on each child that passes
02:50 through its gates sits in its inspiring
02:53 classrooms walks its beautiful gardens
02:56 and fields in calls Andres home for a
02:59 time on behalf of my wife Andrea my
03:03 sister-in-law of every level my partner
03:06 Ken first and his wife Sue in all of the
03:09 let first family here tonight we want to
03:12 thank Brian Murphy Jason Honaker the
03:14 board of directors in all of our friends
03:17 at Andres for allowing love at first to
03:20 connect with you we want to recognize
03:23 all of you for helping us get to this
03:26 evening and we are proud to participate
03:29 in your future success thanks very much
2018 ANDRUS 90th Anniversary Gala Honoree, Ken Fuirst Acceptance
00:00 [Applause]
00:05 you have as we’re sitting there working
01:01 in a garden or painting the walls in the
01:04 classroom or decorating your birdhouses
01:06 and a compass it really is a
01:14 reflection that you guys take this
01:15 seriously it’s not a day off you realize
01:18 the impact of what we’re doing and how
01:21 we’re changing people’s lives and that
01:23 really means a lot to Jason I and that’s
01:26 why we continue to do things like this
01:28 because we are changing people’s lives
01:30 so thank you to all eleven first
01:33 employees in everything guys
01:41 tonight we’re chasing I very rarely get
01:44 to see the spouses of our employees and
01:47 Jason likes to say frequently in company
01:50 meetings now you end up spending more
01:52 time with your you know work partners
01:56 than you do with your own families so we
01:59 just I just want to thank the spouses
02:01 and significant of others of our
02:03 employees for supporting the employees
02:06 we’re tolerating their stories that they
02:08 group us bring on that idea and
02:10 everything else that you do so that they
02:11 show up the next day with a smile on
02:13 their face thank you
02:16 [Applause]
00:05 you have as we’re sitting there working
01:01 in a garden or painting the walls in the
01:04 classroom or decorating your birdhouses
01:06 and a compass it really is a
01:14 reflection that you guys take this
01:15 seriously it’s not a day off you realize
01:18 the impact of what we’re doing and how
01:21 we’re changing people’s lives and that
01:23 really means a lot to Jason I and that’s
01:26 why we continue to do things like this
01:28 because we are changing people’s lives
01:30 so thank you to all eleven first
01:33 employees in everything guys
01:41 tonight we’re chasing I very rarely get
01:44 to see the spouses of our employees and
01:47 Jason likes to say frequently in company
01:50 meetings now you end up spending more
01:52 time with your you know work partners
01:56 than you do with your own families so we
01:59 just I just want to thank the spouses
02:01 and significant of others of our
02:03 employees for supporting the employees
02:06 we’re tolerating their stories that they
02:08 group us bring on that idea and
02:10 everything else that you do so that they
02:11 show up the next day with a smile on
02:13 their face thank you
02:16 [Applause]
Valerie Levitt, Ken Fuirst, Ondrea Levitt Schiciano, & Jason Schiciano
2018 Paid Family Leave Informational Video by Shelterpoint – July 10, 2017
Shelterpoint shares the big changes to the New York Disability program with the addition of the Paid Family Leave coverage. Click here to read an overview, or click the link above to watch this incredibly informative (and interesting) video on the new law.
00:04 hey it’s my pleasure to introduce Ken
00:07 first and you think again so on Ken
00:16 first my lovely assistant and business
00:19 partner Jason’s hashanah will be manning
00:22 de Vanna White role of clicking on my
00:25 slides in FS we’ve been practicing all
00:30 week for this as much as jeff has said
00:34 all you know who we are there are a lot
00:37 of new faces here tonight but just for a
00:39 quick minute I just want to explain
00:40 Leavitt first is one of the largest
00:43 independent insurance brokers in
00:45 Westchester and our niche is the real
00:47 estate and construction industries and
00:50 the reason why our 50-person office is
00:53 the bottom are the advisors to the
00:55 builders Institute the condo coop
00:56 council and all the association’s here
00:58 tonight is because we’ve created
01:02 programs you need to these industries
01:05 where we grew together and get your
01:08 group discounts on insurance so those of
01:10 you that have not don’t know about our
01:12 services feel free to call possibly
01:15 offer some unique value added services
01:18 that no other insurance broker can
01:20 provide to help people that manage
01:22 properties that own buildings then run
01:25 construction companies and so forth
01:27 because we’re a niche player were able
01:30 to create and develop unique products
01:32 and services for these two industries so
01:34 feel free to talk to Jason or myself
01:37 after tonight’s presentation I also want
01:39 to take a minute to introduce two other
01:41 people in the audience one from our
01:43 office is packed Clare is the director
01:45 of our
01:46 state division that can you raise your
01:48 arm and also I’d like to take a minute
01:53 where you know I’m going to build up to
01:55 a new insurance certificate that’s out
01:57 there called the Accord 855 and we’re
02:02 lucky enough tonight to have with us
02:04 Anthony Carlucci from Greenblatt well
02:07 whelming remoulade and Brady I thought
02:11 was it yeah well being brainy gremlin on
02:14 them for 20 years like they don’t accept
02:16 where he went right here so Anthony was
02:19 one of the creators of this certificate
02:21 on part of the committee that’s worked
02:23 for multiple years on this the end
02:26 product you know either those jokes when
02:28 you get too many people in the room and
02:30 what the end product looks like it’s not
02:31 a perfect end result but we’re going to
02:33 talk about it when we help towards the
02:35 end of the presentation and talk about
02:37 how you might you might not want to be
02:39 using this insurance certificate Jason
02:42 and I opinion in front of you many many
02:44 times and we’ve told you what the value
02:47 of this insurance certificate is you do
02:50 not have a sample in front of you we’re
02:52 not going to talk about the end outside
02:53 or in front of me towards until the end
02:55 so you don’t have to look at them this
02:57 is just a regular certificate we’ve told
03:01 you over and over again I mean nothing
03:04 you can’t rely on this piece of paper
03:07 all this piece of paper tells you is
03:10 that the contractor that you hired has
03:13 an insurance policy with certain limits
03:16 that supposedly add them on a certain
03:18 date that’s it we’ve been in front of
03:21 you multiple multiple tonics explaining
03:24 this and we’ve told you that the second
03:26 part of the equation is that you need to
03:28 have a contract to go with the
03:31 certificate and once those two pieces
03:33 come together then you are protected one
03:38 without the other serves you no good so
03:41 I’m going to review that again
03:43 get get you to that point why you need
03:45 those parts to come together to fit the
03:47 puzzle but then we’re going to take it
03:49 to the next stage which has evolved over
03:52 the last couple years which is what has
03:54 created the invention of this new
03:55 certificate which you might have a
03:58 contract you might have the insurance
04:00 certificate but you don’t know what type
04:03 of insurance that contractor is telling
04:05 you he has you have no idea whether or
04:08 not that policy is a real policy of fake
04:10 policy policy that excludes him going on
04:12 the roof that exclusive working on your
04:15 on your house excludes working on your
04:17 building excludes fupas you’re in the
04:19 Bronx you have no idea it just shows
04:21 that they have insurance so now a new
04:24 certificate has been created called me
04:26 55 then is supplemental it’s an
04:28 additional form that you might or might
04:30 want your contractors to start to fill
04:33 out truthfully I don’t think anyone here
04:37 in this room will end up using that
04:38 certificate fun we’re going to short the
04:41 end of this I am going to show you a
04:42 spectrum of ways from doing almost
04:45 nothing to having this certificate and
04:48 then there are ways that you can ratchet
04:50 it back and try to figure out what’s
04:51 useful for your operation if you’re a
04:54 general contractor you’re going to want
04:56 to be pretty close to this because
04:58 you’re hiring contractors day in and day
04:59 out and this is going to dramatically
05:01 impact your insurance rates for the long
05:03 term if you’re a property manager you
05:05 might just want to help pull out a
05:07 couple factors from this and just be
05:10 focused on checking on your roofers or
05:12 your painters or the guys on the
05:14 exterior of the building and you might
05:16 adapt some some iteration of this to
05:19 what you feel you need to protect at the
05:22 end of the day your insurance if you’re
05:24 dealing with a professional insurance
05:25 broker and has not new insurance policy
05:28 your policies are going to protect you
05:31 when you’re not protected from is that
05:34 if a claim hits and you’ve hired a sub
05:37 or a contractor
05:38 with that insurance it’s going to drive
05:40 up your insurance rates because he
05:42 insurance this claim that your painter
05:44 that fell off the scaffold or the ladder
05:46 is now going to impact you for five
05:48 years so you’re at the end of this
05:50 presentation will have to determine how
05:52 important that is to you you know how
05:54 important it is to control your rates
05:56 can you control your board you know you
05:59 might not be able to control the board
06:00 of your building the boat and they just
06:03 want to hire the cheapest contractor
06:04 each time so we put Lee set by the end
06:07 of tonight you’ll know what’s at risk
06:10 Jason so we start at the beginning I’m
06:13 going to go backwards just to remind you
06:15 of how we got here and it all starts
06:17 with workers compensation the whole
06:19 concept behind workers comp is that a
06:21 guy gets injured he gets paid his
06:25 medical bills get paid most of his loss
06:28 compensation gets paid end of story but
06:32 a hundred years ago before workers comp
06:34 Oh what happened is the guy would fall
06:35 in a factory and he would have to sue
06:37 the owner of the factory to collect
06:40 because he broke his leg and then the
06:42 owner the mean upon owner the factory
06:44 would sue him and say no you were
06:45 negligent you should’ve been on that one
06:47 for something and so you’d have them
06:49 suing each other lawyers would be
06:51 involved it turned into a big expensive
06:54 ordeal that would drag out for a long
06:55 time so a hundred years ago they created
06:58 workers compensation they said no
07:00 lawyers no attorneys no lawsuits the guy
