[Adopted 4-12-1999 by Ord. No. 1999-2]
The Treasurer of Lancaster Township, or designee, is hereby appointed
as the designated officer who is authorized to carry out all responsibilities
and duties stated herein.
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 in Lancaster Township
(hereinafter the "municipality") where the amount recoverable for the fire
loss to the structure under all policies exceeds $7,500 unless the named insured
or insuring agent is furnished by the Municipal Treasurer with a municipal
certificate or verbal notification confirmed in writing by the insuring agent
pursuant to Section 508(b) of Act 98 of 1992 as amended by Act 93 of 1994 and unless there is compliance with Section 508(c) and (d) of
Act 98 of 1992 amended by Act 93 of 1994 and the provisions of this article.
Where pursuant to Section 508(b)(1)(I) of Act 98 of 1992, the Municipal
Treasurer issues a certificate indicating that there are no delinquent taxes,
assessments, penalties or user charges against real property, 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 agency equals or
exceeds 60% of the aggregate limits of liability on all fire policies covering
the building or structure, the following procedures must be followed:
A. The insuring agent shall transfer from the insurance
proceeds to the Treasurer of Lancaster Township 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 Lancaster Township shall be $2,000.
B. If at the time of a loss report the named insured has submitted a contractor's signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other structure in the amount less than the amount calculated as provided in Subsection
A above, the insuring agent shall transfer to Lancaster Township from the insurance proceeds the amount specified in the estimate.
C. The transfer of proceeds shall be on a pro rata basis
by all companies, associations or exchanges insuring the building or other
structure.
D. After the transfer, the named insured may submit a contractor's
signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building
or other structure, and the Treasurer shall return the amount of the funds
transferred to Lancaster Township in excess of the estimate to the named insured,
if the municipality has not commenced to remove, repair or secure the building
or other structure.
E. Upon receipt of proceeds under this section, Lancaster
Township shall do the following:
(1) The Treasurer shall place the proceeds in the separate
fund to be used solely as security against the total costs of removing, repairing
or securing the building or structure which are incurred by Lancaster Township.
Such costs will include, without limitation, any engineering, legal or administrative
costs incurred by the municipality in connection with such removal, repair
or securing of the building or any proceedings related thereto; and
(2) It is the obligation of the insuring agent when transferring
the proceeds to provide Lancaster Township with the name and address of the
named insured. Upon receipt of the transferred funds and the name and address
of the named insured, certify that the proceeds have been received by the
Lancaster Township and notify the named insured that the procedures under
this subsection shall be followed; and
(3) When repairs, removal or securing of the building or
other structure have been completed in accordance with all applicable regulations
and orders of Lancaster Township and the required proof of such completion
received by the Treasurer, and if Lancaster Township has not incurred any
costs for repairs, removal or securing, the fund shall be returned to the
named insured. If Lancaster Township has incurred costs for repairs, removal
or securing of the building or other structure, the costs shall be paid from
the fund and if excess funds remain, Lancaster Township shall transfer the
remaining funds to the named insured; and
(4) To the extent that interest is earned on proceeds held
by Lancaster Township pursuant to this section 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.
F. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the
ability of Lancaster Township to recover any deficiency. Furthermore, nothing
in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit Lancaster 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 of the damaged
property has been negotiated.
The Board of Supervisors may by resolution adopt procedures and regulations
to implement Act 98 of 1992 and this article, and may by resolution fix reasonable fees to
be charged for municipal activities or services provided pursuant to Act 98
of 1992 and this article, including but not limited to issuance of certificates
and bills, performance of inspections, and opening separate fund accounts.
Any owner of property, any named insured or any insuring agent who violates
this article shall be subject to a penalty of up to $1,000 per violation.
The Treasurer of Lancaster Township shall file an exact copy of Ord.
No. 1999-2 with the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development
together with the name and phone number of the Treasurer of Lancaster Township,
as required by the provisions of Act 93 of 1994.