[Ord. 2015-04, 8/10/2015, § 1-101]
The Township Manager or such other duly authorized representative
of the Township as the Board of Commissioners may designate is hereby
appointed as the designated officer who is authorized to carry out
all responsibilities and duties stated herein.
[Ord. 2015-04, 8/10/2015, § 1-102]
No insurance company, association or exchange (hereinafter,
the "insuring agent") doing business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
shall pay a claim of a named insured for fire damage to a structure
located within the Township where the amount recoverable for the fire
loss to the structure under all policies exceeds $7,500, unless the
insuring agent is furnished by the Township Treasurer with a municipal
certificate pursuant to § 508(b) of Act 98 [40 P.S. § 638(b)]
and unless there is compliance with § 508(c) and (d) of
Act 98 [40 P.S. § 638(c) and (d)] and the provisions of
this Part. Any request to the Township Treasurer for a municipal certificate
shall be in writing.
[Ord. 2015-04, 8/10/2015, § 1-103]
1.
Upon the written request of the named insured specifying the tax
description of the property, the name and address of the insuring
agent and the date of receipt by the insuring agent of a loss report
of the claim, the Township Manager or other duly authorized representative
of the Township shall furnish, within 14 business days after the request
of the named insured, either:
A.
A certificate, or at the discretion of the Township, a verbal notification
which shall be confirmed in writing by the insuring agent to the effect
that, as of the date specified in the request, there are no delinquent
taxes, assessments, penalties or user charges against the property
and that, as of the date of the municipal certificate or verbal notification,
the Township has not certified any amount as total costs incurred
by the Township for the removal, repair or securing of a building
or other structure on the property.
B.
A certificate and itemized bill showing the amount of delinquent
taxes, assessments, penalties and user charges against the property
as of the date specified in the request that have not been paid as
of the date of the municipal certificate and also showing, as of such
date, the amount of the total costs, if any, certified to the Township
Treasurer that have been incurred by the Township for the removal,
repair or securing of a building or other structure on the property.
For the purposes of this provision, the Township shall certify to
the Township Treasurer the total amount, if any, of such costs, if
available, or the amount of costs known to the Township at the time
of the Township Treasurer's certificate.
2.
For the purpose of this Part, a tax, assessment, penalty or user
charge becomes delinquent at the time and on the date a lien could
otherwise have been filed against the property by the Township under
applicable law.
3.
If the Township issues a certificate in accordance with paragraph .B above, then the insuring agent shall return the bill to the Township Treasurer and transfer to the Township Treasurer an amount from the insurance proceeds sufficient to pay all delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties and user charges against the property and all expenses the Township has incurred for costs of removal, repair or securing of a building or other structure on the property prior to making payment to the named insured, subject to the provisions of § 1-705 hereof.
4.
If the Township issues a certificate indicating that there are no
delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties or user charges against the
property, then, upon receipt of the municipal certificate, the insuring
agent shall pay the claim of the named insured, provided however,
that if the loss agreed upon by the named insured and the insuring
agent equals or exceeds 60% of the aggregate limits of liability on
all fire policies covering the building or other structure, compliance
with the following procedures shall be required:
A.
The insuring agent shall transfer to the Township Manager from the
insurance proceeds in the aggregate $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 at the time of the loss report of the claim, as agreed to between
the named insured and the insuring agent, the named insured has submitted
a contractor signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or
securing the building or other structure, the insuring agent shall
transfer to the Township from the insurance proceeds the amount specified
in the estimate.
C.
Within 60 days of the transfer of proceeds to the Township, the named
insured may submit to the Township a contractor's signed estimate
of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other
structure and, provided the Township has not commenced to remove,
repair or secure the building or other structure, the Township Manager
shall return to the named insured the amount of the funds transferred
to the Township in excess of the estimate.
5.
The transfer of proceeds shall be on a pro rata basis by all companies,
associations or exchanges insuring the building or other structure.
Policy proceeds remaining after the transfer to the Township shall
be disbursed in accordance with the policy terms.
[Ord. 2015-04, 8/10/2015, § 1-104]
1.
Upon the receipt of fire loss proceeds under § 1-703 above, the Township shall do the following:
A.
The Township Manager shall place the proceeds in a separate fund
to be used solely as security against the total costs incurred by
the Township for removing, repairing, or securing the building or
structure. Such costs shall include, without limitation, any engineering,
legal or administrative costs incurred by the Township in connection
with such removal, repair or securing of the building or any proceedings
related thereto.
B.
It is the obligation of the insuring agent when transferring the
proceeds to provide to the Township the name and address of the named
insured. Upon receipt of the transferred funds and the name and address
of the named insured, the Township Manager shall contact the named
insured, certify that the proceeds have been received by the Township
and notify the named insured that the procedures set forth in this
section shall be followed.
C.
When the repairs, removal or securing of the building or other structure
have been completed in accordance with all applicable ordinances,
codes, regulations and legal requirements of the Township and the
required proof of such completion in form and substance satisfactory
to the Township has been received by the Township Manager, and if
the Township has not incurred any costs for repairs, removal or securing,
the fund shall be returned to the named insured. If the Township has
incurred costs for repairs, removal or securing of the building or
other structure, such costs shall be paid from the fund and, if excess
funds remain, the Township shall transfer the remaining funds to the
named insured.
D.
To the extent that interest is earned on proceeds held by the Township
pursuant to this Part and not returned to the named insured, such
interest shall belong to the Township. To the extent that proceeds
are returned to the named insured, interest earned on such proceeds
shall be distributed to the named insured at the time that the proceeds
are returned.
2.
Nothing in this Part shall be construed to limit the ability of the
Township to recover any deficiency. Furthermore, nothing in this Part
shall be construed to prohibit the Township and the named insured
from entering into an agreement that permits the transfer of funds
to the named insured if some other reasonable disposition if the damaged
property, as determined by the parties, has been negotiated.
[Ord. 2015-04, 8/10/2015, § 1-105]
An insurance company, association or exchange making payments
of policy proceeds under this Part for delinquent taxes or structural
removal liens or removal expenses insured by the Township shall have
full benefit of such payment, including all rights of subrogation
and of assignment.
[Ord. 2015-04, 8/10/2015, § 1-106]
The Board of Commissioners may, by resolution, adopt procedures
and regulations to implement Act 98, as amended, and this Part and
may by resolution fix reasonable fees to be charged for activities
or services provided by the Township pursuant to Act 98 and this Part,
including, but not limited to, issuance of certificates and bills,
performance of inspections and opening separate fund accounts.
[Ord. 2015-04, 8/10/2015, § 1-107; as amended by Ord. 2016-01, 3/14/2016]
Any owner of property, any named insured or any insuring agent
who violates this Part, upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced
to pay a fine of not more than $1,000 plus costs, together with legal
costs and reasonable attorney's fees of not less than 5% of the
amount due, as incurred by the Township in enforcement of this Part
and, in default of payment of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment
not to exceed 30 days. Each day that a violation of this Part continues
shall constitute a separate offense.
