David Lam, a K Camp representative, told Miami County commissioners on Aug. 6 that K Camp is a member-owned insurance pool and not a commercial insurer and outlined why the organization has raised rates in recent years. "We are a pool that is owned by the members. We're not an insurance company," Lam said.
Lam told commissioners K Camp was formed in 1991, now covers counties and other public entities across the state and has about 81 counties and 105 total members. He said reinsurance costs and larger liability settlements since about 2020 have driven increased rates. "Our reinsurance costs have gone up and that's driven some of it," Lam said.
Why it matters: Miami County evaluates insurance options during its procurement cycle and must weigh price, coverage limits and services when selecting property and liability coverage for county assets and operations.
Lam described several member services K Camp offers at no additional per-claim charge or at member-discounted rates, including an "attorney assist" program (legal advice and on-site training), cyber-awareness training through KnowBe4, a roof-maintenance program with Stanfield Roofing, sample employee handbooks and a risk-avoidance grant that reimburses members up to $2,000 per year for purchases intended to reduce claims risk.
Lam described a recent change in how K Camp treats roof claims: replacement cost coverage is paid for roofs in the first 80% of their expected life, but for roofs in the last 20% of life the pool pays actual cash value. He said that change was voted on by members and designed to encourage proactive roof replacement.
On membership stability, Lam said retention has been high. He said K Camp has the right to assess members but has never done so, and that the pool has not refused to renew a member. "To my knowledge, we have never refused to renew anyone," Lam said. He said the board reviews financial ratios annually and that K Camp paid a dividend in 2017 but has not done so since larger claims trends emerged.
Commissioners and staff asked about program participation, coverage limits and options to customize deductibles. Lam said higher member deductibles are available to reduce contributions, and that K Camp shops reinsurance but is invested in County Reinsurance Limited (CRL) as part of its layered structure. He also said K Camp has broadened the roster of law firms it uses to keep legal resources available to members.
What happened next: The presentation concluded with an offer from Lam to provide retention, claims-comparison and projection data to county staff. Lam said he would follow up by email and that the county's request for additional information would be addressed before the insurance bid deadline in September.
Ending note: Commissioners did not take a formal vote on K Camp membership during the Aug. 6 study session; staff requested follow-up materials to inform the county's pending insurance procurement decisions.