If you’re reading this, then you already know that the CSD Pool has a lot to offer. But when we talk to members one-on-one, we often find that there are a lot of advantages to Pool membership that people don’t know a lot about. Given how much we have to offer, that’s not surprising, and it can be a little overwhelming.
To help, here’s a map to guide you to some of the most awesome, and little known, benefits of being a member of the CSD Pool. You’re bound to find something valuable that you didn’t know about.
1. The RMR
The start of your treasure hunt is right in front of you. The Pool’s quarterly Risk Management Review is much more than just a newsletter. Think of it like a compass that helps you navigate whatever perils you might encounter. We provide this magazine to every member contact we have, and it’s completely free. The RMR furnishes you with the latest information about the Pool and its programs.
Unlike other company newsletters, this isn’t all about self-promotion. We also cover issues critical to Colorado’s special districts. These include statutory changes, current events, new technologies, and hot button issues like guns in the workplace or sexual harassment.
We also highlight you, our members, your amazing employees, and the outstanding work you do serving Colorado. If you want to receive more copies of our magazine, or make sure more people at your organization receive it, click here.
2. Free Services
One of the biggest advantages to being in the CSD Pool as opposed to a competing insurer is that we provide additional programs at no cost. Some of them are detailed later in this guide, such as TargetSolutions basic training program or our HR consulting. But for now we bring your attention to a few free programs available to all members that can save you money you would otherwise spend on a similar service elsewhere. In fact, you could view them as an extra staff member helping to pull the load:
Your Backup HR Generalist
Powered by our partners at Enquiron, HR Helpline provides a wealth of human resources-related information. This includes state-specific legal information, sample forms and policies, and HR-related news. HR Helpline also provides a hotline that lets you ask a question to a qualified HR attorney at no cost.
Your Emergency Communications Director
Powered by OnSolve, SmartNotice allows you to communicate with your team easily and remotely. Think of it like a digital megaphone that removes the need for a phone tree. You can send messages by SMS, email, or voice message over the phone. This is perfect for reaching out through crises like pandemics, floods, or wildfires. You can even use it to ask everyone to check in after a disaster.
Your Information Security Expert
Powered by our partners at NetDiligence, eRisk Hub gives you tools to prepare for a cyber-attack. It also teaches you how to respond if you’ve been hit, it provides you with a list of qualified pre-vetted forensics experts, PR firms, and even places to buy cryptocurrency if you need to.
3. Member Discounts
Just as you might be a member of AAA to get discounts on hotels, golf, and restaurants, the Pool also provides some discounts on relevant purchases. We’ve secured special discounted rates on a wide range of products you are already buying.
These discounts come from retailers such as Conney Safety, Red Wing Shoes, Kickspike, and Lexipol. They help you take your budget—and your Safety Grant funding—even further.
4. Cyber Assessments
Cyber risks can seem like unknowable monsters that no one knows how to handle. That’s why every year the Pool partners with NetDiligence to provide a few no-cost cyber assessments to members. In cyber security and insurance circles,
NetDiligence is a household name. They’re experts in making sure your information systems are top notch from both an administrative and technological standpoint.
The no-cost aspect of this program is first come, first serve. We provide six “Cyber Health Checks” free every year. This is an administrative check that gives you a sense of how your information security policies and settings compare with industry recommendations.
The final report members receive reveals strengths and opportunities for improvement and tells you exactly what your IT staff or contractors need to do to shore up your digital security. Best yet, members who complete this assessment are given higher Cyber limits at no additional cost.
There are a few catches to this no-cost opportunity. The first is that there are a limited number of slots every year, and they fill up fast. The second is that the Pool will receive a copy of your report (which we keep confidential), and we ask that you share your experience with us for a possible article in our newsletter.
If you miss out on the free slots for this program, don’t worry. We have secured favorable pricing with NetDiligence so you can pay for your assessment at a discounted rate. There is also a free self-guided version of the assessment available in eRisk Hub. While that version does not bear the additional increased limits, it is a great place to start.
If your district wanted a more robust option, there is the option to buy-up to a CFO Assessment. This assessment includes the Cyber Health Check and adds a security scan. NetDiligence will scan your website and systems for vulnerabilities and known exploits and report back with exactly what you need to fix.
