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Insurance Against Errors or Omissions
The 2008 CSGA Annual Meeting passed a resolution asking CSGA to
investigate the potential of a national errors & omissions/damages policy
for its members. Currently, three seedsmen's errors & omissions
insurance packages are available in Canada.
Seed Industry Plus
is a stand alone insurance program offered by Farrell Agencies Ltd. of
Yorkton, Saskatchewan to all CSGA members. Since 1994 this errors &
omissions package was being offered in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and has,
more recently, been endorsed by the Saskatchewan and Manitoba Branches.
Through the encouragement of CSGA, Farrell Agencies is now taking the
program nation-wide. To learn more about the features of this insurance
package, you can use the toll free number 1-800-268-3675 or access
applications on-line at
www.farrellagencies.com.
Seedmen’s Errors and Omissions Insurance Program is now
available to all CSGA members through the brokerage services of Marsh Canada
Ltd. Although this is a new offering to the market, Marsh is a world leading
insurance broker and risk advisor providing advice to clients in over 100
countries. To learn more about the features of this insurance package, you
can use the toll free number 1-877-585-3459, email to
rma.seedsmens@marsh.com or access their web site at
www.marsh.ca/secan.
Seedsmen's Professional Liability Insurance is now
available from Dalton Timmis Insurance Group, with offices in Ontario and
Alberta. This error’s and omissions product is available to seed
growers across Canada. Dalton Timmis has gained exclusive access to this
insurance product that has been offered to members of the International Seed
Federation for several years. Members of the seed trade in Canada may have
been previously aware of the program and its benefits. To learn more about
the features of this insurance package, contact Shawn Stephens at
1-888-385-8466, email
shawns@daltontimmis.com, or visit their web site at
www.daltontimmis.com.
The CSGA recognizes there are differences among these three programs and
we also recognize each individual seed grower’s needs are unique. We,
therefore, encourage you to contact all three companies to learn the most
you can about the options and features that best suit your operations.
Reducing Your Liability Risk?
Errors & Omissions Insurance can reduce the cost
to you associated with the liability that accompanies operating errors or
omissions. We are all human and errors or omissions do occur in operating a
business, whether we like it, or not. Several businesses, landscaping
nurseries for example, utilize warranty statements in an attempt to reduce
liability associated with performance of their products.
Warranty statements are hardly a
cure-all in terms of waiving liability – the courts will ultimately decide
the presence or absence of liability and the corresponding level of
liability. A warranty statement does, however, educate or alert the buyer
that the seller wishes to limit their liability associated with the product.
Such education and awareness could go a long way in avoiding Statements of
Claim, particularly when the Statement of Claim is somewhat questionable.
You may wish to consider placing a
statement of warranty limiting your liability on your company invoice. To do
so, you should speak with your legal counsel on the wording that best suits
your operation. The following statement may serve as a starter for you:
The buyer’s improper care and handling of this
seed can nullify all stated and implied guarantees, or warranties,
associated with the certified seed.
Doing Business in a Litigious Society
The 2010 CSGA Annual Meeting provided a professional development session by
Jason Mohrbutter on Doing Business in a Litigious Society.
The overall goal of the presentation was to explain the basic foundation of
a legal action involving seed in order to help growers better understand the
type of practices that can be adopted to best position your business in
relation to seed litigation. This paper was to complement the
presentation and is being posted for the betterment of all CSGA members.
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