Insurance

[Findingtime]

Can you guys give some guidance on the best type of insurance we umpires should get?

I carry a liability umbrella policy and was under an impession that I would be covered under that. After talking with my agent he informed me that I more than likely wouldn't be since I get paid.

So now I am researching the different programs that offer umpire insurance and thought I would ask for some input to make sure I am not missing anything. You can read what the different players offer but who knows how hard it is to actually put in a claim and to use the actual coverage.

Thanks in advance for any input.

[mstaylor]

I have not but guys in our assoc have. One guy had to have surgery due to an onfield injury. I don't know how the medical was because he was an UPS driver and may not have used the medical. He did use the game fee loss and it worked great.

[Jocko]

I have not but guys in our assoc have. One guy had to have surgery due to an onfield injury. I don't know how the medical was because he was an UPS driver and may not have used the medical. He did use the game fee loss and it worked great.

guess I'll be looking deeper into ins aside from NFHS.

[mstaylor]

NASO is about $90.00 but it does give you a subscription to Referee, it gets you discounts on manuals, assault insurance and other goodies. Cheap as far as I am concerned.

[Welpe]

Just a heads up I believe the game fee replacement insurance is extra.

[NFUA_44]

I carry the ABUA and have for several years. Had to use the game replacement coverage about 3 years ago and it worked well, but I also had everything documented from jump street. I was able to show an average of games I worked over a period of time and they did some verifying with my Assn. In all they were fair and decent to work with and I got the replacement check within 60 days of the injury that took me off the field.

[Ring 'em Up]

i was at my sons baseball game yesterday (he plays for L.B. Wilson varsity as a PO), and as i'm just getting started in umping i asked the plate umpire if he worked for the LB Unit of the CBUA. when he said yes, i asked him, and was told that my dues/fees for the CBUA included the insurance fees.. the fees/dues are $70 and looks to be a bit less expensive then the ABUA, or NASO.

#likecombinedfees

ron-

[JaxRolo]

What's a PO?

[johnnyg08]

NASO is about $90.00 but it does give you a subscription to Referee, it gets you discounts on manuals, assault insurance and other goodies. Cheap as far as I am concerned.

Ripoff as far as I'm concerned, but welcome to America where we all get an opinion.

[mstaylor]

I can see how you feel that but I have been a member almost as long as I have been doing HS. ABUA is a viable alternative. Technically just using you NFHS insurance is enough. What sucks in my state is I have to pay dues in every sport. It used to be that if I paid in one sport it covered all the sports.

[semper_fi_72]

What's a PO?

Pee On :hi5:

[Guest Guest]

sorry for the late response..

PO=Pitcher Only

ron-

[Ring 'em Up]

sorry for the late response..

PO=Pitcher Only

ron-

darnit... thought i was logged in when i responded.

guess i was still sleeping !

ron-

[Ring 'em Up]

i talked to a board member of the long beach cbua this morning.. seems the association fee does not include the insurance.

 

oh well..  dallas did mention that pay was $73 per game now.

 

ron-

[Ring 'em Up]

after poking around a bit, it looks like NFHS has ins for $35... 

[mstaylor]

We get NFHS insurance as part of our state dues.

[johnnyg08]

We get NFHS insurance as part of our state dues.

 

 

Same here and it covers us for everything we work.  assigner duties, and all levels of umpiring.  

[Jocko]

Ditto

[JaxRolo]

Tritto

[mstaylor]

Even though we have NFHS insurance I still get NASO.

[yawetag]

Tritto

 

Quatro

[maineump]

Does anyone's board have insurance for the board? It would be like for discrimination, policies etc? I carry my own through NASO, what if we have to 'fire' an ump   or get a charge of age discrimination  from a guy, that no longer gets the big games, that thinks he should still do varsity ball, but just can't keep up? We have them on our board that just cannot keep up, but they still get varsity games because of who they were a few years ago.

[JaxRolo]

Does anyone's board have insurance for the board? It would be like for discrimination, policies etc? I carry my own through NASO, what if we have to 'fire' an ump   or get a charge of age discrimination  from a guy, that no longer gets the big games, that thinks he should still do varsity ball, but just can't keep up? We have them on our board that just cannot keep up, but they still get varsity games because of who they were a few years ago.

Why would you fire an independent contractor?

 

I assume that your umps are not your employees?

[maineump]

We don't specifically 'fire them', it is more like voting not to renew their contract. Our members do sign a contract with the board each year. Basically what we do is extend probation status for poor fieled performance and/or very poor test scores. Field performance is evaluated by the e-board. We do not 'investigate' an umpire unless we get complaints from a coach.

In Maine the HS games are contracted to the MBUA by the Me Principle Assoc to officiate all HS games. We also negotiate fees/travel etc. Our board is one of the 6 boards in the state that are all part of the MBUA.

We have never let anyone go, but what if they just don't meet the qualifications that are set? Probation? How many times do you extend it?

It sounds like BS, but this is a real issue we are being faced with. I am just looking for some sort of guidance - how do you guys handle situations like poor performances/test scores/not passing the test?

We also have an issue with senior guys refusing assignments that are 'beneath them'. I say to our assigner - they refuse, just keep sending them the level they refused. Eventually they will either accept the games or not work - probable not very PC of me.

Thanks

[sdix00]

As far as I am concerned, any association with more than 50 members, which collects fees from its membership, owes it to the members to have at least one member who is well versed in the legal traps of sport officiating.  This member should provide constant guidance to the membership on best practices, new threats, and be ever vigilant in seeking out liability risks within the ranks and helping to correct them. 