07:04 gets paid no questions asked we might
07:07 not all agree when it when employing
07:09 it’s injured you might want to sue you
07:11 might want to fight it the course lean
07:13 towards easy to pour in you know get
07:16 your employees but trust me we’re all
07:18 saving a lot of money by taking the
07:20 attorneys out of the system I just
07:22 having
07:22 an injured employee collect for his
07:24 medical bills and move on get lost page
07:27 the wages that hopefully come back to
07:29 work except in New York there used to be
07:36 a small loophole that has now grown into
07:39 a huge loophole in New York and you’ve
07:42 heard the terms labor law to 4241 scvle
07:47 safe place to work on all these things
07:51 are connected they’re all different
07:52 names for a law that’s been on the books
07:54 for many many years but lawyers have now
07:57 figured a way to exploit that to be able
08:00 to sue when someone gets injured the
08:02 footnote is this does not apply to
08:05 construction on single-family or
08:07 two-family homes there are some ways to
08:10 penetrate it but for the most part these
08:13 what we’re going to talk about does not
08:15 involve if you’re just you know dealing
08:17 on single or two-family homes it doesn’t
08:19 impact you know co-ops condos apartment
08:21 buildings and so for single-family homes
08:23 them so in New York there’s this law
08:28 that says the building owner or the
08:32 general contractor whoever’s hiring this
08:34 contractor is required to provide a safe
08:36 place to work when something evolved it
08:39 involves Heights now the term Heights
08:43 ruin this law was first created was the
08:45 whole thing was about people falling off
08:47 scaffolds on the side of the building
08:48 and it was up it was those evil building
08:51 owners and we’re not providing a safe
08:52 place for these contractors to work and
08:54 so that’s where this open this whole
08:56 came from but as this has been exploited
08:59 over the years heights now means your
09:02 electrician that gets up on the chair to
09:04 change a light bulb if he falls off
09:06 that’s a hike related injury the painter
09:08 that’s on the ladder inside the
09:10 apartment it falls off that’s all I
09:12 related
09:12 injury the excavator that falls into the
09:15 ditch is a height related injury it’s
09:18 been pushed to such an extreme that you
09:21 could have a contractor who’s sick
09:23 that’s standing on the floor and on
09:24 hammer Falls also ins ladder lands on
09:27 his foot height related he has a broken
09:30 foot that’s a hype related claim but was
09:35 the worst part about this law is that
09:38 when it was created to protect these
09:40 contractors working on the outside these
09:42 buildings they said it’s a hundred
09:44 percent the responsibility of the
09:46 business of the building owner it’s
09:49 absolute liability on that general
09:51 contractor that hires the company hires
09:53 the cell to work for him there’s no
09:56 defense okay so you can hire a painter
10:00 who goes out and has a six-pack at lunch
10:03 comes back grabs the broken letter
10:07 that’s sitting in the dumpster that says
10:08 do not use gets on that drum falls off
10:12 you’re responsible so this has been a
10:16 field day for attorneys trial attorneys
10:19 in New York and it is you know slowly
10:21 slowly has snowballed over the last 10
10:25 years as more more people have figured
10:27 out this great way to collect when you
10:29 get injured at work i’ll tell you one
10:32 example we have one contractor also no
10:36 walls who showed up on his desk for one
10:38 the guys that works for him that doesn’t
10:40 speak English so we get through this
10:43 whole thing and it turns and says why
10:45 are you suing and the guy said I’m gonna
10:48 sue you I don’t even know what this is
10:49 about turns out you have ambulance
10:52 chasers now that go through the
10:54 hospitals and he remember signing a full
10:57 arm because someone came to his room
10:58 said oh you got a juror on the job this
11:00 is for workers compensation they signed
11:02 a form that basically retained an
11:04 attorney for him so his boss said you
11:06 can’t sue got stop this because we can
11:09 you know we’re going to go out of
11:09 business and so those injured employee
11:12 you know called up his attorney and said
11:14 you know I never wanted to sue please
11:16 cancel this when the attorney said we
11:18 kidding I’m gonna get you a quarter
11:19 million dollars for nothing the lawsuit
11:23 pursued okay the system has gotten out
11:26 of control so how does this work so in
11:31 New York guy breaks his leg falls off
11:35 the ladder breaks his leg in New York
11:37 he’s painting he collects workers comp
11:40 the normal way like every other state in
11:42 the country but now he sues the building
11:46 owner he soon as the GC okay he can’t
11:50 sue his balls this poor guy that got
11:52 injured cuz there’s workers comp low so
11:55 the only way that he’s able to collect
11:56 is to sue the building owner or the GC
12:04 so we’ve been telling you for the last
12:07 five years that the way to protect
12:09 yourself is to push this risk back down
12:12 to the employer you control the subs you
12:16 control the contractors that come up to
12:17 your property so you it’s your job to
12:20 demand that they sell that this contract
12:23 that comes on your property is going to
12:24 hold it it’s going to take
12:26 responsibility for this injury and
12:28 you’re not going to get hit with the
12:30 claim so we’ve been teaching for years
12:32 how to transfer this risk we told you as
12:38 I said before you get a certificate and
12:40 then you have a contract contract would
12:43 be one paragraph long or it could be
12:46 five pages long but it up said contained
12:48 two key ingredients one that you require
12:52 this contractor that you hire to list
12:54 you as additional each word on his
12:56 policies and to that he’s going to hold
12:59 you harmless he’s going to identify you
13:01 so and if he screws up if his God gets
13:04 injured if he causes a problem on the
13:05 job he’s saying his insurance is going
13:08 to take care of this and he needs both
13:10 these things in a contract that he signs
13:13 before he starts working not after the
13:17 accident before he goes on the job site
13:20 and again one more time having a
13:24 certificate that shows that you’re
13:25 additionally insured means nothing if
13:29 you don’t have this other part you need
13:32 both parts of the puzzle to protect
13:35 yourself one without the other you got
13:38 nothing so what is happening a lawsuits
13:45 as i said in new york are now in the six
13:47 and seven-figure level of it you don’t
13:50 have to be a powerful legion it just
13:52 open L can break your arm you you fall
13:54 off a soft tissue injury it’s in the
13:57 hundreds and hundreds of thousands of
13:58 dollars so this has led that of all the
14:03 contractors insurance rates have now
14:05 skyrocketed guys are working out on
14:08 roofs on the exterior building have
14:10 rates have gone up four five six times
14:12 and anyone to tie them and you’ve heard
14:14 the story over the last couple of years
14:16 guys that aren’t on Heights have also
14:18 seen their rates go up with two to three
14:20 times all the result of this so then
14:24 what happens there’s always a game and
14:27 the smaller contractors have figured out
14:30 a way to get around this and they buy
14:32 cheap insurance they figured out they
14:36 can’t afford all these rate increases
14:37 because the GCS they all have to pay for
14:40 this and then property managers say I’m
14:42 not going to pay for this and so you got
14:44 the smaller guys out there that are
14:46 getting what’s called cheap insurance so
14:48 what does that mean here you are you get
14:52 sued you try to transfer the risk down
14:55 and then you’re blocked okay you can’t
15:00 push the insurance and the fault and
15:02 this claim down to the sub any longer
15:04 because he bought cheap insurance what
15:07 do I mean by that they buying policies
15:10 that excluded claims it says what that
15:14 will cover certain things but we’re not
15:16 going to cover you if one of your guys
15:17 gets injured on the job meaning they
15:20 don’t want to be brought into a labor
15:21 law claim it could exclude if they not
15:24 have your cell tires or so and that sub
15:27 gets injured there could be an exclusion
15:29 on the policy for that they’re going to
15:31 be exclusion their exclusion zone
15:33 policies that would say we’re going to
15:34 come you accept if you go up on Heights
15:36 they accept if you go over to stories
15:39 except if you go on the exterior of the
15:42 building they don’t want to cover you
15:43 for that and that’s how they get cheap
15:45 insurance there’s policies out there
15:48 that are excluding any claims that
15:51 involve working on a new building
15:52 working the five boroughs working on a
15:55 residential building contractors are
15:58 finding whatever we there is to save
16:00 money on insurance and they’re getting
16:01 policy that happens have these
16:03 exclusions or as blatantly as it says it
16:08 says we’re not going to cover any
16:10 contracts you sign so if you’ve signed a
16:12 whole long list of the GC if you signed
16:14 a whole harmless to them to the property
16:16 manager who are not covering you again
16:20 all of you that have good insurance
16:22 you’re protected okay you’re just going
16:26 to be unsuccessful in pushing the clay
16:27 down you might get hit some policies for
16:31 channel countries
16:32 listen if you hire a contractor with
16:34 cheap insurance you’re gonna have to
16:36 pick up the first 25 thousand or fifty
16:38 thousand dollars of the claim but you’re
16:40 still going to be protected but it will
16:43 impact you in the long run here’s a
16:47 partial list of cheap insurance
16:49 companies we give this to all our
16:52 contractors without looking to hire
16:54 yourselves and anyone that needs a copy
16:57 of the feel free to email jason or ally
16:58 who you get you with it it’s not I did
17:01 not hand this out today but this is a
17:03 partial list of banned insurance company
17:06 said some of them you’ll recognize you
17:08 come first you’ll see a lot of
17:09 carpenters with you’ll see Essex you’ll
17:13 see century surety you’ll see a link and
17:15 casualty those are common cheap
17:19 insurance companies in in this area and
17:23 you’re going to have to start deciding
17:25 whether or not when you’re looking at
17:27 two bids whether or not they have the
17:29 right type of insurance you’re going to
17:33 decide how much time and effort you want
17:36 to invest to protect your insurance
17:39 company from getting hit with these
17:41 claims you’re not going to get hit with
17:43 it your insurance company is going to
17:44 get hit with it and when your insurance
17:46 company gets hit with it it shows up on
17:48 your claims history and you know shop
