The United Pool Association is rolling out a new benefit for members: Dividends.
Through the association’s insurer, Allianz, members can earn as much as 20 percent of their insurance premiums back, explained Sean Reardon, a broker with Western Growers Insurance Services in Irvine, Calif. That amounts to about $13 a month, which effectively brings the monthly rate down to $54.
The dividends will be distributed to members in the form of a check, said UPA President Steve Homer.
“It’s the members’ money,” Homer said. “We don’t want to take any money out of the member’s pocket.”
The program is the first of its kind of the pool service industry. “Insurance companies in our world are really hesitant to start giving away dividend-type rewards to policyholders like UPA,” Reardon said. That’s because of the claims volatility in the pool industry.
Reardon was able to negotiate the deal because of UPA’s decades-long history with its insurance provider, Fireman’s Fund, now owned by Allianz. “At first it was met with, ‘Well, we don’t really do that,’ but they have data on this group going back years and years,” Reardon said. With that data, Allianz could see that UPA had a track record of stability and profitability.
Reardon estimates the first dividends will be calculated at the end of January next year.
In other UPA news, the organization is now offering discounts on study guides to help members pass the California’s contractors licensing exam. Website design and SEO services are also available at discounted rate.
