Page 39 - BusinessWest February 3, 2021

Expanding the Footprint
The Dowd Agencies Merges with J. Raymond Lussier Insurance
The Dowd Agencies and the J. Raymond Lussier Insurance Agency announced last week they have merged their opera-
tions and will be known as Lussier-Dowd Insurance.
The merger and addition of a branch in West Springfield expands Dowd’s footprint to six offices located throughout the Pioneer Valley. The new office, located at 181 Park Ave., is minutes from Routes 5 and 20, and Interstates 91, 291
and 391. An open house will be planned at a later date.
“We’re excited for the Lussier Agency to be part of our team. I have known the Lussier fam- ily for many years, and they have always been
a highly professional, customer-driven insur- ance agency,” said John Dowd Jr., president
and CEO of the Dowd Agencies. “We are also excited to have a location in the fine town of West Springfield.”
The West Springfield office will be a full-ser- vice insurance agency providing personal, com- mercial, wealth-management, and employee- benefits products and services.
A native of West Springfield, David Griffin Jr., vice president of the Dowd Agencies, said he is excited about his company planting roots in his hometown. “I was born and raised in West Side, so it is particularly exciting for me. More impor-
tantly, West Side is a great and vibrant town here in Western Mass.”
The Lussier-Dowd Insurance Agency is open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and can be reached by calling (413) 737-5359.
A full-service agency, the Dowd Agencies has been helping individuals and businesses in West-
Lussier-Dowd’s new office
at 181 Park Ave. in West Springfield expands
the merged company’s footprint to six locations.
ern Mass. with their personal insurance, com- mercial insurance, employee benefits, and finan- cial needs for more than 120 years. Established in Holyoke in 1898, the Dowd Agencies is the oldest insurance agency in Massachusetts with opera- tions and management under continuous family ownership. u
Premium Concerns
What Will a Biden Administration Mean for Workplace Safety?
IBy Mike Horan
nsurance costs have already been rising —
the property and casualty space has seen
11% rate increases annually, on average — due to uncertainty around pandemic losses, catastrophic natural-disaster claims, a lack of capacity in the reinsurance market, low inter- est rates, and increased size of claims due to social inflation.
“To prepare for the incoming administration and the changes that
will accompany it, we encourage you to prioritize your safety practices. OSHA will be examining this much more closely, and so will the insurance companies.”
Now, just a couple weeks into Joe Biden’s presidency, we are asking ourselves: how will the incoming administration impact businesses like yours, and, consequently, the insurance market-
place and your premiums?
With the inauguration of Biden on Jan. 20,
we expect a return to a highly pro-union, pro- workers’-rights administration similar to what we saw under President Obama (and Vice President Biden) from 2009 to 2017. This could very well come with a change of leadership at the Occupa- tional Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The current acting administrator, Loren Sweatt, has been in the role as an interim since 2017, and experts anticipate a changing of the guard.
Most importantly for your business, you
can count on a shift back to heavier enforce- ment of OSHA workplace violations. During his campaign for the presidency, Biden called on OSHA to “double the number of OSHA investi- gators to enforce the law and existing standards and guidelines.” Based on this, we expect more inspectors visiting businesses to ensure compli- ance, and heavier fines for infractions. We also anticipate a return to practices such as issuing press releases publicly naming companies that have been fined for workplace-safety violations, in an effort to discourage other businesses from making the same mistakes.
At Webber and Grinnell, we place heavy emphasis on loss control and creating a culture
of safety within our clients’ operations. This is not just because we care about doing the right thing and keeping everyone safe (although that
is certainly the primary reason). It’s also because we know that insurance companies are scrutiniz- ing safety and losses more than ever due to the aforementioned facts about rising costs in the marketplace. They are rewarding safe companies and penalizing unsafe companies. One of the pri- mary resources they use to make these decisions is OSHA records, so it is absolutely essential that you adhere to OSHA’s policies and guidelines.
To prepare for the incoming administra-
tion and the changes that will accompany it, we encourage you to prioritize your safety practices. OSHA will be examining this much more closely, and so will the insurance companies.
You need to be a step ahead by doing every- thing you can to create a culture of safety. Long- term benefits include fewer injuries, less down- time, lower insurance costs, better employee morale, and a work culture that will attract the best talent. u
Mike Horan is a business insurance specialist and RiSC consultant at Webber and Grinnell Insurance.
INSURANCE
FEBRUARY 3, 2021 39
BusinessWest