Well, even though I am sitting on an airplane headed for the Silicon Valley in CA to meet with senior management of FSCStoneRiver to discuss some new and exciting products that are about to be released; there certainly is a cool, brisk feel in the air that I am leaving behind this early morning on Long Island, NY. The lower temperature deviation from the beautiful, hot summer that we experienced this year reminds me it’s that time again for apple and pumpkin picking, trick or treating, long sleeve sweaters, and soon we’ll be raking leaves and wrapping our fig trees here in the Northeast (I’ll wrap my fig trees but the landscaper is raking leaves for me this fall). If you’re a “blue light special” K-Mart shopper or even a “roll back prices” Wal- Mart loyal customer, you have even seen the large assortment of Christmas trees and holiday lights that have already replaced the swimming pools and outdoor furniture recently located in “Seasonal”. Is it me, or are these cyclical products turning up earlier and earlier each year? I’m thinking about Halloween, and Madison Ave. has skipped over that and Thanksgiving (which believe it or not is just around the corner), as they’re already pushing Santa out the door and on to our front lawns. If you may remember, last year at this time (or maybe it was the year before as time is flying by so quickly I don’t remember!), I wrote in this column a silly little piece about a contract between a homeowner and a Trick or Treater, specifically detailing the hazards of distributing goodies to unsuspecting little goblins and the inherent liability risks that we automatically assume and are associated with, that a homeowner may possibly be subjected to each and every Halloween.

Although that column I wrote was intended as a spoof on a typical hold harmless agreement that we so commonly see in this thing of ours, truth be told is that the potential for a liability claim against your homeowner’s policy is certainly present each time you toss a bag of cookies or candy into some little princess’ bucket or pirate’s pillow case. In addition to the choking hazards and possibly a product liability case that we are opening ourselves up to, don’t forget the opportunity for a trip and fall, sexual harassment, peanut allergy or even a celiac disease claim if the goodies we are distributing contain a food item or hidden ingredient not clearly labeled on the package that the little monster maybe be allergic to and that their parent or guardian was not diligent enough to inspect before allowing their precious 5 year old superhero to consume. “Not your problem” you say? Remember McDonald’s and their hot coffee escapade a few years ago.

Quite frankly, any injury that a person suffers while their feet are on your property is considered to be a liability of yours. According to www.families.com, here are a few tips that you may want to share with your insured before they invite everyone in their neighborhood to step on their front lawn:

• If you trip over the garden-hose every time you walk to the front door, then don’t assume the little darlings in your neighborhood won’t do the same. Be sure to remove any obstacles from the sidewalk, driveway, and entry of your home.

• Use only outdoor approved lighting and don’t place any lit candles outside of your home.

• Be sure the area is well lit, and keep your lights on all night. Remember, no matter how great the candy was at your house, Tricksters are still interested in causing problems. The best targets are dark homes where no witnesses will see the mischief!

• Eggs are very difficult to clean off the side of your house, and even worse when they hit the hood of your car. If possible park your car in a garage Halloween night

• Be sure your pets are safely kept inside the house on Halloween. Not only are they at great risk of being frightened or hurt, but a dog bite claim is not what most of us expect when we’re handing out candy.

• Most of all be sure the treats you hand out are safe, and professionally and individually wrapped.

Well, those are some “common sense” tips that we all know but sometimes need to be reminded of. Same goes for your insured. Maybe “Tweet” them a quick note or post it in your blog on Facebook or your website, but either way just give them a simple, friendly, and professional reminder of what they need to do on Halloween… before the goblins of insurance claim them! As fall is now upon us, so is the insurance industry convention season. Recently, the Independent Insurance Agents of Monroe County (aka IIAMC) and the CPCU Society of Rochester held their Rochester I Day conference at the Doubletree Hotel in Rochester, NY. With a huge turnout of local agents and carrier folks from western New York, this successful event was chock full of continuing education courses such as “Sales Training and Social Networking” presented by Paul Banuski; and “Who Am I?”, a CE course presented by Bruno Falvo, which took an in depth look at an “insured status”.

