1. Insurance & Risk Solutions
IT’S NOT JUST BUSINESS;
it’s Personal
CONTACT THE STARR GROUP
5005 Loomis Road • Greenfield, WI 53220-0001
Phone: (414) 421-3800 • Fax: (414) 421-6145
LIVE CHAT at starrgroup.com
CHAT NOW! Oneofthefloorcareproducts
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5005 Loomis Road
Greenfield, WI 53220
October - December 2015
The demise of Auto
Insurance is a long way
from a reality as are roads
dominated by self-driving
vehicles. Be that as it may,
I have read several articles
that suggest the historical
application of vehicle
insurance will certainly and
significantly change.
It is hard to imagine self-
driving vehicles dominating
our roads since there are
still plenty of us who, well,
enjoy driving and desire
control. So, it would appear
that comsumers are a long
way from freely giving up
that control, in addition the
technology is certainly in
its genesis. Like others, I
have been surprised though
how fast the technology has
culminated and it appears
there is a race to be“the first”.
As technology advances,
there will be a shift that
takes place wherein the
negligence of a driver
will become the Product
Liability of the self-driving
vehicle company. This
makes sense particularly
when the vehicle is in
the“Self-Driving mode”.
Collectively, it should cause
vehicle insurance premiums
to go down.
Vehicles today are already
safer than at any time in
history and that in turn has
had an impact on insurance
costs whether that means a
credit one receives for safety
devices or simply slowing the
pace of rate increases.
The pace of technology
advances and it won’t be
long before our head jerks
at witnessing what once was
considered a“ghost driver”
cease and the phenomenon
becomes a common sight —
oh, the good ol’days!
Sincerely,
Tim Starr
CIC, CRM, CRIS, CWCA
President & CEO
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Our vision is to lead
in the creation and delivery
of Risk Reducing Services
and Insurance Programs
for our clients, improving
their Total Risk Wellness.
The Destination of Insurance
and Self-Driving Vehicles
In 1959, GM created a concept car
complete with a radar-equipped
hood, but the“Cadillac Cyclone”
was never produced. (Reuters)
In 2013, Ford’s chief technology director, Vijay Sankaran, was quoted
as speculating that truly self-driving cars“were at least 10 years away.”
In 2013, Donald
Hillebrand, director of
transportation research at
the U.S. Argonne National
Laboratory, cited the
notorious litigiousness of
American’s as the main reason
why big carmakers were
content to let upstarts such
asTesla and Google take the
first step in developing self-
driving vehicles. In the event
of an autonomous car crash, it
will not be immediately clear
who should be sued: driver or
manufacturer.
InsideThisIssue:
TheFutureofSelf-DrivingVehiclesPage1
WelcomeNewStarrCustomersPage2
CreditCardChipsandLiabilityPage2
WinterizeYourOutdoorWorkCrewPage3
ITContractandLitigationCostsPage3
CustomerSpotlightPage4

2. CHAT NOW!
Page 2 BUSINESS NEWS...You Can Use! The Starr Group The Starr Group BUSINESS NEWS...You Can Use! Page 3
Each Quarter, The Starr
Group welcomes the new
businesses that have
entrusted their insurance
and risk management
needs to us. Join us in
welcoming them to our
“family.” Please mention
seeing their names listed
in The Starr Group News
You Can Use newslet-
ter when you patronize
them!
American Industrial Sales
Aubby, Inc.
CaspianTechnology Concepts
DesignTech Remodeling, LLC
Essential Industries, Inc.
GlobalWet, LLC
Hamilton Education Foundation
Heartland Liquidation
Home Path Financial
Lee’s Hardware, Inc.
LilacVentures, LLC (dba Artisan 179)
MiroTool & Mfg., Inc.
Precision MachineTool Corp.
Rockafellow Remodeling, LLC
New Starr
Customers!
W
inter in Wisconsin is here.
Inclement weather such as fog,
ice and snow can negatively
impact the performance of machinery
and vehicles, as well as safety on the
roads. Workers could be outdoors for up
to twelve hours per day. All this can lead
to a significant reduction in productivity
and affect your overall profitability. It’s
a good idea to make sure your outdoor
crew is‘Winterized’.
Contractors who are exposed to
extreme weather conditions could face
health risks including hypothermia, frost-
bite, trench foot, and in extreme cases
even death. Additionally, your contractor
safety could be seriously hampered by
physical risks such as falls, slips, and trips
due to bad weather conditions.
According to OSHA, employers have
a responsibility to provide a work place
free from hazards, including those
caused by harsh winter weather. Related
hazards, like slippery roads and surfaces,
windy conditions, and damaged power
lines may be taken for granted. Protect
your contractors by teaching safe work-
ing practices and offering advice specifi-
cally related to winter conditions such as:
u Preventing Cold Stress and injuries
by choosing appropriate clothing
u Recognizing and monitoring the
symptoms of Cold Stress in self and
co-workers
u Monitoring weather conditions and
reporting back to management
The most valuable point is to recom-
mend protective clothing necessary dur-
ing bad weather. While there is no OSHA
requirement for employers to provide
workers with ordinary clothing such as
those needed during the harsh winter
months, it is your decision to provide
gloves, jackets, raincoats, sunglasses,
headwear and scarves if you deem them
necessary. Here is a list of seasonal ap-
parel:
1. Thermal insulated coveralls. The cover-
all design largely eliminates core body
heat loss while affording good range
of motion. They’re a smart investment
if you work outdoor in winter.
