[Ord. 1857, 6/24/1996, § 701]
The Secretary of the Township of Harrison ("Secretary") is hereby
appointed as the officer of the Township who is authorized to carry
out the responsibilities, duties and obligations stated herein, provided
that the Municipal Treasurer ("Treasurer") has responsibility for
issuing the certificates in accordance with §§ 702
and 703 herein.
[Ord. 1857, 6/24/1996, § 702]
No insurance company, association or exchange ("insuring agent")
doing business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, shall pay any
claim of a named insured for fire damage to a structure located with
the Township of Harrison, Allegheny County ("Township"), as defined
in § 508.1(b) of the Act, as amended, where the amount recoverable
for such loss to the structure, under all policies insuring said structure,
exceeds $7,500, unless the insuring agent is furnished with a certificate
issued by the Treasurer of the Township pursuant to § 508(b)(1)
of the Act, as amended, and § 703 and unless there is compliance
with § 508(c) and (d) of the Act, as amended, and § 704.
A fee of $10 shall be charged for each such certificate issued by
the Township.
[Ord. 1857, 6/24/1996, § 703]
The Treasurer shall, upon the written request of the named insured
specifying the tax description of the property, name and address of
the insuring agent and the date agreed upon by the insuring agent
as the date of the receipt of a loss report of the claim, furnish
the insuring agent either of the following within 14 working days
of the request:
A.
A certificate or, at the discretion of the Township, a verbal notification
which shall be confirmed in writing by the insurer 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 Treasurer's certificate or verbal notification,
no municipality has 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; or,
B.
A certificate and 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 certificate
and also showing, as of the date of the Treasurer's certificate,
the amount of the total costs, if any, certified to the Treasurer
that have been incurred by a municipality for the removal, repair
or securing of a building or other structure on the property.
[Ord. 1857, 6/24/1996, § 704]
Where 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, the following
procedures must be followed:
A.
The insuring agent shall transfer from the insurance proceeds to
the Secretary, a sum, in the aggregate, of $2,000 for each $15,000
of the claim and for each fraction of that amount of the claim, it
being the intent of this Section that, if the claim is $15,000 or
less, the amount transferred to the Township shall be $2,000; or,
B.
If, at the time of a loss report the named insured has submitted
a signed estimate from a contractor setting forth the cost of removing,
repairing or securing a structure in an amount less than the amount
calculated under the foregoing transfer formula, the insuring agent
shall then transfer to the Secretary, from the insurance proceeds,
the amount set forth in said estimate.
C.
The transfer of proceeds provided for herein, shall be made on a
pro rata basis by all companies, associations or exchanges insuring
the structure.
D.
Following the transfer of the funds, the named insured may submit,
to the Secretary, the signed estimate of a contractor for the cost
of removing, repairing or securing the structure and the Secretary
shall then return, to the named insured, such portion of the funds
transferred to the Township as is in excess of such estimate, provided
the Township has not commenced the removal, repair or securing of
the structure.
E.
Upon receipt of any proceeds under this Part, the Township shall
do the following:
(1)
The Secretary shall place the proceeds, as received, in a separate
fund to be used solely as security for the total cost incurred by
the Township for the removing, repairing or securing of the structure.
Such costs shall include, without limitation, all engineering, legal
and administrative costs incurred in connection with such removal,
repair or securing of the structure, or any proceedings related thereto.
(2)
The insuring agent, when transferring the proceeds to Township, shall
provide the 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, the Secretary shall contact the named insured,
certify to him that the proceeds have been received by the Township
and notify him that the procedures set forth in this Part will be
followed.
(3)
When the repairs, removal or securing of the structure have been
completed in accordance with all applicable regulations and orders
of the Township and the required proof of such completion is received
by the Secretary; and provided, further, that the Township has not
incurred any costs for the making or doing of any such repairs, removing
or securing of the structure, then the funds held by the Township
shall be returned to the named insured. If the Township has incurred
any costs for the repairing, removal or securing of the structure,
all such costs shall first be paid to it from the funds, following
which the Township shall return the remaining funds to the named insured.
(4)
To the extent that interest is earned on any proceeds held by the
Township pursuant to this Part, as to such part of said proceeds which
is not returned to the named insured, all interest earned thereon
shall also be the property of the Township. As to any part of said
proceeds which is returned to the named insured, all interest earned
thereon shall be paid to the named insured at the same time the proceeds
are returned.
F.
Nothing in this Part shall be construed to limit the ability and
right of the Township to recover any deficiency in the amount of the
proceeds, as same are received and held by it nor shall anything in
this Part 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; provided, a reasonable disposition of the real
property which contains the damaged or destroyed structure has been
negotiated between the Township and the proper parties.
[Ord. 1857, 6/24/1996, § 705]
The Board of Commissioners of the Township may, by resolution,
adopt such procedures and regulations as it deems necessary to implement
the Act and this Part, and it may also, by resolution, from time to
time, fix reasonable fees to be charged for all those municipal activities
or services provided pursuant to the Act and this Part including,
but not limited to, issuance of certificates and bills, performance
of inspections and the opening of separate fund accounts for the deposit
and escrow of proceeds.
[Ord. 1857, 6/24/1996, § 706]
Any owner of real property, any named insured or any insuring
agent who violates any term of this Part shall be subject to a penalty
of up to $1,000 for each such violation.
