Professional Services

How Rosenthal Insurance Consulting works for you!

Two Consultants assigned to your account

SAMUEL L. ROSENTHAL, CPCU, ARM
Primary Consultant

Active in the insurance industry for over thirty-six years as a consultant, independent agent and underwriter, Sam Rosenthal is known as a professional, knowledgeable and ethical insurance consultant.

Sam has authored insurance textbooks, journal articles and company newsletters.

An established speaker, Sam has spoken on insurance matters in seven states and has taught insurance courses at the University of Richmond and Villanova University.

Unflappable on the witness stand, Sam has assisted attorneys to prepare and win insurance cases by providing expert assistance and testimony in Virginia, West Virginia, Alabama and the United States Federal Courts.

Before starting RIC in 1989, Sam consulted for another consulting firm for almost nine years where he secured the best insurance programs at the lowest possible costs for his clients.

Educated at Louisiana State University, Sam earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in the School of Finance, College of Business Administration.

He also holds two prestigious insurance titles: the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) and the Associate in Risk Management (ARM).

In addition, he has successfully completed the College of Insurance’s Ocean Marine Insurance Program.

Serving his country in Viet Nam as a company commander, Sam was awarded the Army Commendation Medal and the Bronze Star in 1970.

Sam has extensive knowledge of the Virginia property-casualty and group health insurance programs and marketplace. He has assisted over 130 Virginia, Maryland, Florida, Ohio, California, Alabama and Louisiana entities with their property-casualty and group health insurance portfolios during the past twenty-six years.

Sam usually manages to enhance his client’s property and casualty coverages and group insurance benefits while reducing their overall costs.

 

Charles D. Robinson, CPA
Secondary Consultant

Chuck Robinson is a financial executive with extensive experience with insurance companies, banks, savings and loans, governmental agencies and multi-corporate holding companies.

Chuck earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

He received a Certificate in Accounting from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Chuck is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), which gives him great strength when analyzing property and casualty and group health insurance proposals and claims trending documents.

From 1988 through 1992, Chuck served as a Director of the Virginia Municipal Group Self-Insurance Association. This self-insured workers compensation pool is the largest and strongest in the Commonwealth today.

He also served on the VML Board’s Investment Committee, where he gave advice and counsel regarding a multi-million dollar investment portfolio of local governments and Counties premium dollars.

With his diversified background, Chuck has dealt successfully with a wide variety of insurance problems arising from complex transactions. He is a “hands-on” type manager who understands when quick action is necessary to resolve problems.

Chuck can offer guidance from a CPA’s standpoint regarding future self-insurance options, in addition to the analysis of the amount of pure loss risk assumption RIC’s clients can assume without damaging their solvency.

 

Regarding your Property and Casuality Portfolio
RIC will help you create and secure a comprehensive property and casualty insurance program for the most competitive price by:

      • Reviewing your current property-casualty insurance contracts and offering suggestions for improvements.
      • Studying your exposures, coverages and policy costs.
      • Working with your current carrier regarding your renewal program. And should you desire competitive proposals, we will assist you with this project at no additional cost.
      • Marketing your insurance program by creating specifications, assisting with specialty market selections and working with the independent agents and underwriters to obtain the best possible offers available.
      • Evaluating the offers, preparing a spread sheet and an easy to read report so that you may determine the strengths and weaknesses of each offer.
      • Conducting negotiations to confirm that your exposures are covered at the most competitive price available.
      • Assisting you in deciding which offer best meets your needs.
      • Notifying each proposed insurance provider of your placement decisions.
      • Placing the coverages on your behalf, confirming that correct binders and certificates of insurance have been issued.
      • Reviewing policies, invoices, endorsements, audits, modification work sheets, fire rate schedules, workers’ compensation retrospective and dividend programs, lease agreements, contracts and other documents to confirm that they are properly prepared and in your favor.
        • This includes future projects that RIC’s clients may enter into.
      • Keeping our clients informed about developments within the insurance industry that can be used to their advantage.