 

 

Without writing a long dissertation on the book, I am simply going to recommend 

 

Sports Officiating: A Legal Guide 

Published by Referee Enterprises, Inc.

 

 

It has a detailed discussion of Liability Insurance.   This is just a snippet. 

 

 

 

LIABILITY INSURANCE 

Any discussion of the elements of risk of legal consequences to 

an individual or institution necessarily involves a discussion of liability insurance.

Liability insurance, long regarded as a mysterious 

monster to officials, is simply a contract transferring the financial 

risk of a lawsuit or claim to another party. Here's why the type and 

extent of insurance is important. 

If a participant or spectator is injured in a high school or college 

game and it is alleged that your negligence has caused an injury, the 

injured party will generally sue the school as well as you. In many 

independent leagues, there is no financially responsible party to sue 

in the event of a serious injury. That is,  you may not have an 

"employer" with assets {or insurance)  sufficient to respond to a 

judgment of money damages. The legal duty which you owe to protect

the participants may rest upon you alone, depending upon the 

facts of the particular case. Liability insurance is necessary to protect 

officials working in any type of game on an amateur level. However, 

it is even more vital to have this type of coverage for the so-called 

"independent" games. That's why - for "independent" officiating 

you need liability insurance more than ever. 

The rules for buying liability insurance are basically to treat 

the purchase as any other important purchase: shop around and 

know what you are buying. Rates are nominal, but for a relatively

small sum, know what you're getting in terms of protection. 

Often, liability policies are marketed in such a way that they are 

combined with another policy covering medical, dental fee 

replacement and other related first party benefits to officials. 

It is  important to know the difference between liability 

insurance, which is designed to protect the policy holder from 

what insurance people are fond of calling "third party claims," 

and accident or "first party'' insurance. In the language of insurance,

you are the first party. The insurance company is the second party.

And the person suing you is the third party. Liability 

insurance covers a claim made by a third party against the 

insured party. First party coverage such as medical insurance has 

a different purpose. First party insurance may cover the insured 

person's medical bills, lost wages, etc. Therefore, when you buy 

insurance, it's important to know what you are getting for your 

money. Association officers will also want to explore "Directors 

and Officers" insurance, as well. 

Be aware of two different types of general liability policies. 

Years ago, most liability insurance policies would protect the 

policy holder against claims arising out of an incident that 

occurred during the period that the policy was in force. This 

coverage is known as an "occurrence" policy. Insurance that covers

claims made only during the time the policy is  in force is 

known as "claims made" policy. 

IN BRIEF~~~ 

Let's say that you.~ a basketball tournament game on. Dec. 

30, 2004. In that game. an incident occurred and a player was injured. 

Suppose, for purposes of this example, that your officials liability insurance

runs on a calendar year basis - Jan. 1-Dec. 31. 

Now, let's say the injured player decides on Nov. 25, 2005, to make 

a claim against you alleging that it was your negligence that caused his 

injury. An "occurrence" policy would cover you on this claim, since 

the incident in question occurred during the policy period. 

Conversely, a "claims made" type of policy will provide cover-age for claims

made during the time the policy is in force. Also, 

this type of policy may provide coverage for certain claims made 

for a number of months after the policy expires. (This is known 

as a "tail" in insurance "lingo.") Generally speaking, the insurance 

company writing this type of policy could deny you coverage 

because the claim was not made within the actual policy period. 

 

The point is:  Know what you're buying when signing on with 

an insurance agent. You can be effectively protected if you are willing

to make a few intelligent inquiries. (For further discussion of 

association insurance, see Chapter Fifteen.) 

 

 

 

 

Lots of other thought provoking chapters as well. 

 

~~~ IN BRIEF~~~ 

HOW TO AVOID LITIGATION

Enforce all rules relative to player safety strictly and without compromise or deviation. 

Any time a rule requires the officials to ask questions and get answers: ASK QUESTIONS AND GET ANSWERS. 

Act Intelligently and consistently, employing the overriding principle of player safety in enforcing the rules; 

Do not, under any circumstances, make up your own rules regarding player safety or attempt to explain the consequences of one course of action or another to anyone.

 

 

 

Even with adult sports and experienced athletes, not all risks are necessarily assumed.

The Fort Lauderdale Umpires, Inc., an umpires' association  and umpire Fred Goldman 

found  out the  hard way.

Umpire Goldman was working a modified fast  pitch softball  game in  Fort 

Lauderdale, Florida, on a city-owned facility when one Richard LeNoble 

was struck in the eye by a batted softball which he had served up as pitcher. 

LeNoble claimed that the pitching rubber was not the required 46 feet 

from home plate, but rather, only 40 feet. In LeNoble's lawsuit against the 

umpires' association, umpire Goldman, his panner and the City of Fort 

Lauderdale, he claimed that placement of the pitching rubber created a 

dangerous condition for pitchers by vinue of being 6 feet closer to home 

plate than the rules provided. In allowing this case to go to a jury, the coun 

stated that the umpires were responsible for enforcing all the rules, including, 

... ensuring that the distance from the pitching rubber 

to home plate was in compliance with the Amateur 

Softball Association's Official League's specifications, 

and that umpire Goldman was specifically informed 

that the location of the pitching rubber was improper. 

[Umpire in Chief]

A general liability business policy should not cost that much. See if you have anybody in the insurance business in your association. Even if they only do auto, home... they could probably point you in the right direction.