MODIFICATION
R -- Evaluation and Recommended Improvements of the Current Nursery Crop Insurance Program - Amendment 1
- Notice Date
- 2/19/2010
- Notice Type
- Modification/Amendment
- Contracting Office
- NBC - Acquisition Services Directorate 381 Elden Street, Suite 4000 Herndon VA 20170
- ZIP Code
- 20170
- Solicitation Number
- N10PS18095
- Archive Date
- 2/19/2011
- Point of Contact
- James Tessitore Contracting Officer 7039643601 james.tessitore@aqd.nbc.gov;
- E-Mail Address
-
Point of Contact above, or if none listed, contact the IDEAS EC HELP DESK for assistance
(EC_helpdesk@NBC.GOV)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- The purpose of this amendment (RFQ N10PS18095, Amendment 1) is the following: 1) Extend the Intention to Quote date, from February 19, 2010 to February 26, 2010. 2) Extend the Closing Due Date, from March 5, 2010, 2:00 PM Eastern Time to March 12, 2010, 2:00 PM Eastern Time. 3) Statement of Work paragraph 2.4.1 # 4 (Page 40 of the RFQ) is revised to read as follows: The Contractor shall contact insurance providers, insured nursery growers, leaders representing nursery growers and RMA's two nursery advisors to determine the satisfaction/dissatisfaction with the current nursery crop insurance program as well as how information on what the insured nursery growers liked/disliked about the nursery crop insurance program will be obtained and any changes the insured nursery growers have recommended. The Questions and Answers are posted below: 1.How many years of prior policy and/or coverage information is available, and how far into the future does the program administrator project the programs exposure levels? This would include but not be limited to policies, premium volume, crop value insured, loss reserves for Nurseryman's coverage as part of the Crop year, rating plans, policy forms and reinsurance. Answer: Nursery Crop Provisions are available on RMA's website from 1996 through present. There is no plan for the nursery program to discontinue. 2.What private sector insurers/reinsurers are competitors to this program? Answer: There is currently one other nursery insurance product available in the private sector of which we are aware. The name of the insurance product is Live Asset Insurance (www.liveassetinsurance.com). 3.Why have the number of AIPs declined from 18 and 15? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 4.Please provide a historical list of AIPs and their market share of crop and nurseryman coverage, year by year. Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. The contractor can determine how big the RMA nursery book of business is by going to the RMA website. 5.What role and how large a role does alien capacity play in the primary and excess direct and reinsurance market for wholesale nursery (insured) risk? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 6.Are AIPs allowed to buy commercial reinsurance for some or all of the book? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 7.Is participation in the program by AIPs voluntary, in whole or in part? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 8.Who are the agent/producers the AIPs use to distribute and service the business? Do any AIPs also do this as a direct writer? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 9.Has the number of agents/producers changed and if so, how? By number, by demographics or in other ways. Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 10.Can the actuarial data be extracted for Nursery Crops results independent of the overall Crop Program results for: primary, excess, catastrophe, insurer, reinsurer, agent, loss and reserves? Answer: As stated in section 4.2 of the Statement of Work RMA can provide data regarding the nursery crop insurance program. The Contractor shall provide RMA detailed requests of RMA datasets and RMA will furnish them within 30 business days. If the requested data sets require Contractor revision, RMA will cooperate with the Contractor to avoid excessive or unnecessary delays of any contract deliverable. 11.When and who designed the claims management system? Do AIPs view it as user friendly, fair and accurate? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 12.Who is assigned the claims adjustment responsibility and how are they selected? How long is their contract period and how is performance evaluated? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 13.Please provide the list of TPAs per year and the reason for any changes. Answer: We are assuming TPAs stands for Third Party Agreements. This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 14.What are the payment and reserving authority levels of the TPA(s), and who makes the determination of ultimate payment of claims and loss reserving for example the: TPA, RMA, FCIC or another party. Answer: We are assuming TPAs stands for Third Party Agreements. This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 15.Are there any existing sessions for the AIPs or insureds to get together to discuss the program? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 16.Has a survey been done in the past and if so, focused on what specific points and what resulting changes? Answer: No surveys have been completed by RMA for the nursery program. 17.Would the government consider privatizing this coverage? Answer: The government has no plans to privatize at this time, if the program is offered through private sources for essentially the same coverage, the program could be discontinued. 18.Do you have a list of all US wholesale nurseries which meet your definition? Answer: No. 19.Which AIPs write Nurseryman's coverages as part of the FCIC policy offering? Answer: This can be provided after the award at the request of the contractor. 