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  • Do You Have The Right Surety Bond Agent? 7 Questions To Ask Your Bond Agent

    Do You Have The Right Surety Bond Agent? 7 Questions To Ask Your Bond Agent

    Do you have the right surety bond agent? Here are 7 questions you need to ask your surety bond agent to make sure they are the right fit for your needs.

    1. How long have you been in business?

    The longevity of a business is an indication of their overall success. The longer they’ve been around, the more experience they have, the more people they know and the validity they have in the marketplace. At Lawley, we are proud to say that we are celebrating 60 years in business.

    2. What Surety bond companies does your agent represent?

    Your agent is only as good as the markets they represent. A good agent will have the resources of multiple sureties to determine the best possible fit and program for you.
    At Lawley, we represent and hold powers for nearly every major surety company — ensuring you will be represented by the best possible surety for your needs.

    3. How well do they know YOUR business?

    How experienced are they as an organization to understand your type of business? Our construction insurance and surety bond team handles a variety of contractors (and ONLY contractors) and represent some of the largest and most successful in the western New York and Tri-State area — from general contractors, electrical, mechanical, bridge painters, bus companies, waste haulers, exterior and interior renovators to environmental risk. Chances are, Lawley knows YOUR business.

    4. Who will you be dealing with for your day-to-day needs (i.e. bond processing, information request) and what, if any, systems do they utilize?

    We have a state-of-the-art bond tracking system. Our Customer Service Response team has extensive bond experience. This staff is overseen by a Bond manager and your daily business is expertly and routinely managed. This means you get your bond faster and more efficiently than most other places.

    5. Who represents your account when your primary producer/account executive is not available?

    All of our Construction Insurance & Bond account executives have over 15 years in the business. When your executive is on vacation, the rest of our team of 25 picks up right where you left off and there is always another associate in the office to help when needed. We routinely meet and discuss active accounts to get advice and guidance from the other professionals in the office. We like to say, when you get ONE of us, you get ALL of us. Learn more about the team here.

    6. Does your agent have a working relationship with other construction professionals? Are they respected by these professionals?

    Lawley has a strong basis of professional relationships including, CPA’s, Bankers, Legal counsel, potential J/V partners, subcontractors and such. We routinely refer and introduce our clients to the professionals they require — a list of references are available on request.

    7. Is your bond agent helping YOU become more successful?

    An agent should be a business partner, an extension of your organization that enhances your company. They should be a trusted partner and look forward to the future of YOUR success. In order to do that, they should not just be someone you call for a bond – they assist you and are a part of your daily business plan.

    At Lawley, we offer a variety of services that our clients can utilize as part of our overall customer service. We want you to be a valued client for years to come. We invest in YOUR success. Here are some of the services we offer as part of your team:

    • Construction Insurance Services – we will carefully review and advise you if you have the right forms and coverage. Our expert Insurance staff is highly knowledgeable and experienced in construction insurance
    • Review of Financials – this includes analysis of financial statements (both internally and externally produced), evaluation of the company’s financial organization, practices, controls and procedures, systems, etc. We can also help with interpretation of accounting and tax guidelines (GAAP, FASB, FIN, etc.)
    • Annual and Semi-Annual Information Reminders – Our staff is so efficient we don’t wait for a problem to arise or a bond to be requested to obtain information to keep your account current. We send out reminders twice a year (with follow-up reminders in between) so that we can have your account updated and ready for when you need us
    • Contract and Bond Form Review – we can also assist in negotiations and drafting of acceptable terms with obligees and principals
    • Helpful Resources – Our interactive and updated website shares articles on relevant industry topics to help keep you up to date on what’s happening
    • Banking Support – We help to arrange and/or support your banking relationship
    • Local Market Presence – one of the most important services we can provide our customers is our intimate knowledge of the local construction marketplace

    To talk with our Lawley Construction & Bond team about your specific surety bond needs, click here.

  • Holiday Stress: Work Parties

    Holiday Stress: Work Parties

    For many employees, the annual holiday work party is one more special event to work into a hectic holiday calendar. However, these gatherings should be viewed as festive events, not a dreaded obligation.

