OIA’s Commitment to Health and Safety in Response to Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Our members are at the heart of everything that we do at the Ohio Insurance Agents (OIA). We care deeply about you, your team and your agency’s success and wellbeing. Therefore amid ongoing concerns about the Coronavirus (COVID-19), OIA is closely monitoring the latest reports from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and has taken a number of precautionary measures for the health and safety of our members, partners and team.

We know that you depend on us for many things, including your professional liability insurance (E&O), workers compensation coverage, education and professional development needs. We greatly appreciate the trust you have placed in us for providing these services. We take this responsibility very seriously. We want to share a few updates and ways we are here to serve you during this dynamic time to ensure safety and wellbeing remain a priority.

During the next 30-days, where mass gatherings are being cancelled, prohibited and discouraged from in person attendance, OIA will be practicing social distancing as advised by federal, state and local government officials. This means we will be cancelling all in person gatherings but will be available via phone, email and website as we have always been.

Specifically, our Professional Development calendar has several in-person classes planned that are now cancelled. The following structure will shape how we proceed, until further notice from the CDC, ODH and other federal, state and local government officials.

  • We will be cancelling the next 30 days of in-person events and classes, meaning everything outside of webinar course being offered between today, March 12, 2020 through April 12, 2020 will be cancelled. We offer a comprehensive and full professional development calendar, and we welcome a no-hassle, rebooking to a different course that we offer outside of the identified 30-day cancellation timeframe. In addition, we are working to reschedule these cancelled courses for later in the year.
  • For all classes scheduled within the 30-day period, if you request a refund you will receive a check refund mailed directly to your agency. If you wish to have this mailed to a home address, please feel free to reach out to Haley Broadway at haley@ohioinsuranceagents.com.
  • We understand how important your designation and CE requirements are, and we share your concern on how to maintain both during this period. We welcome you to visit the national alliance for online course options for CISR and CIC. This is a great option to continue your professional development while protecting your health and safety.
  • For CE requirements, the OIA offers a comprehensive library of online options. Furthermore, we are working to expand this offering in the days and weeks to come to offer you more options.
  • As you work to meet your requirements for designations, we know that it can be challenging to meet deadlines. Considering the cancellation of these courses, we recognize this could lead to frustrations in meeting requirements, The National Alliance is offering a case-by-case review for extension requests. Please contact them directly, (800) 633-2165. We have requested to stay appraised of any updates or adjustments to this stance from the National Alliance and will pass along any changes as we receive them.
  • Our office has always had the capability to work remotely and during this time of uncertainty, we have initiated a work-from-home policy for the next 30-days. Rest assured, we are still able to serve you, and your agency needs remotely and will have a skeleton crew at the office as long as our building is open.

In these uncertain times, our unwavering commitment to bring you and your agency the best possible experience and resources remains steadfast and our highest priority. We continue to have a plethora of online class offerings, many of which offer CE in conjunction with the education to ensure you stay up to date with your professional development requirements.

While we will not be as physically available, we are still here to serve you and available in the same manner we have always been. We greatly appreciate your understanding and support. We have many resources available on our website about the coronavirus situation and encourage you to check it frequently. We are available by phone at (800) 555-1742 during regular business hours and always available to help you 24/7 on ohioinsuranceagents.com.

Take care of yourself and each other!

 

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