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  'Electronic aggression' addressed in revised AAIS Personal Umbrella forms
  AAIS files Homeowners By-Peril Rating Plan
  AAIS files personal lines endorsements excluding liability coverage for canines
  AAIS releases new Yacht program
  AAIS To File New Homeowners Earthquake Rating Plan
  AAIS Files Enhancements to Mobile-Homeowners Rating
  AAIS Issues Expanded Cause of Loss Report for Homeowners Insurance
  First Internet Solutions Develops Rating System for AAIS Homeowners Program
  AAIS Prepares to File Experience Rating Plan in Homeowners
  AAIS and Mutual Boiler Re Collaborate on Equipment Breakdown Endorsement
  AAIS Releases New Homeowners Manual Implementation Tools 
  AAIS Introduces Equipment Breakdown Coverage in Homeowners Program

 

Sue Luecke's
audio commentaries
on the AAIS
Homeowners forms

 

Personal Lines Brochure
brochure PDF (600K)

AAIS Products & Services Brochure
PDF (230K)

 


EMERGING ISSUES & EXPOSURES
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spacerArticles on personal lines topics
from AAIS's Viewpoint magazine


 

 

 

 

 

 

More than 400 property/casualty insurers throughout the United States use AAIS's personal lines insurance programs, which provide standard forms, manual rules, and loss cost rating information for insuring residential property and personal liability.

Whether you are competing in standard markets or targeted ones (coastal, urban, high-value, etc.), AAIS personal lines programs provide product development and maintenance service that can be a very cost-effective alternative to other providers or to the cost of maintaining your own program.


The Homeowners Program, a complete standard program, features the industry's first standardized endorsements for adding equipment breakdown coverage to a homeowners policy, and introduces new coverage provisions addressing exposure to personal injury arising from electronic communications. It's the alternative you can't afford to overlook. MORE

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The AAIS Homeowners Program features seven base forms (basic, broad, special, contents/renters, special building and contents, unit-owners, and limited perils) plus a variety of loss settlement options (actual cash value, replacement cost for personal property, modified replacement cost, and functional replacement cost).

The program includes several mandatory endorsements not available in other programs; these exclude coverage for liability arising from lead, pollutants, punitive and exemplary damages, and other causes of loss. There are more than 75 other optional endorsements, including endorsements limiting loss due to fungi (mold).

The AAIS Homeowners Program manual features countrywide rules that include most rating factors, including multistate rating factors for optional liability coverages. Individual state pages are provided with state-specific rules and rating information, where applicable.

The manual provides factors for higher wind and hail deductibles in most states, and the state pages provide rating factors for new homes and age of home systems. The program's rating information incorporates modeled data from leading catastrophe modeling firms.

The Mobile-Homeowners Program provides all the coverages needed for insuring mobile homes along with rating information based on mobile-home experience.

The Home-Based Business Coverage Part, provided as part of the AAIS Homeowners, Mobile-Homeowners, and Farmowners programs, was the industry's first standard endorsement developed to provide personal lines coverage for the property and liability exposures of certain home-based businesses. It was subsequently expanded to add a class for bed and breakfast operations, and is scheduled for further revision. MORE

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The AAIS Home-Based Business Coverage Part classifies eligible home-based businesses into six categories, allowing personal lines staff to underwrite and rate the entire policy without using commercial lines procedures.

Regarding liability coverage, the endorsement replaces the personal liability coverage in the base policy with commercial liability coverage for business exposures.

Regarding property coverage, the endorsement does four things:

  • It extends personal property coverage to business property on the premises;
  • It adds coverage for structures used to store business property,
  • It increases the limit for business property away from the premises; and
  • It provides business-related incidental and optional coverages such as accounts receivable.

Loss cost rating information is provided by category or risk and amount of limit, and for coverage options.

The Personal Umbrella Program provides forms, and sample manual rules for writing excess coverage over the limits of underlying policies, plus "drop down" coverage for personal injury liability. MORE

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The Personal Umbrella Program (PUP) provides a base form, endorsement options, state amendatory endorsements, and a sample manual, declarations, and schedule of underlying insurance for writing an umbrella policy over an AAIS-based homeowners policy and any underlying auto, watercraft, or other personal liability policy.

"Electronic aggression"

The latest update to the base form, filed in 2011, introduces an exclusion of coverage for bodily injury, property damage, or personal injury arising out of "electronic aggression," sometimes referred to as "cyber-bullying."

The exclusion applies to any damage or injury arising from, but not limited to, harassment or bullying committed by electronic means or through an electronic forum.

Aggregate limit
 

The latest PUP base form also includes an aggregate limit on coverage that is subject to an aggregate limit in underlying insurance. This avoids having the umbrella policy respond on a per-occurrence basis when underlying coverage for an insured activity, such as home day care, is capped by an aggregate limit.