    Points to Consider
    When preparing for your holiday work party, remember these tips:

    • The party is part of your job; its purpose is to bring together co-workers and colleagues for camaraderie and well-deserved recognition. Consider it work, put on your best attitude, and go.
    • The event requires advance preparation. Knowing who will be there and having an idea what to talk about is critical to a successful experience.
    • Stay at the party long enough to speak to everyone there. With a large crowd, interact with as many people as possible, especially key people such as your boss. Remain at the event for at least an hour, but leave before the party time has elapsed.
    • Keep your guard up when deciding how to dress. If the party is held immediately after work, business attire is appropriate. If later in the evening or during the weekend, your choices will vary depending on the event. What you wear should reflect well on you professionally.
    • Check your invitation to see if your partner or children are invited. Only take children if the invitation reads “and family”, and your partner/spouse if the invitation reads “and guest”. Otherwise, plan to attend alone.
    • Take cues from others when choosing topics of conversation.
    • Always drink in moderation. This is an opportunity to build business relationships and to network within your company.
    • Unless asked to bring something to exchange with co-workers, only bring a gift for your host. Gift baskets with jams, jellies or gourmet food items that can be stored and served later are some good choices.
    • Enjoy yourself, but keep in mind it is still a business function. Do not behave carelessly, or do or say things you may regret later.
  • Wire Fraud – A Cautionary Tale

    Wire Fraud – A Cautionary Tale

    Wire fraud and cybersecurity have been hot topics all year. Take a look at this information about wire fraud from out partner Maritime Program Group on things you should look out for.

    According to recently published information, the use of wire transfers has nearly doubled in the last 20 years to 130 million transfers per year totaling more than a whopping 600 Trillion dollars. Do you think that there would be incentive to try to grab some of that cash by the “bad actors” among us? You bet there is. Read on.

    Back on April 7th, one of our insured’s completed a sales transaction for a used boat. They had brokered the boat for their customer who lived in the UK. The vessel sold for about $475,000.00 less commission and expenses for a net to the seller of $440,000.00. Our insured completed the sales transaction with the buyer (a US citizen) and held the net sales proceeds in their bank account for distribution to the seller once the funds cleared. The insured contacted the seller requesting wire transfer instructions via email as that was the way that they had been communicating throughout the entire transaction.

    The seller emailed the wire transfer instructions including the Routing Number, Swift Codes and all bank information. That email was received by our insured with the normal thread information, subject line, email return address but… it was not from the seller. The email had been “hijacked” midflight, as it were, between the UK and the US. The routing numbers, account information and bank details had been altered.

    Our unsuspecting insured wired the funds – all $440K of it – as instructed. A few days later the seller called our insured inquiring where the proceeds of the sale were. Our insured told him they had wired the money. Very long story short (boiling down a half a year’s international investigation into a couple of lines) the money had been diverted into another bank account which was held by a Nigerian based group. The money was gone, the account closed and the hunt was on.

    Unfortunately, there was no coverage for this loss under the policy in force. Our insured was out the $440K, the seller was out the $440K, the Nigerian cartel was $440K richer and the FBI and INTERPOL were faced with tracking down the funds under nearly impossible circumstances. Case particulars pending.

    Controls which are designed to prevent fraud within financial institutions are often defeated. It, therefore, falls on us to take control. There are online, mobile, call center and even bank employee points of compromise with malware, email compromise, Phishing and other methods of fraud being used to intercept the wire transfer. So… what can you do to prevent just such an occurrence from happening to you or one of your clients? The following steps should be taken in all cases when wiring funds:

    Verification Is Key To Stopping Wire Fraud

  • Accept wire transfer instructions only expected in the normal course of business. Unusual requests, those that would not be in the normal course of business, should be questioned and brought to the attention of a supervisor or manager. If in doubt… STOP.
  • Obtain wire instructions in writing, preferably on letterhead (not the body of an email) of the person giving the wire instructions. Fax transmissions are less likely to be targeted.
  • Ask for a signature and compare same to any known samples (if any).
  • Once received, call the person to whom the money is to be wired on the phone and confirm that the instructions (every detail of it) are correct. Call the number you have on record already and not necessarily the number on the email or fax/letterhead.
  • If possible, verify the identity of the person over the phone using some recently known random transaction information (last bill amount, most recent transaction, etc.)
  • Contact your financial institution and verify the wiring instructions and details for your bank as well as the receiving bank are correct.
  • If you are to be the recipient of a wire transfer, then verify that your instructions have been received and every detail is correct.

