Pandemic Insurance Matters
Starting Your Engines – Time to Talk Insurance
Governor Gavin Newsom relaxed some statewide restrictions last week but that was not enough to quell the ever-growing frustration by Californians who want to get back to work. Nearly 30 California counties are threatening to jump ahead of Governor Newsom’s orders and open up. Meanwhile, Los Angeles Mayor Garcetti was forced to walk back a statement his county public health director Barbara Ferrer made on Monday that suggested the Coronavirus lockdown would continue for another three months. In another act of defiance, Tesla CEO Elon Musk reopened his plant in Fremont this week as well.
With more than 4 million people in California on unemployment and a nearly $55 billion budget shortfall for the state, the pressure is on for the state to open the economy faster than leadership is comfortable with.
According to CA-Gov there have been 1.1 million residents tested to date. Of those, just under 7% have tested positive for COVID-9 (73,000 cases). As of May 14th, of those that are carriers of the virus, a little under 4% (3,000) have died due to complications that were exacerbated by the virus. California has 40 million people so all things being equal, the data that CA-Gov has shared means that 7% of our population is likely carriers, or 2.8 million. All lives are precious but at some point, we have to ask ourselves are we winning the battle to only lose the war? I think that is the sentiment being spread all over as more testing and data makes things clearer to all.
What does this mean for us? Cutting through the clutter of all the unknowns, we know these truths. One, clean is the new safe. Sanitation protocols are a must. GCLA is working hard to fine tune a standard for all of you which will happen in the next two weeks. Messaging to the traveler must be aligned with new priorities and new opportunities. I will reiterate what I shared weeks ago. We have an emerging opportunity to recapture lost market share to ride-hail enterprises. We have a chance at procuring more contract work in the “people-mover” space including commuter, non-emergency medical and courtesy shuttle. We know that local business and leisure travel will come back before international travel does. Meeting planners will find a way to reconvene, beginning with selecting destinations that offer fresh air spaces. We are in the sunshine state and as restrictions for meetings relax, expect more open-air gatherings to be the trend which we have an abundance of compared to any other state. We will rise to the occasion, pardon the pun.
If you furloughed your fleets, start getting quotes now for insurance. I say this because you must have insurance to reactivate your CPUC license. While the CPUC announced an expedited plan, which waives the 30-day wait period, you still have to have your vehicles insured before you can get your TCP. You don’t want to leave this to the 11th hour. Give yourself plenty of time to ensure you are on the right side of negotiating your best insurance rate and plan. All things are changing, including insurance.
As always, I am thinking of you in these stressful times. My team is on overdrive to help you recover as fast as possible. Remember to lean on facts and stay clear of all the rhetoric and keep a positive attitude.
Reach out to me any time. We got this!
Sara Eastwood-Richardson
