"The more you know, the less you need." ~ Australian Aboriginal saying
Fairs Year-round Information	F.Y.I. Volume 9, Issue 3 February 26, 1999

IN FOCUS

General Liability Claims Handling Demystified

In the January 15th issue of F.Y.I., Bob Nixon, CFSA’s liability claims administrator, submitted the first article in a three-part series explaining the behind-the-scenes handling of a liability claim. This article picks up where the previous one left off:

Ever wonder what happens to a general liability claim after CFSA’s Claims Department has determined the claim is serious enough to require handling and that responsibility for the claim can’t be passed on to a renter’s, vendor’s or concessionaire’s insurance company? CFSA’s staff takes the claim through a five-step resolving process:

Step 1) CFSA verifies that the claim is the type that could be covered by the Memorandum Describing the Limited Liability Self-insurance Program administered by the Authority. (A copy of the Memorandum is in your Claims and Loss Reporting Guide and Insurance Programs/Coverages book, a.k.a. the "red book.") Most claims submitted to CFSA are within this protection.

Step 2) Investigation of the claim begins. The purpose for the investigation, typically conducted by an outside investigator, is to determine fault or liability for the claim. It usually includes statements from the claimant, fair personnel and any witnesses; photos; plus a diagram of the scene and any measurements of physical objects involved such as stairs, potholes or ramps. Through this process, CFSA’s objective is to learn if the fair was negligent, if there was a dangerous condition of property, or if the claimant was, partially at fault or comparatively negligent.

Step 3) CFSA collects information on any damages arising from the claim. "Damages" can include medical bills, records and reports; wage loss documentation; estimates for the repair of damaged property; and any other information that will support the claim.

Step 4) The claim is evaluated by CFSA in order to establish its estimated value. Based on our experience and knowledge of jury verdicts in similar cases, a 100 percent liability value is determined. This amount includes special damages such as medical bills and lost wages, and general damages for pain and suffering. Next, the likely percentage of liability for the case is decided. For example, the "full liability" value may be $10,000, with an estimated liability for the self-insurance pool of 20 percent. The settlement value for the pool would then be $2,000.

Step 5) Settlement of the claim with the claimant is negotiated. Throughout the handling of the claim, it’s usually possible to develop an idea of what claimants are seeking. Many are satisfied with payment only for their expenses not paid by other sources, while others may have a wide range of opinions as to their claim’s value, including some that are exaggerated. Bob notes that part of the art of negotiating is to convince the claimant that our value and offer are realistic and to explain the benefits of early settlement. If the claim can’t be settled through negotiation, the next step is to proceed to court and the filing of a lawsuit. What comes next? Bob will explain some of the many aspects of "litigated" claims in his final article. In the meantime, if you have any questions regarding liability claims, call Bob at 916/263-6171.

Volunteer Your Fair for a Marketing Plan Developed by Cal Poly Students

If you’re racking your brain trying to come up with a plan for drawing more visitors to your fair or for ways to increase your facility’s interim use, a marketing class at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, might have a deal for you.

Cal Poly’s Lynn Hamilton, an agribusi- ness assistant professor, explains that this marketing class consists of student teams that develop actual marketing plans for agribusi- nesses, including fairs. The class is popular with Fair Management graduating seniors, and is a requirement for students with a marketing concentration. The only costs to your fair are those incurred by the students while developing or conducting research for your marketing plan such as travel expenses, telephone calls, and copying. Throughout the project, students work closely with their professors, and are encouraged to develop and present their final plans as professionally as possible. The class is offered each quarter, and fairs interested in being considered as "clients" should call Lynn Hamilton at 805/756-5032, or by e-mail at: lhamilto@calpoly.edu.

Rick Wood, CFSA’s chief financial officer, and Sue Leavitt, computer services administrator, along with members of the Finance staff, have launched a computer training series designed to help fairs using the newest version of Compu-Share software. The focus of the class is to help fairs prepare accounting reports needed by the fair, as well as reports requested by F&E, and state and federal tax offices. The classes, which are held at CFSA’s offices in Sacramento, will concentrate on the most recent version of the software (6.6x), and computers running this version will be provided. All participants will receive an information- and sample-filled reference binder to take back to their fairs.

The first one-day training session, on accounts receivable, took place on Monday, February 22, to a full house. The next session, focusing on general ledger and financial reporting, is scheduled for April. If you’re interested in attending or would like more information, call Rick Wood at 916/263-6147. The cost for Fairs FlexNet members is $100 per person; $130 per person for nonmembers. Lunch and refreshments are included. Because space is limited, reservations are required.

Jim Tatum, CEO at the Eastern Sierra Tri-County Fair, reports that not only did the 1998 fair’s destruction derby crash and smash before a sold-out crowd (more than 4,500 fans), the fair also had a record number of competitive exhibits. New contests were also a hit, especially the ICARE pet and My Favorite Cookie contests. Here’s how overall numbers are adding up with 48 fairs reporting in with their 1998 total paid attendances:

• 1998: 6,908,987 visitors
• 1997: 5,846,023 visitors
• Up: +18.18%

F.Y.I. thanks all the fairs who’ve returned their total paid attendance faxes along with attendance-influencing fair highlights. If your fair is completed, and you haven’t yet faxed or mailed in your report sheet, please do so as soon as possible. Don’t have a report sheet? Please call Melissa Thurber at 916/263-6178.

Did you know?

• It’s possible to lead a cow up stairs but not down stairs.
• The reason fire houses have circular stairways dates back to when horses pulled the fire engines. It seems the horses, stabled on the first floor, learned to walk up straight staircases.
• A duck’s quack doesn’t echo, and no one knows why.