17:51 around your insurance we have to show
17:53 five years of history and that claim
17:56 will show for five years and if you’re a
17:59 general contractor you have one of these
18:00 claims it shows that you hired a cheap
18:02 sub I’ll tell you what the insurance
18:04 companies thing they think this guy runs
18:07 a shoddy job they think this guy is just
18:09 hiring and cheapest subs they’re not
18:12 looking at the paperwork and we can’t
18:14 save as much as Jason and I want to
18:16 shake it and say no it’s just a random
18:17 thing look here all the great
18:19 certificates that he gets and all the
18:20 contracts and he reviews this is we have
18:23 no credibility because now the insurance
18:24 companies had to pay out of 5
18:25 $2,000 claim and your insurance rates
18:28 will have gone up for many years to come
18:31 so what do I do now is talk to you about
18:34 the spectrum of protection that you
18:37 could do and you’re going to add the end
18:39 of tonight you’re going to decide what’s
18:41 good you know what’s reasonable for your
18:43 operation so the lowest level is what
18:47 people used to do you just collected a
18:50 certificate of insurance a workers comp
18:52 and liability certificate boom and today
18:54 obviously hopefully no one in this room
18:56 is doing that many of you now have
19:02 ratcheted up and you’re getting a
19:03 subcontractor agreement from every
19:05 contractor but before they start work
19:08 and that’s to remove but you can rent it
19:12 up one more level first of all to make
19:16 sure that they have workers come if
19:18 they’re if you’re working in New york
19:20 you could go online to see if their
19:22 workers comp policy is active than in
19:24 the oh it’s not slowing on and let it
19:26 lapse you can’t rely on insurance
19:28 companies sending your cancellation
19:29 notice but there’s a database on workers
19:32 comp and you could email us and we’ll
19:33 tell you what that is and you could
19:35 before you pay him before you hire them
19:37 the smaller guys at you’re a little
19:38 questionable bound you can check it once
19:40 a month whatever you again it’s up to
19:43 you and then on the liability side you
19:48 you know comes on that checklist that we
19:50 just showed you of 30 different
19:52 insurance companies okay make sure they
19:55 hear you just and this is what many of
19:57 our contraries we’re doing three years
19:59 and they just checked to see is that
20:01 contractor that cell with any one of
20:03 these insurance companies and they made
20:05 all migrant many of our contractors send
20:10 us the certificates of the selves that
20:12 they hire and they let us review and
20:14 that’s another way of you that you can
20:17 protect
20:17 protect yourself but you can ratchet it
20:20 oh and one more now you could ask for
20:25 documentation to find out whether or not
20:28 the insurance they have is cheap
20:30 insurance for now because we just we now
20:34 just got hit with a general contractor
20:35 in Westchester that diligently would go
20:38 down that list of 30 companies and he
20:40 made sure he never hired one of those
20:41 well turns out he just hired itself this
20:44 best full from western New York who had
20:47 a company we never heard of so it wasn’t
20:49 on the checklist he never sent us the
20:51 insurance certificate of course that’s
20:52 the stuff that had an injury it turns
20:55 out of course that small company and
20:57 insurance cover that none of us had
20:58 heard of a didn’t make our list was
21:01 cheap insurance so he’s getting hit with
21:03 it so that’s one of the reasons why
21:05 things have ratcheted up we’re now
21:08 people more sophisticated general
21:11 contractors in the city even gc’s out
21:14 here starting to say we’re going to add
21:17 one more piece of documentation that
21:19 we’re going to require our contractors
21:21 to provide us before they start work
21:23 this document has to be signed by that
21:27 contractors insurance broker so what
21:32 we’re going to go over next he is this
21:34 document that’s now called you know the
21:36 certificate being 55 and you do not have
21:39 to look at the one that’s because I’m
21:41 going to have it up here and we’re going
21:43 to go through that and I’m just going to
21:45 go three flee and I’m going to it up one
21:48 more Bob’s that’s Jason there’s even
21:51 another extreme that some of the biggest
21:52 gc’s to then I don’t think anyone here
21:55 but
21:56 the gc’s in the city have hoped teams of
21:59 people that are now analyzing this and
22:02 they require comedy the policy of every
22:04 contractor that comes on their job just
22:07 want to show you the whole spectrum and
22:09 extreme did you go to protect yourselves
22:11 from hiring subs that might have been
22:14 insurance so then the second i’m going
22:17 to go over the certificate 855 there for
22:21 handouts in front of you don’t bother
22:23 looking at them now what is the 855 one
22:28 is an 11-page document that came out at
22:31 the same time of the year 55 to help you
22:33 understand the 13 questions on the 855
22:39 we then gave you a copy a highlighted
22:42 version of the age 55 with what we say
22:44 if you’re going to use that these are
22:47 the answers that you’re going to want to
22:49 look for on that policy and then the
22:52 fourth document is a letter that we
22:54 created that if you’re kind of hours and
22:56 you want us to send your word document
22:58 of it that you can just use it it’s a
23:00 simplified letter that you sent out to
23:02 yourselves and have him there their
23:04 insurance broker sign it as some of the
23:07 similar questions and focuses on where
23:09 we see the biggest exposures so I’m
23:12 going to briefly now go through the 855
23:15 there are 13 questions the first one to
23:20 assess if the insurance company that
23:22 you’re dealing with is it admitted or
23:25 not admitted I’m not going to explain
23:28 this to I’m not going to go through
23:29 definitions and waste your time on it
23:31 because you’re not going to really it’s
23:33 not a really a relevant factor for you
23:35 unless your large general contractor and
23:39 then we’re more than happy to spend as
23:40 much time as
23:41 unexplained Ian you could be asking
23:44 whether or not what type of do they are
23:46 they using the standard insurance
23:48 isoforms or do they have own concocted
23:52 custom-made forms but none see is
23:57 important question this you might come
23:59 out of this meeting and say you know
24:00 what I’m going to send to my other
24:02 contractors than I meijer this form and
24:05 just tell to answer questions see thin f
24:07 & L or whatever and that’s all you want
24:10 you want them to do figure out what’s
24:12 relevant to you so C is the question
24:15 that requires his insurance broker to
24:18 say are there any major exclusions on
24:20 this policy does it exclude where he
24:23 works that you can’t go the five
24:24 boroughs you can’t go in to commit you
24:26 know Connecticut or maybe type of
24:28 construction you can’t go on new
24:30 buildings you can’t go on residential
24:31 buildings is there a restriction on
24:33 there about how high he’s allowed to
24:35 work is their classification limitation
24:38 their policies out there you Hiram
24:40 painter and his posse might say he’s
24:43 covered for painting and nothing else
24:45 and then also you have your major Ellis
24:47 while you’re here you just build finish
24:49 out that shed out there and get up and
24:51 do he might not have any coverage for
24:53 that maybe there’s a designated work
24:58 that he’s only allowed to do certain
25:01 things or he’s not allowed to do certain
25:03 things so this quite this is one
25:05 question on there could fill in a lot of
25:08 the aspects of it that you might be
25:09 concerned about there are different
25:12 forms of additional short out there if
25:15 you’re sophisticated you seen you want
25:17 to know which ones really to dig into
25:19 and ask for we’re happy to spend time
25:22 with that but as long as one of yours
25:23 your subs have additional insured like
25:26 an additional short you’ll be fine okay
25:31 then and then the wording starts again
25:34 well the first question is you know how
25:36 is his policy
25:37 will his policy pick up primary meaning
25:40 his policy will pay first and then yours
25:43 that’s the way you want it but most of
25:46 the people this room are not going to
25:47 try to fight for that many the policies
25:49 already have that in there but I don’t
25:51 think it’s a high priority for for the
25:53 average contractor or building owner and
25:57 will you get advance notice you know the
25:59 policies canceled everyone’s going to
26:01 say yes but you can’t count on that
26:04 you’re going to want to know that they
26:06 have a normal blanket contractual
26:08 liability and you’re going to want to
26:10 know that there were no changes on GH
26:13 and I on their policy unfortunately when
26:17 you head I don’t know how many people
26:18 were on the committee to make this but
26:20 they know phrasing on this is like a
26:23 triple negative and so we get calls
26:25 constantly from people that are trying
26:27 to fill this out of what does this
26:29 exactly be but basically you want to
26:32 know and they have additional insured
26:35 and nothing was changed and the Contra
26:38 you know the original policies used to
26:42 say if you’re siding contractor covered
26:44 we want to make sure that hasn’t been
26:45 changed their policies cheap insurance
26:47 that says you can’t sign a contract and
26:52 this is the one that says is there an
26:54 explosion of you now added an exclusion
26:56 there about someone getting injured on
26:58 the job site so G H and I are important
27:02 questions that you would want answered
27:04 Jason and then your job involves any
27:11 site work has been the foundations and
27:14 so forth you want to make sure the
27:15 excavator and people working there don’t
27:18 have any
27:19 that type of work you want to know
27:22 there’s a crazy exclusion out there for
27:26 insured verse ensures you don’t want
27:29 that exclusion on there it’s important
27:31 as weird as it sounds it’s some of the
27:33 way the phrase it could be it might
27:35 exclude that listing you as additional
27:37 insured as stupid as it sounds because
27:39 they’ll say oh no that name has been put
27:41 on your policy so we’re not going to
27:42 protect that name so you don’t want okay
27:46 you want to be sure no changes were made
27:49 and then you hear a visit KLR important
27:53 because l it says similar stuff for the
27:56 subs of the Sun to make sure they don’t
27:58 you know that the stuff that you hire
28:01 doesn’t have exclusions on this policy
28:04 that excludes him hollering cells or
28:07 that is something happens the subs that
28:08 he hires there’s no protection from him
28:11 pushing it down and then you don’t you
28:14 don’t have to worry about them so so is
28:26 this jason on tuesday let’s say thursday
