EquityComp Program Subject Of Industry Webinar

By: Brad Cain

Brokers and employers increasingly are becoming involved in disputes connected to Applied Underwriters EquityComp workers’ comp program. Many insureds are seeking legal representation and many brokers, to protect themselves, are helping them find experienced counsel. Workers’ Comp Executive is leading in breaking the news about the embattled program and is now providing a webcast covering the topic in depth.

Workers’ Comp Executive is providing a new webcast December 9th to deal with the issues surrounding this controversial program, which is the subject of regulatory inquiries and lawsuits. The webcast is designed to provide strategies for “selling, competing with, or helping a client out of the EquityComp program mid-term.” It is a two-hour intensive and 2 CE credits are approved.

Larry Lichtenegger, Esq., will teach the legal issues part of the webcast. He is well-versed in the inner workings of the program and the legal issues that surround it. He is the leading California attorney in cases against Applied Underwriters presently representing multiple California employers.

Our own Dale Debber will be handing the relationship – from proposal to placement to withdrawal – how to sell and compete with the program and dealing with the carrier part of the webcast.

With all the market turmoil, demand is already high for the Webcast. It is covering the basics of what employers and brokers need to know before entering into the program, as well as if they are considering leaving either mid-term or even at the end of its three-year period. It’s a must-attend event for commercial lines underwriters and placers that find themselves competing with Applied Underwriters’ EquityComp product.

This educational event comes as legal challenges to the program come to a head in multiple states, including California, and across various legal forums. California’s Insurance Department is now considering what to do with an employer’s challenge to the legality of the program’s reinsurance participation agreement (RPA). Others are alleging fraudulent behavior in the marketing, selling, and execution of the program.

Many brokers who placed insured’s with Applied Underwriters’ EquityComp program are also finding themselves in court over their alleged failure to fully understand the program before recommending it to their clients. E and O carriers are also on notice.

Premium Workers’ Comp Executive subscribers get a 10% discount on the registration fee.

Applied Underwriters was once but is no longer an affiliate of Berkshire Hathaway. Applied’s management bought it. Berkshire Hathaway bears no responsibility for any of the events which have transpired involving Applied Underwriters’ or its subsidiaries including California Insurance Company.