    • On a side note: Afraid of online banking? Have your doubts? I just got off the line with a friend who works in the private asset world of a very large bank. She reminded me of a very good point about checking accounts and paper checks. Do you still write checks? Well, they have your name, address, telephone number AND YOUR BANK ACCOUNT AND ROUTING NUMBER on them. A quick look at your Facebook account, Twitter, or Instagram accounts, the bad guys will have your “dog’s name, mother-in-laws birthday, your birthday, and just about anything else you use for your personal ID information. Think about that… scary stuff!

    Don’t risk your personal reputation or business by being careless in handling wire transfers or ACH transfers. Hopefully, this will never happen to you but chances are that this growing trend in cybercrime will affect someone you know. Let’s all keep a good lookout from the bridge and tend the watch duty faithfully.

    This information was brought to you by our partners at Maritime Program Group. To talk about making sure you have the proper coverage, contact our personal insurance team.

  • Make Healthy Holiday Choices This Year

    Make Healthy Holiday Choices This Year

    The holiday season brings party food, cookies, eggnog and other holiday treats that are often high-calorie, though tasty, choices.

    Holiday festivities don’t have to derail the smart strategies you use during the rest of the year! Try these four tips at all of your holiday parties and gatherings.

    1. Use a smaller plate. This visual trick really works. Even if you fill and finish your plate of food, you’ll end up eating much less than if you’d used a dinner plate. Just limit yourself to one!
    2. Mingle in the middle of the room. The closer you stand to the buffet table, the more likely you are to consume extra calories. Instead of being a hovercraft, fill that small plate and fly away to the middle of the room.
    3. Eat regular meals. Skipping meals so you can splurge at the party will only result in overeating. Start the day with a nutritious breakfast.
    4. Be careful with the alcohol. Drinks like eggnog pack in the extra calories, so don’t over indulge.
    5. Keep sweets to a minimum.  A cookie here, a piece of pie there can add up, especially when co-workers bring in leftover cookies. Be mindful of the amount of sweets you take, or split something with a colleague.

    Lastly and very importantly—stay hydrated. Think you’re hungry? You may actually be thirsty. Drink two glasses of water before every meal to help you consume fewer calories.

  • Paid Family Leave Statement of Rights

    Paid Family Leave Statement of Rights

    Please click here to download the PDF of the Paid Family Leave Statement of Rights: Paid Family Leave Statement of Rights

  • Lawley Adds Employee Benefits Veteran Ellen DiFrancisco to Growing Downstate Team

    Lawley Adds Employee Benefits Veteran Ellen DiFrancisco to Growing Downstate Team

    Top 100 insurance broker enhances employee benefits and health insurance team on Long Island with addition of highly experienced benefits specialist

    Buffalo, NY (Nov. 30, 2017) – Lawley, one of the largest independent insurance brokers in the United States according to Business Insurance, formally announces the addition of healthcare insurance veteran Ellen DiFrancisco as Employee Benefits Consultant.

    DiFrancisco will be based out of Lawley’s full-service and growing Plainview, NY office while supporting clients around Long Island (Westchester), along with customers at other Lawley branches across New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

    Previously working at a third party administrator, DiFrancisco joins Lawley with over 17 years of experience, which has ranged from direct experience at nationwide carriers to working at a national consulting company whose clients included Fortune 500 companies, municipalities and other mid-to-large-sized organizations. DiFrancisco is also highly experienced in self-funding and workers’ compensation needs.

    “We are thrilled to add an experienced professional of Ellen’s caliber to work with our downstate clients. Her vast overall insurance knowledge specific to self-insurance, life insurance and ancillary benefits, along with experiences with the carriers, will be a great resource to companies looking to provide benefits programs for their employees,” stated TJ Revelas, Lawley Employee Benefits Managing Partner.

    Lawley’s continued focus on risk management will offer a proactive approach to how its staff consults with companies of all sizes. Lawley’s risk management team provides clients guidance on a full spectrum of risks, including claims management, claims consulting, safety programs, loss prevention and more.

    DiFrancisco, a psychology graduate from Fordham University, is very active in the industry and previously served as a member of New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC), Westchester County Association (WCA), New York State Association of Self Insured Counties (NYSASIC) and the New York State Association of School Business Officials (NYSASBO). She is also active with Gateway Playhouse, Long Island’s Performing Arts Center of Suffolk County.