 

        • Continuing to offer consulting services during the year, including, but not limited to:
          • reviewing your exposures and coverage requirements for each renewal date;
          • working with your insurance agents to negotiate policy renewals, coverage improvements and price reductions;
          • meeting with you to discuss your losses, exposures, new situations and overall satisfaction with the program;
          • keeping you current on developments and products within the insurance industry;
          • discussing self-insurance alternatives along with assuming a higher deductible level for your coverages;
          • offering objective advice and guidance regarding claims and unusual legal actions against you;
          • providing fast and accurate responses and solutions to your questions and problems;
          • attending meetings as required in addition to visiting with you on a quarterly basis to review your insurance and risk management program;
          • providing insurance renewal premium estimates for all property-casualty insurance policies. This includes RIC’s position on future market trends regarding both coverages and pricing. Plans for our client’s renewals will be discussed at least five months prior to your renewal date;
          • providing information on educational programs; and
          • meeting with your staff to present insurance related discussions or seminars.

 

Methodology for your Property and Casualty Portfolio

RIC´s methodology to provide the requested services is simple and will help you and your staff to have minimum inconvenience.

The steps in RIC´s Property and Casualty insurance methodology follow:

      • RIC will visit your facility sites. This will allow you to have a fresh and up to date listing of all property and liability exposures.
      • The personal visit will then be compared with your current property-casualty insurance policies. This will help RIC provide you with suggestions for immediate improvements to the existing property-casualty insurance program, if any.
      • Other items will be reviewed, such as the Insurance Services Office fire rate schedules; the workers compensation experience modification worksheets; past claims histories for all lines of insurance; lease and contractual agreements both to and from you; and other areas of concern either acknowledged by you or found during RIC’s study.
      • When you decide to test the insurance market place, RIC will create the insurance criteria, tailored to the meet your needs. These specifications will be reviewed and approved by you prior to their release. Changes will be made and details addressed.
      • When you decide to test the current insurance marketplace, RIC will work with agents and their underwriters regarding the new and updated criteria released for the property-casualty insurance program.
      • All proposals will be received at your offices. You and RIC will review the proposals and RIC will take copies to its office to complete the analysis. A final report will be completed and presented to you for your review and approval.
      • You will decide how the coverages will be awarded. RIC will meet with you to discuss the results and the suggested placements.
      • However, it is to be understood that the final placement decisions rest with RIC’s clients and not RIC. In addition, prior to releasing any information to your Board of Directors or others, it must be reviewed and approved by you.
      • RIC will advise all agents of the final decision. Binders will be ordered. RIC will advise the unsuccessful proposers why they were not awarded the coverages.
      • Upon receipt of the property-casualty insurance policies, RIC will review the contracts, request necessary changes, and approve the invoices for payment.
      • During the year, RIC will provide the additional services reflected in this proposal.

Please remember that RIC’s approach to the services requested will be objective, complete and professional. RIC will work closely with you and your staff to provide the necessary services. There will always be open lines of communication between RIC you, your staff and our agents.

At all times it is RIC’s philosophy to provide the services with the minimum interruption of your staff’s daily activities.

 

Statement Regarding the Sale and Marketing of Insurance Products

Rosenthal Insurance Consulting, Inc. (RIC) is an independent risk management and insurance consulting firm providing comfort and advice to its clients regarding both property-casualty and group health insurance programs.

Rosenthal Insurance Consulting, Inc. is not engaged in the sale of insurance products, nor will Rosenthal Insurance Consulting, Inc. receive any compensation of any type from the agents, or others, providing proposals or services on behalf of its clients or any other agencies that are associated with any and all of RIC’s clients.

 

Regarding your Group Health Insurance Program

RIC will help you create and secure a Group Health Insurance program, along with a various benefit and funding options, for the most competitive price by doing the following on your behalf. This is what RIC usually does for its clients when there is no interference with our process.