To learn more about districts that have gone through the process, click here.
5. SKIDTRUCK
Our SKIDTRUCK training apparatus is the only one in the state of Colorado, and of very few available anywhere. This amazing tool puts you behind the wheel of a large truck and simulates the kind of loss of traction you might experience on an icy road. Our SKIDTRUCK is big enough to be a good equivalent to a very large truck, van, or fire engine, making it a uniquely valuable experience for your drivers.
Training on the SKIDTRUCK is $150 for a 2-hour course and $200 for a 4-hour course. In 2020, the cost has been reduced to $25 for the 2-hour course and $50 for the 4-hour course. We provide this training in partnership with First Gear Skid School, which also grants our members access to their SKIDCAR training at a discounted rate.
6. Customized Coverages
Most insurance companies use broadly available policy language to deliver more or less a uniform product to everyone. They tweak things on the fringes for certain clients, but it’s definitely a one-size-fits-all approach. At the CSD Pool, we’ve written most of our coverage documents ourselves and only with Colorado special districts in mind. At a competitor you might pay for policy benefits that mean nothing to you as a not-for-profit local government agency. With us, however, everything is tailored to your needs.
For example, most failure to supply coverage is normally excluded with other providers. But because that detail is important to water and sanitation districts, we don’t exclude it. We also provide $2 million of flood coverage not just for Flood Zone X, but also A and AE. This is a big deal for sanitation districts, and it isn’t something you will find from most of our competitors.
7. Continuing Education Credits
Several CSD Pool programs provide continuing education credits for a variety of professions. A few of these are available at no cost, but they are all incredibly valuable and convenient:
Emergency Medical Services CE: Our TargetSolutions for Fire & EMS program, available to members at a significant discount, provides continuing education credits for EMS.
Human Resources CE: Members who use HR Helpline also receive notifications about Enquiron’s monthly webinars. These webinars bear CE toward several HR designations and are all free.
Water / Wastewater Training Units: Our TargetSolutions website contains the entire Water & Wastewater catalog, which supports a number of professional designations in Colorado. Our partners at TargetSolutions work with the state to bring these TUs to you at no cost.
8. Included Coverages
At the Pool, we give a lot of extra coverages you would typically have to pay more for with a traditional insurer. We already talked about the option to increase your Cyber limits.
But did you know that if you purchase Crime Coverage from us, we include coverage for identity theft for all of your employees and board members? Additionally, we are currently providing $25,000 in accident medical coverage for non-firefighter district volunteers through 2021 for volunteers scheduled on your coverage.
9. Expertise
One of the biggest advantages of the Pool is our expertise. Our team is made up of professionals who know coverage issues and special districts intimately. You won’t find our combination of familiarity and expertise anywhere else.
But the Pool is more than insurance, and we can provide you the benefit of expertise in a variety of other areas. Here are a few examples:
- Safety: Our Safety Management Consultant, Adam Johnsen, is ready to help your district with any safety-related issues you might have.
- HR: In addition to the legal experts at HR Helpline, we provide up to ten hours of consulting with our qualified partners at CPS HR.
- Legal Issues: Every member gets pre-Loss legal services, which lets you vet potential claims or lawsuits with a lawyer before a loss occurs.
- Indemnification Agreements in contract as well as waivers used in your operations
10. Free Money
What better treasure can their be?
The Safety and Loss Prevention Grant Program is one of our most popular and enduring services. Given its popularity, you might wonder why it is on this list. The districts that use this program use it a lot. But not every district, or every person at every district, knows about it. We often find some districts go for years with thousands of dollars on the table that they never know to access until it’s too late.
Here’s how it works: once your district has been with the Pool for more than a year, it begins to accrue funds in the program. These funds are relative to how much you pay into the Pool. If your district purchases anything that supports safety or loss prevention—such as first aid supplies, fire extinguishers, or improved fencing—then you can submit that purchase for up to 50% reimbursement through the Safety Grant program. If you purchase something related to the COVID-19 pandemic such as PPE, decontamination costs, or even COVID testing, we will reimburse the purchase at 100%.
All purchases in this program are limited to your district’s balance. Since this program is tied to how much you pay into the Pool, some very small districts may not have funds allocated. But if you have any questions, just let us know.