Tom Tukes of The Tukes Agency was named “Insurance Professional of The Year”. Congratulations, Tom, you certainly deserved it! In addition, the awards luncheon featured one of the most interesting speakers that I have had the pleasure of listening to in recent months, Vincent Poscente, the Olympic speed skier who promotes himself as a “Peak Performance Strategist, Olympian; Speaker; Father; and Chair Guy.” Speaking to a “packed house” and on the subject of “motivating sales people and the frontline to be aligned, remain agile, and reduce drag for faster, better bottom line results”, Vince was certainly motivating, as he vividly sets visions in our mind’s eye through the use of his perfect articulation and animated presentation skills, of his Olympic experience in our minds eye (he also used a short video piece on his unsuccessful attempt at a gold) and taught us that “Winning the gold isn’t everything, it’s the road you take to get there that is” which is a line that he credits to his father for always supporting him even when times were tough in his Olympic career. “Bravo, Vince”, I say, and if you ever have an opportunity to attend one of his seminars, be sure to do so…you won’t regret the time you spend, I assure you of that.

Another meeting and scrumptious dinner event that I was very fortunate to have attended was the Council of Insurance Brokers of Greater New York (aka CIBGNY) annual business meeting at Vetro Restaurant and Catering on Cross Bay Blvd. in Howard Beach, Queens, NY. As I am now a proud member of this insurance organization, this wonderful group of agents, vendors, and carrier folks from the downstate New York and northern New Jersey areas are a group of individuals dedicated to helping agents throughout the area to be educated and informed on all facets of the industry. My sincere congratulations to my friend Anthony Aqulino from Brooklyn, NY, for the wonderful job he did as President of CIBGNY for the past year, and also to Michael Demetriou as we wish him all the best as the incoming President.

Immediate Past President Anthony Aquilino had this to say, when I asked him what CIB has to offer its members, “As president of the Council of Insurance Brokers of Greater New York, I strongly suggest brokers, agents and company representatives to join our association. We have a golf outing in June and a dinner dance that is the insurance event of the year. We have a few general meetings a year to cover issues that affect our industry. These meeting are a great opportunity to meet, mingle and make contacts. As president for the past two years, CIB’s focus has been on the new disclosure regulation. We’ve traveled to Albany to meet with our legislators and had numerous meetings with the Insurance Department. This past year we had two seminars and a general meeting to cover the requirements and how to comply with regulation 194.

CIBGNY and IIABNY are continuing their endeavors to stop the regulation and are scheduled to have oral arguments October 15 in Albany. I encourage membership and support and look forward to meeting new members at our dinner dance December 23, 2010 at the El Caribe in Brooklyn.” The 2010-2011 CIBGNY Board now consists of: Michael Demetriou, President; Joseph Bosnack, Vice President; Shelly Kozel, Vice President; Michael Honig, Treasurer; Michael Cracco, Secretary. It was also a pleasure to see at the meeting Pat Hayes from EVO Merchant Services; Al Caputo from Buckingham Badler Associates in Staten Island, NY; Anthony Califiore from Califiore Agency in Staten Island, NY, Harvey Leff from Brooks Insurance in Manalapan, NJ; Joe Leff from Magna Carta Companies in New York, NY, and so many others. Thanks, guys, for allowing me to become a part of your organization, and Ann Marie and I look forward to your annual dinner dance on December 3rd, 2010 at the El Caribe Catering Hall in the garden spot of the world, Brooklyn, NY. “How sweet it is”, as the immortal one would say about it. If you have never attended this gala event, it is certainly one of the “must go to” insurance affairs in the northeast with an attendance of a few hundred agents, carriers, and others who serve this business… ”Fuggedaboudit!”

Well, thanks for taking another walk around the neighborhood with me, and I am sure that I’ll see you at the Independent Insurance Agents of CT’s Mid Year Conference at The Aqua Turf in Plantsville, CT; Syracuse I Day in Syracuse, NY; at the PIA of New York’s Hudson Valley RAP in Tarrytown, NY; or at any of the upcoming holiday socials planned around New Jersey and Connecticut by The Young Insurance Professionals of those states. Oh, and if you would like to see some video clips of these events, please check out “Loguercio At Large” on YouTube (simply Google “Loguercio at Large”) where I post some of the memorable moments that we talk about in this column. Ciao!