    For more information on Lawley, visit our employee benefits page.

    About Lawley
    Lawley is a privately-owned, independent regional insurance firm specializing in property, casualty and personal insurance, employee benefits and risk management consulting and ranked among the 100 Largest Insurance Brokers in the U.S., according to Business Insurance magazine.

    For over 60 years, Lawley’s team of more than 375 associates have developed customized property, casualty, surety and benefits insurance programs for businesses and municipalities of all sizes along with personalized protection for individuals and their families. Lawley is recognized as one of the Best Places to Work nationally by Business Insurance and Buffalo Business First along with recognition as a Top Workplaces by the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle.

    Headquartered in Buffalo, NY, Lawley has branch offices across New York in Amherst, Batavia, Fredonia, Melville, Purchase and Rochester along with Darien, Connecticut and Florham Park, New Jersey. To find out more, visit lawleyinsurance.com.

  • Lawley Featured On WIVB Cybersecurity Story: Big and small companies on the radar of data hackers

    Lawley Featured On WIVB Cybersecurity Story: Big and small companies on the radar of data hackers

    Lawley’s cybersecurity and specialty insurance direct Reggie Dejean was recently featured on a expose by WIVB’s Luke Moretti about “Big and small companies on the radar of data hackers.”


    “You just don’t know what’s at stake,” said Dejean.

    Dejean talked about how data breaches can be especially tough on the bottom-line of small businesses.

    He says the cost of dealing with a breach can quickly add up, even before a lawsuit is settled.

    “You can run into hundreds of thousands of dollars for the credit monitoring, the notification costs, the public relations. All those costs that a small business can incur that may put them out of business,” Dejean said.

    There’s even insurance for this sort of thing — privacy liability, designed to protect a company in the event of a data breach.

    Generally speaking, Dejean says for about $1,000 a year, small businesses and nonprofits can get up to a million dollars of coverage.

    “You think about a small business. A million, two million, three million of revenue or less. When you start looking at the credit monitoring, the legal costs, the forensic, you can easily be in the $200,000 range,” Dejean said. “How many businesses doing a million dollars revenue a year. How many businesses can afford, bottom-line $200,000? They can’t.”

    Moretti explained that businesses and organizations should be asking these questions, according to the experts:

    • What information are you handling?
    • Where is it located?
    • Who has access to it?
    • What protections are in place?
    • What kind of training do employees receive?
    • What’s your plan if a breach happens?

    The story can be viewed here in its entirety.

  • Lawley Recognized in Consecutive Years as a 2017 Healthiest 100 Workplace in America®

    Lawley Recognized in Consecutive Years as a 2017 Healthiest 100 Workplace in America®

    Top 100 Insurance Broker recognized as a 2016 Healthiest 100 Workplace in America in program presented by Springbuk ®

    Buffalo, N.Y. (Nov. 2, 2017) – Lawley, a Top 100 independent insurance broker in the United States according to Business Insurance, has been recognized as a 2016 Healthiest 100 Workplace in America, an awards program presented by Springbuk®.

    The top one hundred employers were recognized last month at the Corporate Wellness Conference® in Washington D.C. The winning organizations are honored for their commitment to employee health and exceptional corporate wellness programming. Over 5,000 employers applied for the Award nationally.

    Award applicants were evaluated across six key categories: Vision, Culture/Engagement, Learning, Expertise, Metrics and Technology. Applicants were evaluated with the proprietary Healthiest Employer Index, a 1-100 metric for wellness programming. These organizations have achieved lasting success through a wide array of employee wellness initiatives and corporate wellness programs.

    “Corporate wellness is extremely important to us, both for our own employees and our clients.” – TJ Revelas, Lawley Employee Benefits Managing Partner

    “Corporate wellness is extremely important to us, both for our own employees and our clients. We practice what we preach and it’s important to us to provide our employees with the tools and information necessary to live a healthier life,” said TJ Revelas, Lawley Employee Benefits Managing Partner. “Our wellness program not only impacts the culture and morale, but also mitigates employees’ health risks and improves the bottom line.”

    “Year after year, we see strong growth and continued investment in work site wellness programs,” noted Rod Reasen, CEO of Springbuk, the scoring engine behind the national Healthiest Employer® Awards Program. “These 100 organizations are the best of the best. Their efforts are improving the health of their workforce and community.”

