.png)
Meet your new best friend: FC&S Expert Coverage Interpretation. Professional, first-party property insurance resources that can help you digitize your work, obtain a designation, get expert coverage interpretation, and much, much more.
There are many truths within the insurance industry - one is that good faith and fair dealing is a requirement of any carrier; another is that ambiguities in a policy are construed in favor of the insured, and another is that knowledge is required of every insurance professional. The industry values knowledge highly, and multiple educational designations are available to professionals.
Along with education, professional references are also important. FC&S Expert Coverage Interpretation began 93 years ago as Fire, Casualty, & Surety Bulletins (FC&S). In 1929, Edward J. Wolgemuth, founder of The National Underwriter Company, developed Fire, Casualty, & Surety Bulletins (FC&S) as a reference source for the property and casualty industry. It contained analysis of standard policies and one of the first features was the ability of subscribers to submit coverage questions for the editors to provide unbiased answers. Originally published in print form in large binders updated monthly, Fire, Casualty, & Surety Bulletins became known as FC&S Bulletins, and then as FC&S Expert Coverage Interpretation. The first electronic version of FC&S was developed in 1989, and the platform was most recently updated in 2019.
FC&S provides multiple resources for insurance professionals, written by professionals with decades of experience. Within FC&S you’ll find analyses of the ISO policy forms, where policies are broken down and explained in depth. What do the definitions really mean? What is covered and excluded? Where are there exceptions to both coverages and exclusions? Likewise, as these policies are updated, the differences between policy editions are highlighted. These differences often change what coverage is available, making it easy to determine if the change made is a broadening or reduction of coverage, or simply a clarification of coverage intent. Copies of these forms are also available.
There are discussions of broad insurance topics, such as what is collision within both commercial and personal auto policies, how a state insurance department works, and articles explaining credit scoring, autonomous vehicles, marijuana, e-cigarettes, drones and other emerging risks.
Litigation is also a major issue within the industry, and there is a weekly article discussing a recent case involving insurance coverage. Likewise, there is a weekly fraud article that highlights someone recently caught trying to defraud an insurer.
One of our most popular features is Ask the Experts. Subscribers may submit questions concerning coverages on any policy form. The editors will review the question and provide an unbiased, objective answer. Many subscribers use these answers when dealing with situations where they are unsure of coverage or when coverage has been denied. FC&S has been quoted in multiple court cases over the years as providing reliable coverage interpretation. What’s really interesting with the questions is how a slight variation in a claim scenario or a change in policy language can change the answer. Sometimes we get the same question, but it involves a different edition of the same policy. One of those answers agrees there is coverage, yet the other answer states there is no coverage. Both answers are correct based on the policy language involved.
Many issues in insurance are governed by state statutes - claims handling requirements, data breach notification laws, condominium statutes, adjuster licensing statutes, matching statutes, and many more. FC&S provides interactive charts of these statutes for handy reference. Along with the charts, there are interactive checklists as well. The editors welcome suggestions for charts that users would find helpful.
FC&S editors also provide webinars on a broad variety of topics; recordings of these webinars are now being stored on the site.
FC&S prides itself on keeping up with, and staying ahead of, emerging issues. We started writing about autonomous vehicles a number of years ago before semi-autonomous vehicles were on the road. We started writing about car-sharing, ride-sharing, and home-sharing at the beginning of the gig economy and addressed the inherent insurance issues involved. We strive to provide the best content we can that helps our subscribers do their jobs, whether they’re agents, adjusters, underwriters, or in some other role.
We look forward to welcoming you to our subscriber community!
Christine
About the author: With industry knowledge spanning 30 years, and as the managing Editor of FC&S Online, Christine is an experienced insurance professional specializing in personal lines, policy interpretation, underwriting, management, training, claims, systems development.
An author of many professional publications, Christine regularly writes for Claims Magazine and National Underwriter Magazine, and regularly conducts and moderates webinars and other training. Her insurance coverage specialties include Homeowners, Dwelling Fire, Auto, Crime, and Emerging Risks.