28:28 tuesday up in Albany fighting this law
28:32 hundreds and hundreds of people in turns
28:35 feel in the construction field every
28:37 association was represented there we’ve
28:39 been fighting for years to try to fight
28:42 the scaffold law what he went chasing is
28:44 holding in his hands is directors
28:46 illinois used to had a similar law when
28:49 they come rid of the law allowing you
28:53 know the law had said its absolute
28:54 liability and it’s the fault of the GC
28:57 and the property owner then illinois
28:59 said no you know what okay it should be
29:00 fair we’ll figure out a commercial
29:02 member is but what happened to the
29:05 insurance rates anyone that’s in the
29:08 construction industry knows how much
29:10 their insurance rates have gone up in
29:12 the last couple years this is the impact
29:14 that if we can
29:15 something changed in all the day this
29:17 would happen and jason has another
29:19 picture devil forgot your smile you’re
29:24 not in the smile you this was a study
29:26 done with the Tappan Zee Bridge on how
29:28 much more is costing on the New York
29:31 Cyprus in New Jersey selling all week on
29:34 a labor law they’re not using different
29:36 materials on the New Jersey side they’re
29:38 not using different paint or different
29:41 barges but if you get injured on the New
29:43 York side you have laid along on your to
29:47 help you bayit chris Christie we had
29:51 Sheldon Silver so we had home once
29:54 Sheldon Silver he had been known you
29:56 know the big thing that has come out
29:58 about him is that he was being paid
30:00 millions and millions of dollars by
30:01 trial where you know partnerships in the
30:05 city all the ones you see advertising
30:06 the TV were funding him to be his
30:08 advocate to keep this law in effect you
30:12 know when Albert you know we talked
30:13 about with our lobbyists here
30:16 unfortunately we don’t know with the
30:18 person that has stepped in to sheldon
30:20 silver shoes will be much different they
30:24 can’t get worse we’re hoping it’s
30:26 too soon now to tell what’s around the
30:28 corner so Jason are there any things
30:33 that you want to add to what I said
30:36 originally open up for questions first
30:38 then it died
30:54 here and it’s very much gone through if
31:07 you’re doing requested by and consider
31:10 article question responding to do so
31:15 right thing
31:17 business request assistant for related
31:21 document and analyze everything
31:24 or you want to take the risk and can
31:31 hear your building owner or your
31:34 contractor you have insurance your
31:37 insurance is going to respond the ideal
31:40 situation is to push that to somebody
31:43 else any of you wanted ahead of them
31:51 this processing no I think such done a
31:54 lot of I think they’re one of the things
31:58 yes we will have that primary coverage
32:00 through their carriers you just want to
32:03 make sure that your only carriers don’t
32:06 have requirements in your policies for
32:08 what you need to get from North
32:10 subcontractors string in order for them
32:14 to give them for recovery to pointed out
32:16 sometimes there’s a trade-off with
32:19 deductibles and si ours and things like
32:22 that that they may require of you if you
32:24 don’t have good insurance from
32:25 yourselves with something that
32:32 tips are you only have carbon under
32:36 policy in your subcontractor that proper
32:39 coverage it’s important for everybody in
32:42 building or condo or co-op those pipes
32:49 and wires are not yes what you’re hiring
33:03 contractor being a contractor a lot of
33:07 times when we work with gc’s or property
33:10 managers we give a certificate saying on
33:14 additional insured to all locations is
33:17 that something that’s still a viable
33:18 option for as a board member as well
33:22 something on both sides of that seat an
33:26 offense it’s that still a viable
33:28 solution putting all all locations or
33:32 should the insurance policies before
33:34 each location as we have approached them
33:36 all occasions is sufficient sufficient
33:38 you could get a subcontractor agreement
33:42 you know it says at Volvo omelets and
33:45 lizards additional sure for all your
33:47 buildings or your bondage go as long as
33:50 you pull that is keep one insurance
33:52 certificate grovyle your protective know
33:55 some people so she sees will brush that
33:58 up and each other they happen
34:01 GC and says you see I want to list all
34:04 these many people as additional insured
34:05 want you to give me a certificate well
34:08 then as you see uses that same language
34:09 for every sub that they are on that job
34:12 as long as you’re going to something the
34:13 file want to contract one certificate
34:16 you’re not even your good as soon as the
34:40 GC hiring I might know anything anything
35:00 to but as far as we know it’s not
35:04 supposed to it’ll be be picked up on a
35:06 single one or two family home unless the
35:09 homeowner is giving direction yeah then
35:12 you bringing the homeowner but it’s just
35:14 you’re only a house
35:15 I
35:43 okay i gotta finish so what he’s saying
35:47 is that because that we do this as a
35:52 church burgers problem is mrs. Smith
35:54 always asking us these questions and why
35:57 they protected they have to worry about
35:59 hiring contractors and we sit down with
36:02 a leg log unless you’re directly in a
36:04 contract review I don’t worry about it
36:06 but the point is as a GC if you’re
36:08 working on a self a delay or prevent we
36:11 haul you to have that exposure so you
36:16 know look at the positive application is
36:17 here’s a roofer work on submit services
36:20 miss house there’s no exposure okay
36:23 there’s no labor law third party here GC
36:27 working on a single family or Japan we
36:29 know my yourself now you’ve given held
36:33 that diagram the opportunity to kick it
36:36 that’s because you have another later
36:58 this is not all that motion most
37:05 importantly probably the primary result
37:07 of that is it will come for another
37:09 dinner here so that when you tell you
37:11 what you should be doing is ekseption
37:13 women free dinner if the laws that are
37:16 changed who knows what’s going to happen
37:19 I mean do we think that they’re going to
37:20 just get rid of this law say there’s no
37:23 as them we think I’ll come with some
37:25 compromise that there’s you know there
37:27 could be shared responsibility well
37:29 their share responsibility you want to
37:32 push it down still so how were you gonna
37:37 ban appear on your contractors or you
37:39 protect yourself we’re what it takes
37:41 years for what happened is as much as
37:44 they’re too cheap insurance out there
37:46 there’s also much more sophistication by
37:50 gc’s and property ours there that are
37:53 now starting to screen out more and more
37:55 and they won’t let you know on the
37:58 bigger building fled guy on the roof
38:00 that doesn’t have the right type of
38:02 roofie coverage and so it’s right now we
38:05 chore many many rumors five years ago
38:07 hey bbz on John Street was able to get
38:10 ideas cheap mature I’ll have the room
38:13 person the fiber think
38:15 those roots you know the Bentley owners
38:17 in the city all that a will get without
38:18 you have a good quality insurance though
38:20 it’s getting out there more and more
38:22 it’s just the reality hello as you get
38:25 smaller and smaller if you’re a little
38:27 building and you have a board and you’re
38:30 looking at youtube to roofers and one
38:33 there’s a fifty-thousand-dollar
38:34 difference in their prize it’s hard to
38:37 explain it too much more members so we
38:41 have one of you all the buildings you’re
38:43 lucky draw pocketbook and we sure we
38:46 strongly recommend that this becomes
38:47 part of your big process don’t wait for
38:51 the day that you didn’t pay your part of
38:53 the more and you’re presenting different
38:55 numbers it should be part of your steps
38:57 when you’re sending out something out
38:58 the mid and you say send it with us this
39:01 form or the pointer for week already
39:03 which is one of the sample certificate
39:06 so you’re screening out things before
39:08 you get to that one
39:34 a little to use the word line negligence
39:47 you know some of your smaller subsets
39:50 here signing these documents so long as
39:53 you have to fight over this only is if
39:56 you’re negligent you’re having the
39:58 plumber sign this document he’s not
40:00 taking on the responsibility electrician
40:02 of the roofer and everything else if um
40:04 Liz if you want college child you have a
40:06 son this but it’s just do to your
40:08 negligence that you’re taking
40:09 responsibility for um sir robert stein
40:14 maybe we need 55 help if i were to write
40:19 an rfp for doing road work doing a
40:22 painting job something like that would I
40:24 put in to the RFP requirement that the
40:26 insurance certificates they provide to
40:28 us are the 855 and also limit two more
40:31 who signs them and if they’re inaccurate
40:35 who bears responsibility okay so this is
40:38 again this is supplemental to the normal
40:40 certificate differences will be an
40:42 additional certificate to require and it
40:45 requires that contractors insurance
40:48 broker to sign on it as I’ll do the
40:52 courts and whether or not the insurance
40:54 rubber was yep if they got it and then
40:59 also they won’t lie on it I know I did
41:01 was say because it feels like my but you
41:04 know it’s so new but it’s fraud so then
41:07 you have to go through the area church
41:09 worker has nervous
41:11 but the truth is it’s mostly the smaller
41:15 insurance workers are giving these
41:16 crappy insurance policies they’re all
41:18 based in Berlin and it’s true and we see
41:22 all the certificates in the lessons
41:23 these guys in Brooklyn that people get
41:25 the certificate in a lot of business by
41:28 the time use sudo so it’s just one more
41:31 step but it’s not now think widely
41:33 available are you guys looking at this
41:37 stuff in the RSS RRS no we are not we
41:41 needed this of the RS this is not even
41:43 being used by most general contractors
41:45 and so this is months that we had anyone
41:48 who’s this group in just last few months
41:51 and and most insurance workers don’t
41:54 even know how to fill it out that’s so
41:56 that’s why we’re here to educate you
41:59 just about the issue you the puter how
42:04 to implement it if you know usually
42:06 buildings here wishes for most of them
42:08 smaller cells Dodgers won’t go ahead and
42:11 fill that one of you might take six
42:13 questions at a great girl duck and and
42:15 say we’ve is notarized by your insurance
42:17 program you want to be done it and focus
42:19 on the things that are concerning to you
42:23 good question related your participation
42:28 somewhere that can be accessed our
42:31 knowledge he’s shot how far sweetie tell