    More information on the 2017 Wellness Awards winners is available on the Springbuk website.

    About Lawley
    Lawley is a privately-owned, independent regional insurance firm specializing in property, casualty and personal insurance, employee benefits and risk management consulting and ranked among the 100 Largest Insurance Brokers in the U.S., according to Business Insurance magazine.

    For over 60 years, Lawley’s team of more than 350 associates have developed customized property, casualty, surety and benefits insurance programs for businesses and municipalities of all sizes along with personalized protection for individuals and their families. Lawley is consistently recognized as one of the Best Places to Work by Buffalo Business First.

    Headquartered in Buffalo, NY, Lawley has branch offices across New York in Amherst, Batavia, Elmsford, Fredonia, Melville and Rochester along with Darien, Connecticut and Florham Park, New Jersey. To find out more, visit lawleyinsurance.com.

    About Healthiest Employers
    Healthiest Employers is the leading non-biased recognition program for U.S. corporate population health. Since 2009, Healthiest Employers has conducted thousands of assessments recognizing the nation’s leaders in corporate wellness. The Healthiest Employers family of recognition programs includes the Healthiest Employer Designation (regional), the Healthiest 100 Ranking (national), and the Healthiest Employers Wellness Awards for Program Innovation (national). The Healthiest Employer Designation is awarded regionally in 45 cities and analyzes six key areas of workplace wellness: Culture and Leadership Commitment, Foundational Components, Strategic Planning, Communication and Marketing, Programming and Interventions, and Reporting and Analytics. Organizations of all sizes and industries are encouraged to apply throughout the year. The Healthiest 100 is a national ranking of the 100 Healthiest Workplaces in America. This application is open to any regional Healthiest Employer designee and scores each company’s population health outcomes according to a rigorous methodology. The H100 ranking is determined by weighting across the local and national assessments. The Healthiest Employers Wellness Awards recognize innovation and effectiveness in corporate wellness at a national level in ten categories. Any U.S. employer with a health/wellness program is eligible to apply.

    About Springbuk, Inc.
    Springbuk is the leading health intelligence platform for employers. The tool arms employers with a complete view of their population to target engagement, pinpoint spending and measure results. Springbuk is the scoring engine behind the Healthiest Employer® Awards Program that includes over 18,000 employers that represent over 60 million employee lives. Learn more at www.springbuk.com and www.HealthiestEmployers.com.

  • Lawley Delivers First Annual Spotlight Awards To Employee Benefit Partners

    Lawley Delivers First Annual Spotlight Awards To Employee Benefit Partners

    On Wednesday, October 25th the Employee Benefits leadership held their first annual Spotlight Awards Presentation. The Spotlight Award was created to recognize those outstanding individuals among our business partners, vendors and carriers who go above and beyond to help our benefits team at Lawley provide superior customer service to our customers.

    Any associate on our Benefits team was eligible to make a nomination based on various criteria. Those selected were honored at a breakfast with their managers along with the Lawley associates who nominated them and members of Lawley’s Executive Committee.

    The winners were:
    – Darcy DiGiacomo, Account Manager at Guardian
    – Rose Kane, Senior Service Specialist at Principal
    – Kim Smolinski, Account Executive at Blue Cross Blue Shield
    – Sheret Jagord, Manager in Sales at Independent Health
    – Nathan Stewart, Account Manager at Simply Well

    Congratulation to all the winners and special thanks to Lisa Miller, Leah Genco and Jo Ann Sorce for spearheading this new initiative.

  • Are You Having Trouble Falling Asleep at Night? Here’s Why

    Are You Having Trouble Falling Asleep at Night? Here’s Why

    Many people look at their phone before they go to sleep at night, and first thing in the morning when they wake up. If you are guilty to doing this as well, it might be a habit to consider kicking! According to the Cleveland Clinic, the light these smartphones, laptops and tablets emit, known as blue light, inhibits your body’s production of melatonin, a hormone that makes you sleepy. Putting your electronic devices away at least a couple of hours before getting some zzz’s has become as essential for good sleep as avoiding caffeine or alcohol in the evening hours. Many phones and tablets now have the ability to dim the brightness that the screen gives off, so if you do have to be up late finishing work or catching up on reading the news, consider turning on the “night shift” or “red shift” option to protect your eyes and allow your body to ease into going to sleep.