20.Can you make available the list of agents who distribute for the AIPs? Answer: No. 21.Who sets the agent selection policy for the AIPs? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 22.Who is the contractor or contractors assigned the responsibility for stewarding the EPLPPS? How are they selected? Answer: DataScape, LLC is responsible for maintaining and updating the EPL/PPS. DataScape is selected through a contract award process. 23.Does the RMA know their costs to administer the National Nurseryman's program separate from loss payment/reserve costs? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 24.How are loss adjusters qualified? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 25.What drives the current over-reporting of inventory values? Answer: Below are a couple of the reasons why inventory values are over-reported:1)Nursery inventory fluctuates on a daily basis. Therefore, pinpointing the inventory value on any given day is difficult to do.2)Insureds may know the highest inventory value they will have during the crop year is $1,000,000. Therefore, they report $1,000,000 on their Plant Inventory Value Report even if they do not have that much inventory value in their nursery at the time they report. 26.Why is the entire Crop program not under review? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. RMA is contracting at this time for an evaluation and recommendations on the nursery program. 27.How are exposures in the program collected and to what level of exposure granularity is the historical actuarial information captured? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 28.How many prior underwriting (or crop) years of historical actuarial information are available, and how far into the future does the RMA or FCIC project this information? Answer: Actuarial information is available on RMA's website from 1989 to present. RMA does not project this information. 29.What actuarial data is available other than that which is shown at the rma.usda.gov website? In particular, the Actuarial Section of the RMA website does not appear to capture loss and expense data, but rather current pricing and rates and the Data section only appears to capture indemnity (paid?). Answer: As stated in section 4.2 of the Statement of Work RMA can provide data regarding the nursery crop insurance program. The Contractor shall provide RMA detailed requests of RMA datasets and RMA will furnish them within 30 business days. If the requested data sets require Contractor revision, RMA will cooperate with the Contractor to avoid excessive or unnecessary delays of any contract deliverable. 30.What is the penalty imposed or recourse taken by the RMA or FCIC in the event that an AIP accepts a risk outside of the approved program Underwriting Guidelines? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 31.Premiums appear to be partially paid by the insured and partially paid by the Government (except in the case of catastrophic coverage, which is completely paid by the Government). Does the actuarial data include the full (i.e. 100%) value of the historical premiums paid (regardless of subsidized and non-subsidized split)? Who determines the subsidization percentage and what has it been over the historical exposure period? Is the full premium paid to the AIPs or is the subsidized portion of the premium retained by FCIC? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 32.Do the AIPs have to report their results for this particular sub-segment of their writings to the RMA and/or FCIC and is that historical data available? Answer: This question does not pertain to the subject requirements. 33.Have 3rd party actuarial firms been engaged by the RMA and/or FCIC in the past to provide pricing and ratemaking advice and guidance? If so, are those firms prior bids, reports and analyses available? Answer: For nursery program, no 3rd party has been contracted with to provide pricing or ratemaking advice, however NCIS provided a recommendation regarding proposed changes from the 1999 policy to the 2006 policy. This evaluation is only for the current program, which began in 2006. 34.Are statistics available showing historical indemnity (and expense) vs. liability? Answer: Historical indemnity versus liability for nursery and all other crops can be found on RMA's website at http://www.rma.usda.gov/data/sob.html 35.When does the government anticipate that the recommendations of this study will be implemented? Answer: Crop Year 2014, which begins on June 1, 2013. 36.The SOW requires review of 5 policyholder files from various AIPs. Is that 5 in total or 5 from each AIP? If the latter, how many AIPs offer nursery coverage? Answer: It is five total. The contractor will contact the COTR when they are ready to begin reviewing the policyholder files, who will then request them from the AIPs. 37.Does the contractor review the files at AIP offices or will the AIPs provide copies of the requested files? Answer: The contractor will review the files at their own offices, but once they have completed the review they are to return the policyholder files back to the COTR. OFFERORS MUST ACKNOWLEDGE THIS AMENDMENT IN THEIR QUOTATION.
- Web Link
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- Place of Performance
- Address: At Contractor's Facility at time of award
- Zip Code: 64133
- Zip Code: 64133
- Record
- SN02069637-W 20100221/100219235127-76aecafa0a5f468caf74405ccc91f01b (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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