[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners
of the Township of Butler as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire prevention — See Ch. 176.
[Adopted 6-2-2008 by Ord. No. 836]
The Township Manager, or his official designee,
is hereby appointed as the designated officer of the Township who
is authorized to carry out all responsibilities and duties stated
in this article.
No insurance company, association, or exchange (hereinafter, the "insurance company") doing business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania shall pay a claim of a named insured for fire damage to a building or structure located within the Township where the amount recoverable for the fire loss to the building or structure under all policies exceeds $7,500, unless the named insured or the insurance company is furnished by the Township Manager with a municipal certificate pursuant to § 191-3 of this article and unless there is compliance with § 191-4 or 191-5 of this article.
A.
Where any fire loss to a property is in excess of
$7,500 of all insurance policy coverages, the Township Manager, upon
written request of the property owner, the named insured or the insurance
company, shall issue, within 14 working days of the request, to the
insurance company either of the following:
(1)
A certificate or, at the discretion of the Township,
a verbal notification which will be confirmed in writing, that as
of the certificate, there are no delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties
or user charges against the property and that no costs have been incurred
by the Township for repairs, demolition or securing a building or
structure on the property; or
(2)
A certificate and bill showing the amount of delinquent
taxes, assessments, penalties, user charges, and other costs (including
the costs incurred for removal, repair and/or securing the building
or other structure on the property). When delinquent taxes, assessments,
penalties charges and/or other costs are due and owing to the Township,
the insurance company must then, prior to paying the claim to the
named insured, transfer to the Township the amount necessary to pay
the amounts as shown on the certificate and bill from the insurance
proceeds.
B.
The written request to the Township Manager shall
specify the following information:
(1)
The named insured under the policy of insurance;
(2)
The named insured's address and telephone number;
(3)
The address and tax identification number of the property;
(4)
The name and address of the insurance company;
(5)
The name, address and telephone number of the insurance
company's claim representative, if any;
(6)
The policy number of the insurance covering the property;
(7)
The insurance company's claim number, if any; and
(8)
The date on which the named insured and the insurance
company as the date of receipt of a loss report for the claim.
Where the Township Manager issues a certificate indicating that there are no delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties, user charges or other costs against the property, the insurance company shall pay the claim of the named insured unless the loss agreed upon by the named insured and the insurance company equals or exceeds 60% of the aggregate limits of liability on all fire policies covering the building or structure, in which case the Township, the insured and the insurance company shall follow the procedure set forth in § 191-5 of this article.
Where the named insured and the insurance company
agree that the loss exceeds 60% of the aggregate limits of liability
on all fire policies covering the building or structure, the following
procedures shall be followed:
A.
The insurance company shall transfer from the insurance
proceeds to the Township in the aggregate amount of $2,000 for each
$15,000 of a claim and for each fraction of that amount of a claim;
this section to be applied such that if the claim is $15,000 or less,
the amount transferred to the Township shall be $2,000.
B.
If the named insured has submitted a contractor's signed estimated of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other structure on the property that is less than the amount determined under Subsection A, the insurance company shall transfer to the Township from the insurance proceeds the amount specified in the estimate. The policy proceeds remaining after the transfer to the Township shall be disbursed in accordance with the policy terms.
C.
If after the transfer of the insurance proceeds to
the Township, the named insured submits a contractor's signed estimate
of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other
structure on the property, the Township Manager shall return to the
named insured the amount of the funds in excess of the estimate, provided
the Township has not commenced to remove, repair or secure the building
or other structure.
D.
The Township Manager shall place the proceeds received
from the insurance company in a separate fund to be used solely as
security against the total cost of removing, repairing or securing
the building or structure.
E.
When a transfer of funds to the Township is required
under this article, the insurance company shall provide the Township
with the name, address and telephone number of the named insured,
and the Township Manager shall contact the named insured and notify
the named insured in writing that the insurance proceeds have been
received by the Township and that the procedures of this article shall
be followed.
F.
If the Township has not incurred any costs for repairs,
removal or securing the building or other structure, the Township
shall return the insurance proceeds, together with any interest earned
thereon, to the named insured when the repairs, removal or securing
of the building or other structure has been completed in accordance
with all applicable Township regulations and the Township Manager
has received proof thereof.
G.
If the Township has incurred costs for repairs, removal
or securing the building or other structure, the costs shall be paid
from the fund, and if excess funds remain, the Township shall transfer
the excess funds to the named insured.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to
limit the Township's right to recover any deficiency should the amount
of the insurance proceeds transferred to the Township be insufficient
to cover the costs of repair, removal or securing the building or
other structure that were incurred by the Township. Furthermore, if
the Township and the named insured agree to another arrangement with
respect to the damaged building or other structure, nothing in this
article prevents the Township and the named insured to also agree
to permit the Township to release some or all of the insurance proceeds
transferred to the Township to the named insured.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to
make an insurance company liable for any amount in excess of the proceeds
payable under its insurance policy or for any other act performed
pursuant to this article or to make the Township or any official of
the Township an insured under its policy of insurance. Nothing in
this article shall be construed to create an obligation in an insurance
company to pay delinquent taxes, unpaid assessments, penalties, user
charges or liens excepted as provided in this article.
The Township may, by resolution, adopt procedures
and regulations to implement this article and to fix fees to be charged
for its activities and services including, but not limited to, the
issuance of certificates, bills, inspections, and opening separate
fund accounts.
Any property owner, named insured, or insurance
company who violates this article shall be subject to a penalty of
up to $1,000 per violation.
