Preferra Insurance Company RRG upholds
commitment to serving its policyholders in the social work
community by holding NASW and its subsidiaries accountable
FREDERICK, Md., Sept. 20,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Preferra Insurance Company RRG
today filed a lawsuit against the National Association of Social
Workers (NASW) and affiliated entities over their refusal to uphold
their obligations to Preferra, which exists to protect social
workers. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the
District of Columbia, also names
NASW's wholly owned subsidiaries NASW Assurance Services Inc.
(ASI), and NASW Insurance Company Inc. (NASWIC).
"Preferra's first obligation is to the social workers and other
behavioral health professionals we protect with professional,
general and cyber liability insurance," said Preferra Board
President Dr. Richard Jones. "We
made every effort to resolve this issue amicably and avoid legal
action, but it has unfortunately become clear that NASW and its
affiliated entities will not act in policyholders' best interest
unless forced to do so in a court of law. We are deeply concerned
by NASW's refusal to fulfill its obligations to the social workers
who rely on it for support, and by the steps NASW has taken to
undermine protections for social workers that are provided through
Preferra policies."
The legal complaint filed by Preferra outlines numerous ways
NASW has, through the control of its affiliates ASI and NASWIC,
harmed social workers, including by refusing to pay insurance
claims NASWIC is contractually obligated to pay, and attempting to
funnel more profits to NASW while blocking Preferra's efforts to
pay dividends to its policyholders. The lawsuit also details how
ASI has misused Preferra policyholder information, attempting to
insert itself into the relationship between Preferra and its
policyholders and interfere with the policyholder application,
renewal and claims processes.
This lawsuit was initiated with Preferra's policyholders' best
interest in mind and all policyholders will continue to receive the
same high-quality coverage and service throughout the litigation
process. Preferra has taken steps to separate itself from NASW and
its affiliates and ensure it remains in a strong financial position
with sufficient capital to pay all claims for its insureds. These
steps include replacing NASWIC as Preferra's reinsurer with
Lloyd's, one of the world's leading reinsurance companies.
"NASW's actions are causing confusion among social workers who
rely on Preferra for peace of mind with their insurance coverage,"
said Jones. "We never expected one of the biggest threats to our
policyholders to be the association that claims to represent them,
but we're committed to fighting for social workers and standing up
for our policyholders no matter what."
The lawsuit includes multiple breaches of contract by ASI that
inflicted harm to Preferra and its employees. The lawsuit also asks
the court to require NASWIC to pay outstanding claims on social
work policies in which they were the reinsurer and received
premiums over the years to provide reinsurance coverage. NASWIC
owes these outstanding claims amounts to Preferra and its
policyholders who deserve to be made whole as insureds and owners
of the company.
About Preferra Insurance Company RRG
Since 2012,
Preferra Insurance Company Risk Retention group has been the
trusted choice in providing best-in-class liability insurance
products to social workers, mental health professionals and
behavioral health specialists. It is an independent organization
overseen by social worker leaders and insurance experts, and is
owned by policyholders. Preferra provides professional liability
insurance protection to over 100,000 social workers and behavioral
health professionals, and offers risk management courses on current
and relevant issues across the profession.
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SOURCE Preferra Insurance Company RRG