2. Helmet liners. Fleece-lined fabric is a
comfortable insulator and effective at
preserving neck and head heat. Keep
spares on hand and wash the liners
regularly. Liners are available in a
range of size and coverage; the longer
the better for protective coverage. Ski
masks are not designed for use with a
hard hat.
3. Glove selection. Fabric and texture
need to be suited to the job, but try
to find gloves that allow you to use a
liner. Insulated mittens have been de-
veloped with various configurations
for finger dexterity.
4. Eye protection. Wearing glasses can
minimize heat loss, protect from cold,
dry air, wind and dirt particles as well
as flu virus.
5. Scarves. Very effective at protecting
the neck and chest from heat loss,
scarves allow easy adjustment or
removal for cooling as needed.
6. Footwear. Choose double-layer thermal
socks and insulated boots. If possible
opt for a composite toe, which is
almost as strong as“Steel toe”.
7. Moisturize. To cover as much exposed
skin as possible, use skin cream, mois-
turizer, barrier creams, etc. to stave off
hypothermia and avoid frostbite.
For more ideas on minimizing busi-
ness risks all year round, call The Starr
Group at 1-414-421-3800 today.
Baby its COLD
outside!
BRRR!
The cost of litigation to information and network
technology companies has risen dramatically in
recent years as a result of product and service disputes.
Because of the increase in the average size and length
of contracts, more customers are willing to sue long
established business partners for performance failure
problems.The result: an increase in business partner
litigation.
With companies relying more on information
technology solutions, software solutions become core
business solutions.Therefore, more is at stake if the
solution fails or doesn’t perform as promised. Addi-
tionally, companies conducting international business
face a host of new exposures due to foreign laws and
regulations.
Information and network technology companies
need timely solutions that evolve with their industry.
The Starr Group errors & omissions (E&O) insurance
offers such solutions and can help protect your firm
from the devastation of a lawsuit.
The following scenarios give reason why IT busi-
nesses need proper insurance protection:
A company sues for lost revenue and expenses
to recover billing files for its customers that were
inadvertently deleted by the software vendor who was
updating the system.
Indemnity Paid: $750,000
Defense Cost Paid: $150,000
A software company was sued by a customer after he
used the company’s software.The software itself was
found to have functioned perfectly.The error was on
the part of the user who later underbid a work project.
The customer eventually dropped the case, but only
after considerable legal expenses were incurred by the
software company.
Indemnity Paid: $0
Defense Cost Paid: $175,000
Million dollar verdicts and costly legal fees can easily
destroy a firm’s bottom line...if not properly protected.
Talk to The Starr Group about information technol-
ogy errors & omissions insurance. Get the advice and
protection you need today.
Larger IT Contracts Contribute to Increased Litigation Costs
Ask the Account Manager...
QDoes a Cyber Policy
protect merchants from
fraudulent charges if they
did not change over their
card readers to the new EMV
system which reads the chips
now in many credit and debit
cards?
AThe answer is really no. In
October 2015, banks in the
United States began instituting
EMV (Europay MastercardVisa)
rules that are used around the
world. With this change, the
liability for debit and credit card
breach, forgery, damages shifted
from the bank to the entity
involved in the transaction using
lesser technology.
EMV requires more expensive
card readers that are capable of
reading a computer chip embed-
ded in the card which drives the
transaction approval.The chip
card will be“dipped”into the
reader device instead of swip-
ing a card with a magnetic strip.
The new dip technology makes
the possibility of counterfeiting
card information almost nil since
it transfers only information
involving a transaction approval
number.That number is good
only for that one transaction and
therefore cannot be copied and
used again and again, unlike the
information that is stolen off of
magnetic strips.
Cyber Liability with Payment
Card Industry (PCI) exposure ­—
at least in the short term (12-24
months) will in-
crease dramatically
for the retailer. This
is because the mag-
netic strip readers
are already in place at retailers all
over the country. Replacing them
with new computer chip readers
will cost $600-$1,500 more per
machine. For financial reasons,
many retailers may delay chang-
ing to the chip reader and that
puts the liability for fraudulent
use and breach on them because
the new rules say the transac-
tor with the lessor technology
is responsible (retailer with old
magnetic strip reader...not the
bank with the new chip embed-
ded card.)
If Cyber does not cover the
retailer for the EMV liability, they
will need to: 1) bear the burden;
2) buy an Excess and Surplus
(E&S) policy; or 3) upgrade their
card reader technology immedi-
ately to machines that read chips
as well as magnetic strips.
It is estimated that credit cards
will be switched over by the end
of 2016, and nearly 50% of all
bank debit cards will be switched
over by June of
2016. For obvious
reasons, banks
are rushing to
transfer liability
to the retailers. Moving ahead
with the newer technology, many
banks have budgeted for the
added expense of the card itself
and the reissuing of them to card
holders. By June, 2017, all banks
in the U.S. are estimated to make
chip technology transition.
There are were no hard and
fast guidelines for CNP (card not
present) transactions—online
purchases—, other than liability
will shift to the lessor technology
transactor.
Do you have questions
about Commercial
Insurance coverage or
Group Benefits? Contact
The Starr Group today:
1-414-421-3800
Questions about your policy?
LIVE CHAT * M-F * 9am-4pm
Get immediate answers from
certified Account Managers
and licensed Agents at
The Starr Group.
www.starrgroup.com
“...the new rules say
the transactor with
the lessor technology
is responsible.”