City’s Property and Casualty Insurance Premium Costs Could Jump 20% to $9.5 Million

The Pasadena City Council will consider authorizing the City Attorney to place, bind, and modify the City’s property and casualty insurance for fiscal year 2025 during its regular session on Monday. The total amount for all premiums, surcharges, taxes, and fees, as proposed, is up to $9,591,130, according to a report from the City Attorney/City Prosecutor.

Pasadena purchases property and casualty insurance to protect against catastrophic loss and to comply with various bond covenants and agreements. The report recommends that the City Council grant an exemption from the competitive selection process under the Pasadena Municipal Code.

The City works closely with Alliant Insurance Services, Inc., the City’s insurance brokerage firm, to secure the best available renewal options. Underwriters for the carriers are reluctant to provide quotes too far in advance from renewal and are just starting to release the City’s fiscal year 2025 quotes.

The overall premium for the Citywide insurance program has a not-to-exceed increase of approximately 20% over the prior year, rising from $8,024,437 to a maximum of $9,591,130, according to the report.

The proposed renewal policies cover a wide range of insurance types including crime,  general/excess liability, pollution liability, healthcare professional liability, heliport and aircraft,  property power plant and property Citywide, terrorism, automobile physical damage, cyber liability, fiduciary liability, and excess worker’s compensation.

The report said the cost of adopting all proposed actions is approximately $9,591,130, with funding included in the City’s fiscal year 2025 Recommended Operating Budget within various departmental and affiliated agency budgets.

In the General Fund, the amount budgeted for insurance premiums is expected to increase from $2.99 million in fiscal year 2024 to approximately $3.03 million in fiscal year 2025. The report notes that while increases are expected, the actual premiums are likely to be lower than the not-to-exceed amounts indicated.