42:36 me this presentation I just a
42:39 premonition couple slides now the future
42:42 so kind of sets one of the hand their
42:52 solution what to do how to proceed so
42:55 you’re really slide explain touch
43:00 everyone emotion you know where we live
43:02 just contact us if you want the whole
43:05 presentation you just want to age of it
43:06 if you want to Stephanie just told you
43:09 have you given to like where do I stand
43:20 up it is all the time whenever you use
43:24 it sometime and the food is you should
43:28 talk to your insurance broker and your
43:30 attorney and figure out where this is
43:46 he’s very understand any other bushes
43:53 good love CD by once again another great
44:01 job by any person Jason see shadow live
44:04 adverse associates thank you both for an
44:06 excellent presentation
00:07 first and you think again so on Ken
00:16 first my lovely assistant and business
00:19 partner Jason’s hashanah will be manning
00:22 de Vanna White role of clicking on my
00:25 slides in FS we’ve been practicing all
00:30 week for this as much as jeff has said
00:34 all you know who we are there are a lot
00:37 of new faces here tonight but just for a
00:39 quick minute I just want to explain
00:40 Leavitt first is one of the largest
00:43 independent insurance brokers in
00:45 Westchester and our niche is the real
00:47 estate and construction industries and
00:50 the reason why our 50-person office is
00:53 the bottom are the advisors to the
00:55 builders Institute the condo coop
00:56 council and all the association’s here
00:58 tonight is because we’ve created
01:02 programs you need to these industries
01:05 where we grew together and get your
01:08 group discounts on insurance so those of
01:10 you that have not don’t know about our
01:12 services feel free to call possibly
01:15 offer some unique value added services
01:18 that no other insurance broker can
01:20 provide to help people that manage
01:22 properties that own buildings then run
01:25 construction companies and so forth
01:27 because we’re a niche player were able
01:30 to create and develop unique products
01:32 and services for these two industries so
01:34 feel free to talk to Jason or myself
01:37 after tonight’s presentation I also want
01:39 to take a minute to introduce two other
01:41 people in the audience one from our
01:43 office is packed Clare is the director
01:45 of our
01:46 state division that can you raise your
01:48 arm and also I’d like to take a minute
01:53 where you know I’m going to build up to
01:55 a new insurance certificate that’s out
01:57 there called the Accord 855 and we’re
02:02 lucky enough tonight to have with us
02:04 Anthony Carlucci from Greenblatt well
02:07 whelming remoulade and Brady I thought
02:11 was it yeah well being brainy gremlin on
02:14 them for 20 years like they don’t accept
02:16 where he went right here so Anthony was
02:19 one of the creators of this certificate
02:21 on part of the committee that’s worked
02:23 for multiple years on this the end
02:26 product you know either those jokes when
02:28 you get too many people in the room and
02:30 what the end product looks like it’s not
02:31 a perfect end result but we’re going to
02:33 talk about it when we help towards the
02:35 end of the presentation and talk about
02:37 how you might you might not want to be
02:39 using this insurance certificate Jason
02:42 and I opinion in front of you many many
02:44 times and we’ve told you what the value
02:47 of this insurance certificate is you do
02:50 not have a sample in front of you we’re
02:52 not going to talk about the end outside
02:53 or in front of me towards until the end
02:55 so you don’t have to look at them this
02:57 is just a regular certificate we’ve told
03:01 you over and over again I mean nothing
03:04 you can’t rely on this piece of paper
03:07 all this piece of paper tells you is
03:10 that the contractor that you hired has
03:13 an insurance policy with certain limits
03:16 that supposedly add them on a certain
03:18 date that’s it we’ve been in front of
03:21 you multiple multiple tonics explaining
03:24 this and we’ve told you that the second
03:26 part of the equation is that you need to
03:28 have a contract to go with the
03:31 certificate and once those two pieces
03:33 come together then you are protected one
03:38 without the other serves you no good so
03:41 I’m going to review that again
03:43 get get you to that point why you need
03:45 those parts to come together to fit the
03:47 puzzle but then we’re going to take it
03:49 to the next stage which has evolved over
03:52 the last couple years which is what has
03:54 created the invention of this new
03:55 certificate which you might have a
03:58 contract you might have the insurance
04:00 certificate but you don’t know what type
04:03 of insurance that contractor is telling
04:05 you he has you have no idea whether or
04:08 not that policy is a real policy of fake
04:10 policy policy that excludes him going on
04:12 the roof that exclusive working on your
04:15 on your house excludes working on your
04:17 building excludes fupas you’re in the
04:19 Bronx you have no idea it just shows
04:21 that they have insurance so now a new
04:24 certificate has been created called me
04:26 55 then is supplemental it’s an
04:28 additional form that you might or might
04:30 want your contractors to start to fill
04:33 out truthfully I don’t think anyone here
04:37 in this room will end up using that
04:38 certificate fun we’re going to short the
04:41 end of this I am going to show you a
04:42 spectrum of ways from doing almost
04:45 nothing to having this certificate and
04:48 then there are ways that you can ratchet
04:50 it back and try to figure out what’s
04:51 useful for your operation if you’re a
04:54 general contractor you’re going to want
04:56 to be pretty close to this because
04:58 you’re hiring contractors day in and day
04:59 out and this is going to dramatically
05:01 impact your insurance rates for the long
05:03 term if you’re a property manager you
05:05 might just want to help pull out a
05:07 couple factors from this and just be
05:10 focused on checking on your roofers or
05:12 your painters or the guys on the
05:14 exterior of the building and you might
05:16 adapt some some iteration of this to
05:19 what you feel you need to protect at the
05:22 end of the day your insurance if you’re
05:24 dealing with a professional insurance
05:25 broker and has not new insurance policy
05:28 your policies are going to protect you
05:31 when you’re not protected from is that
05:34 if a claim hits and you’ve hired a sub
05:37 or a contractor
05:38 with that insurance it’s going to drive
05:40 up your insurance rates because he
05:42 insurance this claim that your painter
05:44 that fell off the scaffold or the ladder
05:46 is now going to impact you for five
05:48 years so you’re at the end of this
05:50 presentation will have to determine how
05:52 important that is to you you know how
05:54 important it is to control your rates
05:56 can you control your board you know you
05:59 might not be able to control the board
06:00 of your building the boat and they just
06:03 want to hire the cheapest contractor
06:04 each time so we put Lee set by the end
06:07 of tonight you’ll know what’s at risk
06:10 Jason so we start at the beginning I’m
06:13 going to go backwards just to remind you
06:15 of how we got here and it all starts
06:17 with workers compensation the whole
06:19 concept behind workers comp is that a
06:21 guy gets injured he gets paid his
06:25 medical bills get paid most of his loss
06:28 compensation gets paid end of story but
06:32 a hundred years ago before workers comp
06:34 Oh what happened is the guy would fall
06:35 in a factory and he would have to sue
06:37 the owner of the factory to collect
06:40 because he broke his leg and then the
06:42 owner the mean upon owner the factory
06:44 would sue him and say no you were
06:45 negligent you should’ve been on that one
06:47 for something and so you’d have them
06:49 suing each other lawyers would be
06:51 involved it turned into a big expensive
06:54 ordeal that would drag out for a long
06:55 time so a hundred years ago they created
06:58 workers compensation they said no
07:00 lawyers no attorneys no lawsuits the guy
07:04 gets paid no questions asked we might
07:07 not all agree when it when employing
07:09 it’s injured you might want to sue you
07:11 might want to fight it the course lean
07:13 towards easy to pour in you know get
07:16 your employees but trust me we’re all
07:18 saving a lot of money by taking the
07:20 attorneys out of the system I just
07:22 having
07:22 an injured employee collect for his
07:24 medical bills and move on get lost page
07:27 the wages that hopefully come back to
07:29 work except in New York there used to be
07:36 a small loophole that has now grown into
07:39 a huge loophole in New York and you’ve
07:42 heard the terms labor law to 4241 scvle
07:47 safe place to work on all these things
07:51 are connected they’re all different
07:52 names for a law that’s been on the books
07:54 for many many years but lawyers have now
07:57 figured a way to exploit that to be able
08:00 to sue when someone gets injured the
08:02 footnote is this does not apply to
08:05 construction on single-family or
08:07 two-family homes there are some ways to
08:10 penetrate it but for the most part these
08:13 what we’re going to talk about does not
08:15 involve if you’re just you know dealing
08:17 on single or two-family homes it doesn’t
08:19 impact you know co-ops condos apartment
08:21 buildings and so for single-family homes
08:23 them so in New York there’s this law
08:28 that says the building owner or the
08:32 general contractor whoever’s hiring this
08:34 contractor is required to provide a safe
08:36 place to work when something evolved it
08:39 involves Heights now the term Heights
08:43 ruin this law was first created was the
08:45 whole thing was about people falling off
08:47 scaffolds on the side of the building
08:48 and it was up it was those evil building
08:51 owners and we’re not providing a safe
08:52 place for these contractors to work and
08:54 so that’s where this open this whole
08:56 came from but as this has been exploited
08:59 over the years heights now means your
09:02 electrician that gets up on the chair to
09:04 change a light bulb if he falls off
09:06 that’s a hike related injury the painter
09:08 that’s on the ladder inside the
09:10 apartment it falls off that’s all I
09:12 related
09:12 injury the excavator that falls into the
09:15 ditch is a height related injury it’s
09:18 been pushed to such an extreme that you
09:21 could have a contractor who’s sick
09:23 that’s standing on the floor and on
09:24 hammer Falls also ins ladder lands on
09:27 his foot height related he has a broken
09:30 foot that’s a hype related claim but was
09:35 the worst part about this law is that
09:38 when it was created to protect these
09:40 contractors working on the outside these