Endorsements

The revised PUP forms include 23 endorsement options that, among other things, address business and farm activities, and provide exclusions for designated premises, drivers, vehicles, watercraft, and more.


Among the program's 11 new multistate endorsements are the following:

  • An option to provide "drop down" coverage for bodily injury or property damage (BI/PD) arising from the use of a non-owned recreational vehicle;
  • An option to provide excess auto liability coverage for use of certain vehicles outside the U.S. and Canada; and
  • Two options for excluding coverage for claims arising from canines. One endorsement excludes coverage for BI/PD arising from direct physical contact with a canine, except to the extent that the BI/PD is covered by underlying insurance. The other excludes the coverage without exception.

Sample manual, and more


The AAIS Personal Umbrella Program also includes a sample manual, policy declarations, and schedule of underlying insurance. These resources are not filed, but can be used by insurers as the basis for proprietary resources they file with regulators, if required.

AAIS Personal Monolines provide a range of booklet-style forms that can be written on a stand-alone basis or packaged with other forms to insure residential property, personal property, and personal liability. MORE

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The Dwelling Properties Program includes three residential property forms--basic, broad, and open perils--that each provides the four principal coverages--residence, related private structures, personal property, and additional living cost/fair rental value.

The Landlord's Package, provided as part of the Dwelling Properties Program, consists of the industry's first standard endorsement option for insuring a landlord's premises liability exposure for small rental units (1-4 families).

The Personal and Premises Liability Program provides three principal coverage forms--personal liability, farm personal liability, and premises-only liability--whose coverage are analogous to those provided in liability sections of homeowners forms. Options are available for excluding coverage for lead liability, pollution liability, and punitive damages.

The Boatowners Program, revised twice since being introduced in the 1990s, is the industry's first standardized program for insuring small, privately owned watercraft. Companies can use this program as the basis for a watercraft specialty line, or as an accommodation to their homeowners and auto accounts.

 

The Yacht Program, introduced in 2010, is designed to insure craft at least 26 feet long and $50,000 in value. Both  the Boatowners and Yacht programs allow insurers to insure watercraft for property only, liability only, or property and liability.

 

Also, both programs are available for no additional charge to companies with paid affiliations for use of either of them.

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Filed countrywide, the Boatowners Program provides forms, manual rules, and rating information for insuring privately owned pleasure craft, plus motors and trailers. Coverage extends to personal watercraft such as "Jet Skis," but personal watercraft coverage can be excluded by endorsement.

Under the program, coverage can be written for property only, liability only, or property and liability; policies can either stand alone or be endorsed onto another personal lines policy. The manual features an expanded but still simplified rating procedure that can be utilized by most personal lines underwriters.

The Yacht Program provides coverages comparable to those in the Boatowners Program, although broader in some respects.

Boatowners eligible property
Privately owned watercraft (including personal watercraft) that are 30 feet or less in overall length, 20 years or less in age, valued at $75,000 or less, with a maximum speed not greater than 50 mph.

Boatowners additional property coverages

  • Boating equipment
  • Newly acquired property
  • Emergency service
  • Optional personal effects coverage available by endorsement

Perils
Open perils coverage subject to standard exclusions plus exclusions for certain boating practices and hazards.

Property loss settlement
Property losses covered on an actual cash value basis; agreed value coverage available by endorsement.

Personal liability coverage
Coverage for damages for which an insured is legally liable and which arise out of the use of covered property and non-owned boats.

Medical payments coverage
Coverage for medical expenses arising out of covered property or a non-owned boat.

Additional liability coverages
Additional coverage for:

  • Claims and defense cost
  • Coverage for removal of wrecked or sunken property provided for up to 25% of the personal liability limit

Liability exclusions
Coverage subject to standard liability exclusions, plus additional exclusions for:

  • Business exposures with the exception of entertainment of business clients
  • Kite skiing
  • Non-permissive use
  • Racing or speed contests
 

Uninsured boater coverage
$10,000 included in policies providing liability coverage; higher limits available for an additional premium.

Deductibles
Several deductible options available:

  • Flat deductible from $100 to $5,000
  • Split deductibles $50/100 to $250/$5000

Coverage territory
Coverage extends up to 100 miles from coast. Coverage for personal watercraft limited to 10 miles from coast.

Rating components (partial list)

  • Eleven navigational territories
  • Type of boat
  • Age of boat
  • Navigational training and experienced operator credits
  • Multi-owner surcharge
  • Navigational, safety equipment credits

 

AAIS
American Association of Insurance Services
1745 S. Naperville Road | Wheaton, IL  60189-5898
630-681-8347 | 800-564-AAIS | Fax  630-681-8356