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The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 6:56pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
PROLOGUE Martin is a 38-year-old virgin marked for greatness by the insurance gods. In his professional life, he is paid to assess risk, but in his personal life he plays it safe. Experience has shown him that lonely is better than brokenhearted. George is a wannabe architect with white man's dreadlocks. He risks his neck on the streets of Toronto every day as a bike courier, but his job is unchallenging and he chooses apathy over the risk of failure at what he really wants to do. When George tags along with Martin to investigate the scene of his latest claim, they stumble upon a burglary in process. Now they are being hunted by an unknown adversary who will stop at nothing to get what he’s after, forcing Martin and George into a dangerous game of cat and mouse in which they must risk everything. 1 Like 1 Share |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 7:18pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
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Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 7:55pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
Emmanbaba, buccie samsondavid Occurstaem mariemummy, vico4luv20 oluumind, lawrenzo007 tayo69 YINKS89, bennito, ojingbe,TeeVee, Missmossy mariemummy moshood1993 you all re invited...... |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by kinwayne(m): 8:06pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
Hey!! See this boi.... You are using my surname? Hmmn.. Carry on boss. |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 8:10pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
kinwayne:lols, i didn't know it was your surname anyway thanks for dropping by! |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by harjibolar10(m): 8:28pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
I don present ooo, here I am Observation before the first update; SPACING: Spacing is one of the most essential characteristics of a good story(prose). You need to space ya work sir (...D9ty7, please come help here oo) PUNCTUATION: Another important factor, please master that also (...fembleez1 or fataveli, will surely help on that) Now make I put my own contibution; I think you don't need all this "said angelina" of a things, instead, put in a dramatic way I.e. Chinyere: please don't leave me Angelina: why wouldn't I? Chinyere: because, you won't want to die... ... just saying ni ooo I dey follow |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 8:40pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
EPISODE 1 Martin Porchnik could see Jason from Claims approaching the Underwriting area with a yellow file in his hand and a big smirk on his face. A chill went through Martin, as it always did. A yellow file meant a property claim to be paid, and although he would ask not for whom the bell tolled, he still prayed it didn’t toll for he. “Good afternoon, ‘Underwear’ department. Whose day can I ruin today?” said Jason. “Anybody have a file for Ultimate Diecasting?” Martin grimaced. He knew that name. Of all the shit files that landed in his lap, that one stuck out in his memory as one of the shittiest. “Heads are going to roll over this one,” said Jason, looking around with an evil grin. “Not one of mine,” said Darlene. “It’s not me,” called Dave from his cubicle at the back. “It’s me,” said Martin. Everybody looked at him and he shrugged his shoulders. What're ya gonna do? “Is this the kind of crap you’re writing down here?” Jason parked his bulk next to Martin’s desk, leaning his elbow on the upper shelf. “No wonder I’m so busy paying out the big bucks. I need a dec page, underwriter boy.” He was what might be called a big galoot. Tallish and stocky going on fat with dark curly hair and thick eyebrows that looked angry or at least sarcastic all the time and a kind of goatee that made him look devilish. “I haven’t even issued the policy, yet,” Martin said, looking away from Jason's dark eyes and back down at the yellow file that spelled possible doom. Did he have to enjoy it so much? “Well, what’s the hold up? Let’s get it in gear. Do I have to come down here and crack the whip on you people?” “It just came in last week.” He dug through his pile of bound submissions waiting to be entered onto the computer. “Well, that didn’t take long. What have you got for me, so I know how much I have to pay out here? Or did you want me to just give them a blank check?” “We have a copy of their last year’s dec page from the prior carrier. We bound coverage on the same basis.” Well, he hadn’t, but his boss had. The decs, or policy declarations, which were a listing of the coverages and wordings included, had just landed in his lap, in fact. And right away he had to hand them over to Jason so he could pay the first claim. Delightful. “Gee, thanks. I guess it’s something. Let me make a copy and I’ll be right back.” “Can you leave me the claim file?” “Sure. Read it and weep.” Jason passed him the file and then walked away to the mail room to make his photocopy. “Thanks,” said Martin. He opened the file with a small feeling of self- satisfaction that