09:42 buildings they said it’s a hundred
09:44 percent the responsibility of the
09:46 business of the building owner it’s
09:49 absolute liability on that general
09:51 contractor that hires the company hires
09:53 the cell to work for him there’s no
09:56 defense okay so you can hire a painter
10:00 who goes out and has a six-pack at lunch
10:03 comes back grabs the broken letter
10:07 that’s sitting in the dumpster that says
10:08 do not use gets on that drum falls off
10:12 you’re responsible so this has been a
10:16 field day for attorneys trial attorneys
10:19 in New York and it is you know slowly
10:21 slowly has snowballed over the last 10
10:25 years as more more people have figured
10:27 out this great way to collect when you
10:29 get injured at work i’ll tell you one
10:32 example we have one contractor also no
10:36 walls who showed up on his desk for one
10:38 the guys that works for him that doesn’t
10:40 speak English so we get through this
10:43 whole thing and it turns and says why
10:45 are you suing and the guy said I’m gonna
10:48 sue you I don’t even know what this is
10:49 about turns out you have ambulance
10:52 chasers now that go through the
10:54 hospitals and he remember signing a full
10:57 arm because someone came to his room
10:58 said oh you got a juror on the job this
11:00 is for workers compensation they signed
11:02 a form that basically retained an
11:04 attorney for him so his boss said you
11:06 can’t sue got stop this because we can
11:09 you know we’re going to go out of
11:09 business and so those injured employee
11:12 you know called up his attorney and said
11:14 you know I never wanted to sue please
11:16 cancel this when the attorney said we
11:18 kidding I’m gonna get you a quarter
11:19 million dollars for nothing the lawsuit
11:23 pursued okay the system has gotten out
11:26 of control so how does this work so in
11:31 New York guy breaks his leg falls off
11:35 the ladder breaks his leg in New York
11:37 he’s painting he collects workers comp
11:40 the normal way like every other state in
11:42 the country but now he sues the building
11:46 owner he soon as the GC okay he can’t
11:50 sue his balls this poor guy that got
11:52 injured cuz there’s workers comp low so
11:55 the only way that he’s able to collect
11:56 is to sue the building owner or the GC
12:04 so we’ve been telling you for the last
12:07 five years that the way to protect
12:09 yourself is to push this risk back down
12:12 to the employer you control the subs you
12:16 control the contractors that come up to
12:17 your property so you it’s your job to
12:20 demand that they sell that this contract
12:23 that comes on your property is going to
12:24 hold it it’s going to take
12:26 responsibility for this injury and
12:28 you’re not going to get hit with the
12:30 claim so we’ve been teaching for years
12:32 how to transfer this risk we told you as
12:38 I said before you get a certificate and
12:40 then you have a contract contract would
12:43 be one paragraph long or it could be
12:46 five pages long but it up said contained
12:48 two key ingredients one that you require
12:52 this contractor that you hire to list
12:54 you as additional each word on his
12:56 policies and to that he’s going to hold
12:59 you harmless he’s going to identify you
13:01 so and if he screws up if his God gets
13:04 injured if he causes a problem on the
13:05 job he’s saying his insurance is going
13:08 to take care of this and he needs both
13:10 these things in a contract that he signs
13:13 before he starts working not after the
13:17 accident before he goes on the job site
13:20 and again one more time having a
13:24 certificate that shows that you’re
13:25 additionally insured means nothing if
13:29 you don’t have this other part you need
13:32 both parts of the puzzle to protect
13:35 yourself one without the other you got
13:38 nothing so what is happening a lawsuits
13:45 as i said in new york are now in the six
13:47 and seven-figure level of it you don’t
13:50 have to be a powerful legion it just
13:52 open L can break your arm you you fall
13:54 off a soft tissue injury it’s in the
13:57 hundreds and hundreds of thousands of
13:58 dollars so this has led that of all the
14:03 contractors insurance rates have now
14:05 skyrocketed guys are working out on
14:08 roofs on the exterior building have
14:10 rates have gone up four five six times
14:12 and anyone to tie them and you’ve heard
14:14 the story over the last couple of years
14:16 guys that aren’t on Heights have also
14:18 seen their rates go up with two to three
14:20 times all the result of this so then
14:24 what happens there’s always a game and
14:27 the smaller contractors have figured out
14:30 a way to get around this and they buy
14:32 cheap insurance they figured out they
14:36 can’t afford all these rate increases
14:37 because the GCS they all have to pay for
14:40 this and then property managers say I’m
14:42 not going to pay for this and so you got
14:44 the smaller guys out there that are
14:46 getting what’s called cheap insurance so
14:48 what does that mean here you are you get
14:52 sued you try to transfer the risk down
14:55 and then you’re blocked okay you can’t
15:00 push the insurance and the fault and
15:02 this claim down to the sub any longer
15:04 because he bought cheap insurance what
15:07 do I mean by that they buying policies
15:10 that excluded claims it says what that
15:14 will cover certain things but we’re not
15:16 going to cover you if one of your guys
15:17 gets injured on the job meaning they
15:20 don’t want to be brought into a labor
15:21 law claim it could exclude if they not
15:24 have your cell tires or so and that sub
15:27 gets injured there could be an exclusion
15:29 on the policy for that they’re going to
15:31 be exclusion their exclusion zone
15:33 policies that would say we’re going to
15:34 come you accept if you go up on Heights
15:36 they accept if you go over to stories
15:39 except if you go on the exterior of the
15:42 building they don’t want to cover you
15:43 for that and that’s how they get cheap
15:45 insurance there’s policies out there
15:48 that are excluding any claims that
15:51 involve working on a new building
15:52 working the five boroughs working on a
15:55 residential building contractors are
15:58 finding whatever we there is to save
16:00 money on insurance and they’re getting
16:01 policy that happens have these
16:03 exclusions or as blatantly as it says it
16:08 says we’re not going to cover any
16:10 contracts you sign so if you’ve signed a
16:12 whole long list of the GC if you signed
16:14 a whole harmless to them to the property
16:16 manager who are not covering you again
16:20 all of you that have good insurance
16:22 you’re protected okay you’re just going
16:26 to be unsuccessful in pushing the clay
16:27 down you might get hit some policies for
16:31 channel countries
16:32 listen if you hire a contractor with
16:34 cheap insurance you’re gonna have to
16:36 pick up the first 25 thousand or fifty
16:38 thousand dollars of the claim but you’re
16:40 still going to be protected but it will
16:43 impact you in the long run here’s a
16:47 partial list of cheap insurance
16:49 companies we give this to all our
16:52 contractors without looking to hire
16:54 yourselves and anyone that needs a copy
16:57 of the feel free to email jason or ally
16:58 who you get you with it it’s not I did
17:01 not hand this out today but this is a
17:03 partial list of banned insurance company
17:06 said some of them you’ll recognize you
17:08 come first you’ll see a lot of
17:09 carpenters with you’ll see Essex you’ll
17:13 see century surety you’ll see a link and
17:15 casualty those are common cheap
17:19 insurance companies in in this area and
17:23 you’re going to have to start deciding
17:25 whether or not when you’re looking at
17:27 two bids whether or not they have the
17:29 right type of insurance you’re going to
17:33 decide how much time and effort you want
17:36 to invest to protect your insurance
17:39 company from getting hit with these
17:41 claims you’re not going to get hit with
17:43 it your insurance company is going to
17:44 get hit with it and when your insurance
17:46 company gets hit with it it shows up on
17:48 your claims history and you know shop
17:51 around your insurance we have to show
17:53 five years of history and that claim
17:56 will show for five years and if you’re a
17:59 general contractor you have one of these
18:00 claims it shows that you hired a cheap
18:02 sub I’ll tell you what the insurance
18:04 companies thing they think this guy runs
18:07 a shoddy job they think this guy is just
18:09 hiring and cheapest subs they’re not
18:12 looking at the paperwork and we can’t
18:14 save as much as Jason and I want to
18:16 shake it and say no it’s just a random
18:17 thing look here all the great
18:19 certificates that he gets and all the
18:20 contracts and he reviews this is we have
18:23 no credibility because now the insurance
18:24 companies had to pay out of 5
18:25 $2,000 claim and your insurance rates
18:28 will have gone up for many years to come
18:31 so what do I do now is talk to you about
18:34 the spectrum of protection that you
18:37 could do and you’re going to add the end
18:39 of tonight you’re going to decide what’s
18:41 good you know what’s reasonable for your
18:43 operation so the lowest level is what
18:47 people used to do you just collected a
18:50 certificate of insurance a workers comp
18:52 and liability certificate boom and today
18:54 obviously hopefully no one in this room
18:56 is doing that many of you now have
19:02 ratcheted up and you’re getting a
19:03 subcontractor agreement from every
19:05 contractor but before they start work
19:08 and that’s to remove but you can rent it
19:12 up one more level first of all to make
19:16 sure that they have workers come if
19:18 they’re if you’re working in New york
19:20 you could go online to see if their
19:22 workers comp policy is active than in
19:24 the oh it’s not slowing on and let it
19:26 lapse you can’t rely on insurance
19:28 companies sending your cancellation
19:29 notice but there’s a database on workers
19:32 comp and you could email us and we’ll
19:33 tell you what that is and you could
19:35 before you pay him before you hire them
19:37 the smaller guys at you’re a little
19:38 questionable bound you can check it once
19:40 a month whatever you again it’s up to
19:43 you and then on the liability side you
19:48 you know comes on that checklist that we
19:50 just showed you of 30 different
19:52 insurance companies okay make sure they
19:55 hear you just and this is what many of
19:57 our contraries we’re doing three years
19:59 and they just checked to see is that
20:01 contractor that cell with any one of
20:03 these insurance companies and they made
20:05 all migrant many of our contractors send
20:10 us the certificates of the selves that
20:12 they hire and they let us review and
20:14 that’s another way of you that you can
