Re: [AISdiscuss] Feb. PresMes-Insurance issues

[PlankMail@aol.com]

In a message dated 2/28/06 9:56:54 AM, GormleyGreenery@aol.com writes:


> Regarding affiliate insurance, I think I remember hearing that  the
> affiliates were given a survey when the membership survey was done  last
> year, and I tried to find online where I had seen results of thesurvey, but
> couldn't find it quickly this morning.  I was wondering if affiliates had
> been asked about insurance and sharing of costs.   It just seems to me that
> no affiliate would think they deserve to be  covered by insurance at no
> cost.
> My local club has paid the garden club for  insurance previous to the AIS
> coverage, as we recognize the importance of  insurance.   Seems like we
paid
> $100 to $150.   Knowing  our clubs finances, I suspect $250 - $400 might be
> too high for our club to  cover, as our club has had three years running of
> significant budget  shortfalls.   However, I honestly believe there must be
> some sort  of sliding scale for an affiliate insurance rate that would be
> acceptable  to a number of affiliates.
>
>
>
>
Dear Rita:
     The answers to the two questions on the survey relating to insurance
were a very minimally reflective representation of any given area because the
returns received came from slightly less than 40% of AIS Affiliates, at best.
     The first insurance question asked of affiliates was if they are asked
to show proof of insurance; the second question was, if yes to the first
question, were they ever asked to provide greater coverage than provided by
the AIS
policy ($3,000.000).
     Rita asks "I was wondering if affiliates had been asked about insurance
and sharing of costs"
     The Answer: No
     The questions on the Affiliate poll did not address whether or not the
AIS should be providing insurance for all of the AIS -- Affiliates, Regions
and
sections, or whether there should be cost sharing for this provision.   (My
guess is that the answers to both would be yes, philosophically, but might
well
change when it came to direct application to the responding affiliate --
depending upon the "cost sharing" amount, of course.)
     For Rita's Region (R18), responses were received from four R18
Affiliates (out of 19 listed in the Fall Report by the Affiliate's Chairman)
-- and
this percentage is quite representative;
     The following are the four R18 affiliates, along with their responses:
          Greater St. Louis I. S. - No proof required although it had been in
past locations.   When the amount required to put on a show in malls (not
just insurance coverage, but the privilege of holding the event itself) began
to
escalate, GSLIS moved to a location where no proof of insurance or additional
fees were required.   Before moving, they had not been asked to provide
greater than 3,000,000

     Hutchinson Iris Club -- "No" was answered to both questions

     Pony Express Iris Society --Yes, proof of insurance was required.  No,
they had never been asked to provide over the $3,000,000 maximum coverage
provided by AIS.

     Washington Iris Club -- Same as Pony Express:  Yes to proof; no to over
$3,000,000

     I think one must -- grudgingly, perhaps, and definitely sadly --
conclude that 4 affiliates reporting out of a total of 19 does not give a
validly
representative picture of R18's affiliate experience.   Additionally, among
those
four responding, the need to provide insurance was split -- two and two.

     In the great tradition of "hind sight" perhaps Affiliates should have
been asked if AIS should provide universal insurance coverage, and if all
divisions of AIS should split the cost.   Those two questions were not asked
on the
Affiliate and Region surveys.   The interest at the point the Affiliate survey
was drawn up was on use and demanded coverage amount. Questions on insurance
were not asked on the Region Survey. Those two questions -- on coverage and
sharing costs -- were asked in the membership survey distributed 1st at the
convention and then later through Region Newsletters and Affiliates.
     I hope this helps,
          Jeanne

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