he hoped wouldn't show on his face. He wasn't the one who had put them on the risk, so the blame wouldn't fully fall to him, come to that. It gave him a little get out of jail free card, but it was something he had to pretend he didn't think. Most of what underwriters do in a day is consider risk. They read submissions of potential “risks,” which in his department were businesses they were being asked to insure, and they had to assess the likelihood of having to pay out money because of some misadventure that might befall each. This would be either a lawsuit or a fire or a flood, etc. If you included famine, you would have almost all four horsemen of the Apocalypse. War is excluded. So underwriters choose which businesses to insure and how much money to charge so that, on average, a certain class of business would make money for the company. The general principal of insurance is that the premiums of the many would pay for the losses of the few. So they wrote up business for a whole lot of machine shops across Canada and only a few, like Ultimate Diecasting, would have a claim, and it should all even out and whatever was left over minus expenses was profit. If he did his job right. 1 Like 1 Share |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 8:43pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
harjibolar10:thanks bro! I'll try my best! Working on all what you just mentioned now! Thanks for the comment! |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 10:52pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
thronekid, almacherish, sophieabou, SusannaJohnson, Toeyean1507, lovelygurl dopevick, donkizzydaboss, prettydiva89 guys you're welcome here.... |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 11:12pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
Sweetdreamer:I'm here bro |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 11:19pm On Jan 07, 2015 |
thronekid:thanks, how do you check the work have done! Still have more thinqs to do but what do you think? |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 4:26am On Jan 08, 2015 |
Sweetdreamer: All i can say is [size=24pt]NICE[/size] but you still need to improve,owk? |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 7:16am On Jan 08, 2015 |
thronekid:i know and am working on it! |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 7:54am On Jan 08, 2015 |
So that was most of what underwriters do: consider which risks to get and which ones to keep by renewing. The rest of what they do all day is worry that the risks they have selected will have a big claim and they will be hauled onto the mat to answer for it. Consider risk and worry for a living. Nice work if you can get it. Martin shook his head and tried to concentrate on the claim report. The date of loss was Sunday, so it had been the previous night. It was a professional hit. The line to the alarm monitoring station had been cut and the bars had been taken out along with the window, which was removed in one piece from the frame. The place was a mess and the only things missing were plans and blueprints from a current job. There would be a payout under “Valuable Papers” and a Business Interruption loss while the plans were reassembled. They would have to pay to have the line repaired and the window replaced. Nothing else stolen or destroyed. That didn't sound right. This one had disaster written all over it from the start. He remembered when the phone call had come in from the broker, only a week ago, and it hadn’t passed the sniff test from the start. “Hi, Martin. Listen, I’ve got a piece of new business for you. It’s a machine shop. Do you think you could do it for four thousand bucks?” “Let me take a look at it. Put some details on paper and fax it over.” “Can’t you just quote me over the phone?” “Well, what do they make?” “Just various metal products.” “It makes a difference to what we would charge. And I’ll also need construction and protection details on the building to determine the property rate.” “It’s HCB, steel deck roof, of course. What else? I’m a busy man, Martin. I don’t have time to get into all this detail.” “I can’t quote over the phone. I’ll need something in writing. Including receipts. Do they sell to the U.S.?” “What do you think? Everybody sells to the U.S. This is just a little risk, I don’t see the big deal.” “Sales to the U.S. increases our exposure. You’d better send something over.” “I’ll get back to you.” Unbelievable, was his first thought when he had hung up the phone. What do we even need underwriters for, if that’s the way we’re going to deal in insurance? It’s not about the size of the building they occupy, or the number of people they have working for them, their level of training and qualification, or who they sell their products to, or how much they sell, or how much equipment they have and what it costs to replace it, would a key piece of equipment shut down the whole shop while it was being repaired, or whether they deal in cash or credit, or how long a fire would put them out of business, or ten or fifty other things that Jed Johansen wouldn’t think to ask... it’s about a few thousand bucks and a quick sale. Granted, 99% of brokers were diligent and professional and trustworthy, but it was the ones like Jed Johansen that you had to watch or else you ended up in situations like the one he was currently facing. Jed never did send in a full quote submission, he just went over Martin’s head and spoke to Gerry. “Gerry” was short for Geraldine, his supervisor. She preferred the diminutive, as she didn’t live in the Victorian age. She was tall and confident and blond, and Martin found her easier to deal with than his previous boss. She had an intelligent face and sharp eyes. She was impatient all the time, but kind. From looking at the pictures on the desk of her husband and kids, he imagined she was one of those busy moms who were great with their kids, efficient at work and able to keep the whole world spinning on the end of a stick. 