Page 4 - Fall 2016 DRVC Travelore

Page 4 - DRVC Travelore
Return of coach under FMCAssist
A Point of Clarification
Byron Songer, Publications VP of DRVC
Recently I saw a complaint about FMCAssist posted to
a Facebook group I follow. The complaint had to do with a change made in the benefit by Seven Corners, who underwrite the medical evacuation benefit available to all members regardless of level. It went something like the following.
Owners should know that about six months ago FMCA change the plan regarding return of your motorhome to you home. No longer will they cover coaches over ten years of age. Everyone should be up in arms about this and contact their club presidents and FMCA directors to get this changed.
Soon after the Facebook post was made, the responses started flying since it had caught nearly every reader by surprise. Some responded with angry tones and very few replied with genuine concern for the facts involved in the change. Not being one that likes rumor, I immediately started checking into the situation by climbing up the contact ladder from within the Diesel RV Club. The para- graphs that follow will explain the situation. For those of you who are about to get upset, don’t. It all makes since and the benefit change may actually be more to the liking of most members. I know I’m satisfied.
The Background
For a long time, a benefit to FMCA members was a medical evacuation and travel assistance plan. The main purpose of the plan was to cover the cost of return of a member
to his home if a medical emergency was encountered. For instance, if a member was hospitalized and being released for recuperation or rehabilitation, the member could be transferred to their home at the plan’s expense. Not only is the member transferred but the spouse may accom- pany the member to assist in providing care and comfort. Another benefit of the plan was to cover the cost of trans- porting the motorhome to the member’s domicile.
Longtime members of FMCA will recall when the emer- gency plan was removed as a benefit of membership. The action left many of us feeling an important aspect of mem- bership had been lost leaving some to find other types of
insurance to cover these instances. For instance, my wife and I secured coverage from SkyMed.
After loosing some members and having multiple com- plaints, the leadership of FMCA sought and found an underwriter who was willing to reinstate the benefit and manage the coverage. That is when Seven Corners appeared on the scene. For almost five years we’ve been able to have that benefit back in the FMCA arsenal.
The Present Issue
In the months since restoration of the benefit (FMCAs- sist), many claims have been filed involving the return of vehicles (motorhome and tow). Since most members have motorhomes greater than ten years of age, contracted drivers and the companies for whom they work were run- ning into some serious issues: Coaches not in good repair or state of safe and worry-free drivability. The net result was that transportation companies began refusing to drive older motorhomes in order to avoid being caught with repair issues. It is at this point that Seven Corners enacted the exception. However, contrary to uninformed opinion, the company would still underwrite the return of older coaches and their tows.
The issue became “thorny” for some because families either didn’t know to push the issue with customer service representatives who were not trained in handling the situation. Steps are being taken to correct the situation.
In order to spare you the gory details, I’ll just move on to the summary statements. Rest assured that the concerns recently raised have been addressed with FMCA staff and board members and that further clarification should be forthcoming on FMCA’s website.
www.fmca.com/benefits/fmcassist.html