Description and History | Program Goals | Program Governance | Membership Listing | Staff Contact Information
Insurance Programs Home PageDescription and History The Pennsylvania Counties Risk Pool was created by the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania as a result of the "hard market" in liability insurance in the mid-1980's. Many Pennsylvania counties could not obtain liability and other insurance coverages, and if they could find a company willing to cover the county, the cost was usually prohibitive. Counties turned to their association for assistance.
After a great deal of investigation, data collection, and a detailed formal request for proposal process, CCAP formed PCoRP in April 1987. Based on the All Lines Aggregate (ALA) insurance concept, the program is a unique combination of self insurance, commercial insurance and loss control. More than 20 years in operation. Forty-five counties and county related entities presently participate in PCoRP.
Program GoalsPCoRP's purpose is to provide property, liability, automobile and other related insurance coverages to Pennsylvania counties.
The goals of PCoRP are:
- To provide continuing availability of coverage
- To supply broad coverage tailored to county government
- To deliver long term price stability and cost savings, and
- To efficiently use excess funds.
Continuing Availability of Coverage: PCoRP seeks to establish long term, mutually beneficial relationships with insurance carriers and reinsurers to encourage their continued participation in PCoRP. The structure of the insurance pool is examined each year prior to renewal to ensure effective coordination of insurance carriers and reinsurers. By establishing these long term relationships, PCoRP will be able to offer coverage in any insurance cycle, "hard" or "soft".
Broad Coverage: The PCoRP coverage document is insured and/or reinsured by A+ "Superior" carriers. It contains very broad wording tailored specifically for counties. Continued refinement of coverage has resulted in a policy and endorsements which contain substantially broader coverage and higher limits for a reasonable cost. Our recent remarketing effort resulted in vastly increased limits, many program enhancements, for less cost than the prior policy years.
Price Stability: PCoRP achieves price stability through an active loss control and risk management program designed to keep losses at a minimum. Annual price negotiations are held with all reinsurers. In addition, the PCoRP Board of Directors strives to reduce the program's reliance upon the traditional insurance market by increasing the size of the PCoRP Loss Fund, the self insured portion of the program. This helps to mitigate the cyclical nature of commercial insurance and reinsurance pricing.
Efficient Use of Excess Funds: If it is actuarially determined that PCoRP Loss Fund reserves from prior policy years are adequate to fund active and anticipated claims, the PCoRP Board of Directors has used these excess funds in one of two ways. The highest priority is to establish a surplus account. A secondary priority is to issue performance bonuses to member counties to be used against future Loss Fund contributions or insurance program costs. Performance bonus credits are issued based on each member's individual experience compared to the experience of the whole program. These performance bonuses also help keep costs stable: Some of the early members of PCoRP are currently paying less for their insurance than they did upon entering the program. Members typically need to be in their fourth year of membership and have low loss experience to qualify for a performance bonus.
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Program GovernancePCoRP is an intergovernmental insurance pool. Counties enter PCoRP by adopting the program's bylaws. The bylaws set forth the governance of the program and the rights and responsibilities of the members. A copy of the bylaws is available from CCAP. Each member county appoints a representative to the PCoRP Board of Delegates. The Delegates hold an annual meeting each year in conjunction with CCAP's Fall Conference, and must approve amendments to the PCoRP bylaws. The Delegates elect, from themselves, the five elected members of the PCoRP Board of Directors.
PCoRP is governed by a thirteen member Board of Directors, six elected by the participating counties through their Delegates and seven appointed by CCAP. No county may have more than one representative on the Board. The Board is responsible for setting policy and directing the operations of PCoRP. The Board meets at least four times a year. The PCoRP Underwriting Committee, a subcommittee of the Board, deals with claims issues and coverage questions.
PCoRP's Legal Counsel is John Yaninek, Mette Evans and Woodside, Harrisburg.
Membership Listing
| Counties |
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| Adams County |
Elk County |
Lycoming County |
Snyder County |
| Beaver County |
Erie County |
McKean County |
Somerset County |
| Bedford County |
Fayette County |
Mercer County |
Sullivan County |
| Bradford County |
Forest County |
Mifflin County |
Susquehanna County |
| Cambria County |
Franklin County |
Monroe County |
Tioga County |
| Carbon County |
Fulton County |
Montour County |
Union County |
| Centre County |
Huntingdon County |
Northampton County |
Venango County |
| Clarion County |
Indiana County |
Perry County |
Wyoming County |
| Clearfield County |
Jefferson County |
Pike County |
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| Clinton County |
Juniata County |
Potter County |
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| Columbia County |
Lebanon County |
Schuylkill County |
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| County Related Entities |
| Central Counties Youth Center |
| Huntingdon-Bedford-Fulton Agency on Aging |
| Lycoming Clinton Joinder Board |
| Pike County Industrial Commercial Development Authority |
Staff Contact Information For more information contact
Karen Cohen, Property and Casualty Manager, at (800) 895-9039.