  • Meeting with you to lay the groundwork for the upcoming renewal portfolio and to discuss the pros and cons of your current group health and dental program.
  • Reviewing the present group insurance program to determine the benefit structure, rates being charged, how the plan compares with other entities and if the employer contributions are in line with others.
  • This includes a review of the total premiums paid to the carrier for the past two years and the total claims paid out by the carrier for the same time period.
  • A “Calendar of Events” will be created to guide the renewal process.
  • Inviting your group health insurance representative to a meeting at your offices to discuss current loss ratios, funding options, trending levels, benefit options and the expected rate increase or decrease for next year.
  • Discussing your benefit options and funding alternatives along with the various self-insurance alternatives.
  • Reviewing your premium and claims payments on either a monthly or quarterly basis, depending on the funding alternative you are using.
  • Creating a proposal package including those benefits you would like to include within the offers along with the various funding options to reflect your desires.
    • This includes the “four and five” tier classification options for your consideration.
  • Marketing your insurance program by working directly with various insurance companies on a direct basis.
    • RIC will work with insurance companies on a direct basis to avoid the additional 3% to 8% commission loadings by agents or the hidden monthly sales and annual retention bonuses paid by insurance companies based on your premium or employee size.
  • Evaluating the offers and preparing a spread sheet so that you may determine the strengths and weaknesses of each offer.
  • Conducting negotiations with underwriters and company representatives to confirm that the coverages you desire are included at the most competitive price available.
  • Assisting you in deciding which offer best meets your needs.
  • Notifying each proposed insurance provider of your placement decisions.
  • Reviewing the contract and its endorsements to confirm that they are properly prepared and in your favor;
  • Offering advice and suggestions relating to Wellness Programs, Employee Assistance Programs, Hospital Bill Audit Programs, and Case Management Programs, Psychiatric Case Management options, Pharmacy Programs, Nurses and Clinics on Premises, changes in State and Federal Laws and Regulations in addition to other topics of concern of you or your Benefits Committee wants to address;
  • Considering the Work-Site Clinics as an option and their corresponding costs and savings;
  • Continuing RIC´s services regarding your renewal programs by assisting with renewal negotiations, projecting premiums vs. expected claims, discussing employee contributions, considering plan design changes and the problems encountered during the past year.
  • The renewal negotiations will begin at an early date so you will have the renewal numbers for budgeting purposes;
  • Offering assistance as requested on such topics as current benefit programs including administrative efficiency, internal/external equity, issues related to legal compliance, analyze areas of need, survey employees regarding the benefits and service of your current carrier, consider dental and vision benefit programs and the overall effectiveness of the group health insurance program;
  • Assisting with the creation of an employee communication campaign, assisting with the creation of “highlight” brochures, work with you to create video presentations and assist with the training of team leaders regarding the group insurance and employee benefits programs, if desired; and
  • Meeting with administrators and staff to explain the benefits programs and answer questions.

 

Methodology for Group Health Insurance and Employee Benefits Programs

RIC´s methodology to provide the requested services is simple and will help the you have minimum inconvenience.

The steps in RIC´s group health insurance methodology are:

    1. RIC will review all current group insurance programs along with other necessary documents.RIC will review the claims data very closely. This will give you the opportunity to remove those large, non-recurring claims that can drive our rates to higher levels. By removing these “one time” claims, the underwriters and their underwriters can price the renewal program more aggressively.RIC and the Benefits Committee will also discuss plan design, funding options, HRA´s, Work-Site Clinics and other topics of interest or concern.
    2. RIC will then create a draft copy of the specifications and review them with you. Changes will be made and these amendments will be incorporated into the final criteria.
    3. You will review and approve the final specifications and RIC will have them released to the insurance industry.
    4. RIC will work with the company representatives and their underwriters regarding the criteria released for the group insurance program.
    5. All proposals will be received at your offices. RIC will review the proposals and RIC will take its copies to Richmond to complete the analysis.

A draft report will be completed and presented to you for his review and approval.

  1. RIC will invite the insurance company´s representative and underwriter to your office for an interview with the Benefits Committee.

    During this meeting, RIC and the Benefits Committee will voice their input to the plan and ask for modifications to the program, if required. 
    The underwriters will then return within one week to present their alternatives and answer questions.
  2. We will review the rate structure and make adjustments which will give you the opportunity of establishing the “Employee Only” rate after receiving the renewal options from the underwriters.
  3. The Benefits Committee will decide how the coverages will be awarded.You will then vote to accept, reject or amend the RIC´s suggestions.RIC will meet with the successful insurance company representative to discuss the final program details.
  4. Upon receipt of the group insurance contract RIC will review the contract, request necessary changes and approve the acceptance of the program.
  5. RIC is available to attend employee meetings to introduce any new programs you embrace on renewal or in the future.
  6. RIC will assist the you in monitoring the program.
  7. RIC will then discuss Wellness Programs, Employee Assistance Programs, Hospital Bill Audit Programs, and Case Management Programs in addition to other topics that will help you to control medical costs and provide assistance to your employees.
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