20:17 protect
20:17 protect yourself but you can ratchet it
20:20 oh and one more now you could ask for
20:25 documentation to find out whether or not
20:28 the insurance they have is cheap
20:30 insurance for now because we just we now
20:34 just got hit with a general contractor
20:35 in Westchester that diligently would go
20:38 down that list of 30 companies and he
20:40 made sure he never hired one of those
20:41 well turns out he just hired itself this
20:44 best full from western New York who had
20:47 a company we never heard of so it wasn’t
20:49 on the checklist he never sent us the
20:51 insurance certificate of course that’s
20:52 the stuff that had an injury it turns
20:55 out of course that small company and
20:57 insurance cover that none of us had
20:58 heard of a didn’t make our list was
21:01 cheap insurance so he’s getting hit with
21:03 it so that’s one of the reasons why
21:05 things have ratcheted up we’re now
21:08 people more sophisticated general
21:11 contractors in the city even gc’s out
21:14 here starting to say we’re going to add
21:17 one more piece of documentation that
21:19 we’re going to require our contractors
21:21 to provide us before they start work
21:23 this document has to be signed by that
21:27 contractors insurance broker so what
21:32 we’re going to go over next he is this
21:34 document that’s now called you know the
21:36 certificate being 55 and you do not have
21:39 to look at the one that’s because I’m
21:41 going to have it up here and we’re going
21:43 to go through that and I’m just going to
21:45 go three flee and I’m going to it up one
21:48 more Bob’s that’s Jason there’s even
21:51 another extreme that some of the biggest
21:52 gc’s to then I don’t think anyone here
21:55 but
21:56 the gc’s in the city have hoped teams of
21:59 people that are now analyzing this and
22:02 they require comedy the policy of every
22:04 contractor that comes on their job just
22:07 want to show you the whole spectrum and
22:09 extreme did you go to protect yourselves
22:11 from hiring subs that might have been
22:14 insurance so then the second i’m going
22:17 to go over the certificate 855 there for
22:21 handouts in front of you don’t bother
22:23 looking at them now what is the 855 one
22:28 is an 11-page document that came out at
22:31 the same time of the year 55 to help you
22:33 understand the 13 questions on the 855
22:39 we then gave you a copy a highlighted
22:42 version of the age 55 with what we say
22:44 if you’re going to use that these are
22:47 the answers that you’re going to want to
22:49 look for on that policy and then the
22:52 fourth document is a letter that we
22:54 created that if you’re kind of hours and
22:56 you want us to send your word document
22:58 of it that you can just use it it’s a
23:00 simplified letter that you sent out to
23:02 yourselves and have him there their
23:04 insurance broker sign it as some of the
23:07 similar questions and focuses on where
23:09 we see the biggest exposures so I’m
23:12 going to briefly now go through the 855
23:15 there are 13 questions the first one to
23:20 assess if the insurance company that
23:22 you’re dealing with is it admitted or
23:25 not admitted I’m not going to explain
23:28 this to I’m not going to go through
23:29 definitions and waste your time on it
23:31 because you’re not going to really it’s
23:33 not a really a relevant factor for you
23:35 unless your large general contractor and
23:39 then we’re more than happy to spend as
23:40 much time as
23:41 unexplained Ian you could be asking
23:44 whether or not what type of do they are
23:46 they using the standard insurance
23:48 isoforms or do they have own concocted
23:52 custom-made forms but none see is
23:57 important question this you might come
23:59 out of this meeting and say you know
24:00 what I’m going to send to my other
24:02 contractors than I meijer this form and
24:05 just tell to answer questions see thin f
24:07 & L or whatever and that’s all you want
24:10 you want them to do figure out what’s
24:12 relevant to you so C is the question
24:15 that requires his insurance broker to
24:18 say are there any major exclusions on
24:20 this policy does it exclude where he
24:23 works that you can’t go the five
24:24 boroughs you can’t go in to commit you
24:26 know Connecticut or maybe type of
24:28 construction you can’t go on new
24:30 buildings you can’t go on residential
24:31 buildings is there a restriction on
24:33 there about how high he’s allowed to
24:35 work is their classification limitation
24:38 their policies out there you Hiram
24:40 painter and his posse might say he’s
24:43 covered for painting and nothing else
24:45 and then also you have your major Ellis
24:47 while you’re here you just build finish
24:49 out that shed out there and get up and
24:51 do he might not have any coverage for
24:53 that maybe there’s a designated work
24:58 that he’s only allowed to do certain
25:01 things or he’s not allowed to do certain
25:03 things so this quite this is one
25:05 question on there could fill in a lot of
25:08 the aspects of it that you might be
25:09 concerned about there are different
25:12 forms of additional short out there if
25:15 you’re sophisticated you seen you want
25:17 to know which ones really to dig into
25:19 and ask for we’re happy to spend time
25:22 with that but as long as one of yours
25:23 your subs have additional insured like
25:26 an additional short you’ll be fine okay
25:31 then and then the wording starts again
25:34 well the first question is you know how
25:36 is his policy
25:37 will his policy pick up primary meaning
25:40 his policy will pay first and then yours
25:43 that’s the way you want it but most of
25:46 the people this room are not going to
25:47 try to fight for that many the policies
25:49 already have that in there but I don’t
25:51 think it’s a high priority for for the
25:53 average contractor or building owner and
25:57 will you get advance notice you know the
25:59 policies canceled everyone’s going to
26:01 say yes but you can’t count on that
26:04 you’re going to want to know that they
26:06 have a normal blanket contractual
26:08 liability and you’re going to want to
26:10 know that there were no changes on GH
26:13 and I on their policy unfortunately when
26:17 you head I don’t know how many people
26:18 were on the committee to make this but
26:20 they know phrasing on this is like a
26:23 triple negative and so we get calls
26:25 constantly from people that are trying
26:27 to fill this out of what does this
26:29 exactly be but basically you want to
26:32 know and they have additional insured
26:35 and nothing was changed and the Contra
26:38 you know the original policies used to
26:42 say if you’re siding contractor covered
26:44 we want to make sure that hasn’t been
26:45 changed their policies cheap insurance
26:47 that says you can’t sign a contract and
26:52 this is the one that says is there an
26:54 explosion of you now added an exclusion
26:56 there about someone getting injured on
26:58 the job site so G H and I are important
27:02 questions that you would want answered
27:04 Jason and then your job involves any
27:11 site work has been the foundations and
27:14 so forth you want to make sure the
27:15 excavator and people working there don’t
27:18 have any
27:19 that type of work you want to know
27:22 there’s a crazy exclusion out there for
27:26 insured verse ensures you don’t want
27:29 that exclusion on there it’s important
27:31 as weird as it sounds it’s some of the
27:33 way the phrase it could be it might
27:35 exclude that listing you as additional
27:37 insured as stupid as it sounds because
27:39 they’ll say oh no that name has been put
27:41 on your policy so we’re not going to
27:42 protect that name so you don’t want okay
27:46 you want to be sure no changes were made
27:49 and then you hear a visit KLR important
27:53 because l it says similar stuff for the
27:56 subs of the Sun to make sure they don’t
27:58 you know that the stuff that you hire
28:01 doesn’t have exclusions on this policy
28:04 that excludes him hollering cells or
28:07 that is something happens the subs that
28:08 he hires there’s no protection from him
28:11 pushing it down and then you don’t you
28:14 don’t have to worry about them so so is
28:26 this jason on tuesday let’s say thursday
28:28 tuesday up in Albany fighting this law
28:32 hundreds and hundreds of people in turns
28:35 feel in the construction field every
28:37 association was represented there we’ve
28:39 been fighting for years to try to fight
28:42 the scaffold law what he went chasing is
28:44 holding in his hands is directors
28:46 illinois used to had a similar law when
28:49 they come rid of the law allowing you
28:53 know the law had said its absolute
28:54 liability and it’s the fault of the GC
28:57 and the property owner then illinois
28:59 said no you know what okay it should be
29:00 fair we’ll figure out a commercial
29:02 member is but what happened to the
29:05 insurance rates anyone that’s in the
29:08 construction industry knows how much
29:10 their insurance rates have gone up in
29:12 the last couple years this is the impact
29:14 that if we can
29:15 something changed in all the day this
29:17 would happen and jason has another
29:19 picture devil forgot your smile you’re
29:24 not in the smile you this was a study
29:26 done with the Tappan Zee Bridge on how
29:28 much more is costing on the New York
29:31 Cyprus in New Jersey selling all week on
29:34 a labor law they’re not using different
29:36 materials on the New Jersey side they’re
29:38 not using different paint or different
29:41 barges but if you get injured on the New
29:43 York side you have laid along on your to
29:47 help you bayit chris Christie we had
29:51 Sheldon Silver so we had home once
29:54 Sheldon Silver he had been known you
29:56 know the big thing that has come out
29:58 about him is that he was being paid
30:00 millions and millions of dollars by
30:01 trial where you know partnerships in the
30:05 city all the ones you see advertising
30:06 the TV were funding him to be his
30:08 advocate to keep this law in effect you
30:12 know when Albert you know we talked
30:13 about with our lobbyists here
30:16 unfortunately we don’t know with the
30:18 person that has stepped in to sheldon
30:20 silver shoes will be much different they
30:24 can’t get worse we’re hoping it’s
30:26 too soon now to tell what’s around the
30:28 corner so Jason are there any things
30:33 that you want to add to what I said
30:36 originally open up for questions first
30:38 then it died
30:54 here and it’s very much gone through if
31:07 you’re doing requested by and consider
31:10 article question responding to do so
31:15 right thing
31:17 business request assistant for related
31:21 document and analyze everything
31:24 or you want to take the risk and can
31:31 hear your building owner or your
31:34 contractor you have insurance your
31:37 insurance is going to respond the ideal
