Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Municipal Insurance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Clerk treasurer warns town may be uninsured after carrier cancels coverage
Summary
The town’s clerk treasurer told the council that municipal liability coverage will end March 31 and that nationwide searches turned up no insurer willing to write the town, raising the prospect of personal liability for officials and even the town’s dissolution if the policy is not replaced.
The town’s clerk treasurer warned the council that the municipality could be left without liability insurance after a recent underwriter gave notice of termination that would take effect March 31. "On April 1, if we do not secure insurance, this town has no coverage," the clerk said, adding that losing coverage could expose elected officials to personal suits.
Why it matters: Without municipal liability insurance the town cannot provide secondary coverage for events, cannot backstop vendor claims and could be vulnerable to lawsuits that would exhaust the town’s assets, the clerk said. That risk, the clerk argued, could force the town to consider unincorporation if a single large claim were successful.
At the meeting, the clerk described a nationwide search by the town’s local agent and said multiple carriers declined to offer coverage; a broker who reviews hundreds of municipalities told the clerk the town appeared "uninsurable" in underwriting systems after watching livestreamed council meetings and noting unresolved facility and park-safety issues. The clerk said the town had been dropped by two carriers in four months and that one follow-up prospect, identified as Seville Insurance (a Georgia-based firm discussed briefly by town staff), was unlikely to issue a policy.
Council discussion focused on near-term options. Several members urged using a council member named Doug’s contacts to try to find emergency coverage; Speaker 4 proposed a motion for Doug to pursue leads and to report back by 05:00 Monday. The transcript records a motion being proposed but records no final vote on that motion during the meeting.
Practical constraints: A council participant who identified as a licensed insurance agent told the meeting that writing a commercial liability policy typically requires 20–30 days after underwriters collect information and that the town already appears flagged as an unacceptable risk in underwriting systems. That participant said a short Hail Mary approach might be impossible within the current March 31 window.
Numbers and budget context: The clerk and other members said the town’s annual insurance budget had been $4,000 but that replacement quotes ran between $12,000 and $18,000 a year. The clerk also referenced a large outstanding reimbursement figure tied to a DNR project (stated in the meeting as “nearly $5,456,000”); that number appears in the transcript and is reported here as stated by the clerk, not independently verified.
What’s next: Council members agreed to try to pursue leads quickly; the transcript records a motion to ask Doug to search for coverage with an answer due the following Monday but shows no recorded final vote. The clerk said they had one remaining prospect that had been working a lead earlier in the day but later downgraded prospects and sounded increasingly pessimistic about getting a binding policy before March 31.
