By Phil Kabler
The Charleston Gazette
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — While BrickStreet Insurance plans to cancel Workers Compensation broadform coverage for more than 125 volunteer fire departments as of Sept. 1, a memo from the state Insurance Commission advises that the VFDs don’t need the coverage.
Broadform coverage protects directors and officers of VFDs from any personal liability lawsuits if firefighters under their supervision are injured or killed in the line of duty.
Last week, representatives of VFDs protested at the Capitol, warning that some fire departments may “shut the doors” rather than risk personal liability for injury claims.
A day later, Commissioner Jane Cline told lawmakers that directors and officers of VFDs don’t need the coverage, since state law gives them immunity under the Government Tort Claims Act.
Under that law, she said, officials in state government as well as all government subdivisions have immunity from lawsuits stemming from employees’ work-related injuries — unless there is proof the employer had a deliberate intent to put the employee into unsafe working conditions.
Cline said there are five steps necessary to prove deliberate intent, including evidence the employer ignored industry standards for workplace safety for the particular occupation.
Sam Love, lobbyist for the West Virginia Fireman’s Association, said Monday that Cline’s memo has not satisfied most VFD officials.
“There’s some glaring questions that jump out, including why was BrickStreet selling us broadform coverage if we didn’t need it?” he said. “There’s a lot of questions out there that I don’t think this memo leaves firemen with a warm and fuzzy feeling.
“I’m afraid where it’s going to be headed is to a court case,” he said of issues regarding potential liability of VFD directors and officers.
Earlier this year, the Insurance Commission approved a new rate schedule for BrickStreet’s Workers Compensation coverage for the more than 400 VFDs in the state.
The rate schedule, which would have increased overall premiums by more than $400,000 a year, would have doubled premiums for some departments.
In June, BrickStreet agreed to postpone the increases, which had been set to go into effect July 1, for one year.
However, under the state law privatizing Workers Compensation, BrickStreet will not be required to provide coverage to VFDs after June 30, 2011.
With BrickStreet’s claims losses exceeding $4 million a year for VFDs, President and CEO Greg Burton said at the time that no insurance companies will offer coverage to VFDs next year, unless the state takes action to resolve the huge loss ratios.
Gov. Joe Manchin appointed a work group in June to try to come up with solutions to fund VFD premiums.
Copyright 2010 Charleston Newspapers