31:40 situation is to push that to somebody
31:43 else any of you wanted ahead of them
31:51 this processing no I think such done a
31:54 lot of I think they’re one of the things
31:58 yes we will have that primary coverage
32:00 through their carriers you just want to
32:03 make sure that your only carriers don’t
32:06 have requirements in your policies for
32:08 what you need to get from North
32:10 subcontractors string in order for them
32:14 to give them for recovery to pointed out
32:16 sometimes there’s a trade-off with
32:19 deductibles and si ours and things like
32:22 that that they may require of you if you
32:24 don’t have good insurance from
32:25 yourselves with something that
32:32 tips are you only have carbon under
32:36 policy in your subcontractor that proper
32:39 coverage it’s important for everybody in
32:42 building or condo or co-op those pipes
32:49 and wires are not yes what you’re hiring
33:03 contractor being a contractor a lot of
33:07 times when we work with gc’s or property
33:10 managers we give a certificate saying on
33:14 additional insured to all locations is
33:17 that something that’s still a viable
33:18 option for as a board member as well
33:22 something on both sides of that seat an
33:26 offense it’s that still a viable
33:28 solution putting all all locations or
33:32 should the insurance policies before
33:34 each location as we have approached them
33:36 all occasions is sufficient sufficient
33:38 you could get a subcontractor agreement
33:42 you know it says at Volvo omelets and
33:45 lizards additional sure for all your
33:47 buildings or your bondage go as long as
33:50 you pull that is keep one insurance
33:52 certificate grovyle your protective know
33:55 some people so she sees will brush that
33:58 up and each other they happen
34:01 GC and says you see I want to list all
34:04 these many people as additional insured
34:05 want you to give me a certificate well
34:08 then as you see uses that same language
34:09 for every sub that they are on that job
34:12 as long as you’re going to something the
34:13 file want to contract one certificate
34:16 you’re not even your good as soon as the
34:40 GC hiring I might know anything anything
35:00 to but as far as we know it’s not
35:04 supposed to it’ll be be picked up on a
35:06 single one or two family home unless the
35:09 homeowner is giving direction yeah then
35:12 you bringing the homeowner but it’s just
35:14 you’re only a house
35:15 I
35:43 okay i gotta finish so what he’s saying
35:47 is that because that we do this as a
35:52 church burgers problem is mrs. Smith
35:54 always asking us these questions and why
35:57 they protected they have to worry about
35:59 hiring contractors and we sit down with
36:02 a leg log unless you’re directly in a
36:04 contract review I don’t worry about it
36:06 but the point is as a GC if you’re
36:08 working on a self a delay or prevent we
36:11 haul you to have that exposure so you
36:16 know look at the positive application is
36:17 here’s a roofer work on submit services
36:20 miss house there’s no exposure okay
36:23 there’s no labor law third party here GC
36:27 working on a single family or Japan we
36:29 know my yourself now you’ve given held
36:33 that diagram the opportunity to kick it
36:36 that’s because you have another later
36:58 this is not all that motion most
37:05 importantly probably the primary result
37:07 of that is it will come for another
37:09 dinner here so that when you tell you
37:11 what you should be doing is ekseption
37:13 women free dinner if the laws that are
37:16 changed who knows what’s going to happen
37:19 I mean do we think that they’re going to
37:20 just get rid of this law say there’s no
37:23 as them we think I’ll come with some
37:25 compromise that there’s you know there
37:27 could be shared responsibility well
37:29 their share responsibility you want to
37:32 push it down still so how were you gonna
37:37 ban appear on your contractors or you
37:39 protect yourself we’re what it takes
37:41 years for what happened is as much as
37:44 they’re too cheap insurance out there
37:46 there’s also much more sophistication by
37:50 gc’s and property ours there that are
37:53 now starting to screen out more and more
37:55 and they won’t let you know on the
37:58 bigger building fled guy on the roof
38:00 that doesn’t have the right type of
38:02 roofie coverage and so it’s right now we
38:05 chore many many rumors five years ago
38:07 hey bbz on John Street was able to get
38:10 ideas cheap mature I’ll have the room
38:13 person the fiber think
38:15 those roots you know the Bentley owners
38:17 in the city all that a will get without
38:18 you have a good quality insurance though
38:20 it’s getting out there more and more
38:22 it’s just the reality hello as you get
38:25 smaller and smaller if you’re a little
38:27 building and you have a board and you’re
38:30 looking at youtube to roofers and one
38:33 there’s a fifty-thousand-dollar
38:34 difference in their prize it’s hard to
38:37 explain it too much more members so we
38:41 have one of you all the buildings you’re
38:43 lucky draw pocketbook and we sure we
38:46 strongly recommend that this becomes
38:47 part of your big process don’t wait for
38:51 the day that you didn’t pay your part of
38:53 the more and you’re presenting different
38:55 numbers it should be part of your steps
38:57 when you’re sending out something out
38:58 the mid and you say send it with us this
39:01 form or the pointer for week already
39:03 which is one of the sample certificate
39:06 so you’re screening out things before
39:08 you get to that one
39:34 a little to use the word line negligence
39:47 you know some of your smaller subsets
39:50 here signing these documents so long as
39:53 you have to fight over this only is if
39:56 you’re negligent you’re having the
39:58 plumber sign this document he’s not
40:00 taking on the responsibility electrician
40:02 of the roofer and everything else if um
40:04 Liz if you want college child you have a
40:06 son this but it’s just do to your
40:08 negligence that you’re taking
40:09 responsibility for um sir robert stein
40:14 maybe we need 55 help if i were to write
40:19 an rfp for doing road work doing a
40:22 painting job something like that would I
40:24 put in to the RFP requirement that the
40:26 insurance certificates they provide to
40:28 us are the 855 and also limit two more
40:31 who signs them and if they’re inaccurate
40:35 who bears responsibility okay so this is
40:38 again this is supplemental to the normal
40:40 certificate differences will be an
40:42 additional certificate to require and it
40:45 requires that contractors insurance
40:48 broker to sign on it as I’ll do the
40:52 courts and whether or not the insurance
40:54 rubber was yep if they got it and then
40:59 also they won’t lie on it I know I did
41:01 was say because it feels like my but you
41:04 know it’s so new but it’s fraud so then
41:07 you have to go through the area church
41:09 worker has nervous
41:11 but the truth is it’s mostly the smaller
41:15 insurance workers are giving these
41:16 crappy insurance policies they’re all
41:18 based in Berlin and it’s true and we see
41:22 all the certificates in the lessons
41:23 these guys in Brooklyn that people get
41:25 the certificate in a lot of business by
41:28 the time use sudo so it’s just one more
41:31 step but it’s not now think widely
41:33 available are you guys looking at this
41:37 stuff in the RSS RRS no we are not we
41:41 needed this of the RS this is not even
41:43 being used by most general contractors
41:45 and so this is months that we had anyone
41:48 who’s this group in just last few months
41:51 and and most insurance workers don’t
41:54 even know how to fill it out that’s so
41:56 that’s why we’re here to educate you
41:59 just about the issue you the puter how
42:04 to implement it if you know usually
42:06 buildings here wishes for most of them
42:08 smaller cells Dodgers won’t go ahead and
42:11 fill that one of you might take six
42:13 questions at a great girl duck and and
42:15 say we’ve is notarized by your insurance
42:17 program you want to be done it and focus
42:19 on the things that are concerning to you
42:23 good question related your participation
42:28 somewhere that can be accessed our
42:31 knowledge he’s shot how far sweetie tell
42:36 me this presentation I just a
42:39 premonition couple slides now the future
42:42 so kind of sets one of the hand their
42:52 solution what to do how to proceed so
42:55 you’re really slide explain touch
43:00 everyone emotion you know where we live
43:02 just contact us if you want the whole
43:05 presentation you just want to age of it
43:06 if you want to Stephanie just told you
43:09 have you given to like where do I stand
43:20 up it is all the time whenever you use
43:24 it sometime and the food is you should
43:28 talk to your insurance broker and your
43:30 attorney and figure out where this is
43:46 he’s very understand any other bushes
43:53 good love CD by once again another great
44:01 job by any person Jason see shadow live
44:04 adverse associates thank you both for an
44:06 excellent presentation
The New Construction Certificate – February 12, 2015
Ken Fuirst and Jason Schiciano gave a presentation at the Building and Realty Institute on the new construction certificate. If you were not able to attend, see the presentation HERE.
Audio/Radio
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A Review of New York State Paid Family Leave
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Lessons from Harvey, Irma and Maria
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Key Exclusions on Your GL Policy Part I
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What Is the Scaffold Law Risk?
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Ken’s Bike Ride
On June 16th, 2014, Ken Fuirst, Co-President at Levitt Fuirst embarked on a life affirming bicycle trip across the united states. Beginning in the Seattle area, he dipped his rear tire in the Pacific Ocean, the official start to his journey.
For the next 47 days, he traveled across the country, writing about his adventures daily in his travel blog. The trip was both brilliance and insanity, and both sides of this were discussed in our Levitt-Fuirst blog on the topic. More importantly, it was an adventure, good for Ken, and good for those that followed him on his blog.
Relive the stories, the pictures and the trip here – and then plan your own adventure…
Spring into safety with these home maintenance tips from Travelers
Check out these simple steps to help prepare your property for a safer and stress-free spring.
Home Efficiency – Keeping $$$ In your Home – Levitt Fuirst
by P. Andersen Spring brings many wonderful things to the New York region. Warmer weather, flowers, thick green grass, spending time outdoors with friends and family, perhaps a round of golf. Another benefit is the rapidly falling energy bills, as the heat is shut down and the air conditioning is s…Read More »