1 Like 1 Share |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 7:59am On Jan 08, 2015 |
Sweetdreamer:Owk |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Fembleez1(m): 2:08pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Ok,......am here,would take time to read when am less busy |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 2:12pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Fembleez1:thanks boss, i really appreciate 1 Like |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 4:13pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
“I just got off the phone with one of the Johansen brothers, I forget which,” Gerry had said when she dropped by his desk not twenty minutes after the first phone call came through. “I bound that risk, the machine shop, for $5000. He’s faxing over last year’s dec page.” “Oh,” he had said hesitantly. This was very bad form, indeed. Without a written submission, there were no declarations or representations from the broker upon which to rely, and as they say, a verbal contract isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on, ha-ha. “I know,” said Gerry. “You’re not happy about it.” Martin shrugged but looked steadily at her. “Not really. I don't like him bypassing me to get to you. You can't be doing all the quotes in the department.” “I know. It was an accommodation. This is a growth year, and we have got to take it where we can get it. Besides, we can get it inspected and take care of any problems then.” “When it will be too late to get more premium if we need it.” “It’ll be fine, Martin. Besides, we’re $5K to the good, instead of nothing, and I want to switch the Johansens on so they’ll start sending us more business.” “I understand.” Five thousand dollars? They knew nothing about security, products, contracts, warranties... it would have to be inspected, thought Martin, just as the fax had been dropped off in his IN box. It was out in Scarberia, their nickname for Scarborough, the north east part of Toronto. It was in a moderately high crime area, big limits on tools and computers, which were the first to go. This was terrible. The Total Insured Value, or TIV, was over $4 million: the company’s money on the line for who knows what. And now a claim, proving him right about his fears. “Here’s your so-called dec page back.” Jason loomed by his desk again. “Can I have my file back, or were you going to take it home with you?” “It’s all yours. Why do you think thieves would break into a place like that and not steal any tools or computers? Things with a quick turn around. Those are usually the first to go, and yet these thieves ignored them.” “What do you think, oh brainy one?” “I think they knew what they were looking for. All they took was highly specialized diagrams, plans, and design specs. What petty thief takes that?” “Okay, so what?” “It sounds suspicious, that’s all. I think you should be careful with this one. It’s bothered me since we wrote it.” “Well, thanks for the advice. I’m glad you know so much about how to do my job, because you obviously didn’t know how to do yours.” “Sorry. Just a suggestion.” “I’ll take it under advisement,” said Jason over his shoulder. When the adjuster had left, Martin quickly composed a fax form and fired it off to the broker: Urgent. Insist that the insured upgrades security system to provide ULC- approved Line Security Level III protection, to prevent a recurrence of this kind of loss. Please advise ASAP how the insured intends to proceed. Our file is in abeyance pending your reply. Then he walked over and knocked on Gerry’s door. 1 Like 1 Share |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by almacherish(f): 5:57pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Right here Sweetdreamer: |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 5:58pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
almacherish:lols, you're welcome to... Shaxee thread... |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by dewalt(m): 7:38pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Nice one |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 8:14pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Sweetdreamer: Wow, the story rocks! Oh my God! Thumbs up! |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by harjibolar10(m): 8:14pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Sweetdreamer: Just try and digest that(it is all I can offer for now) |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by harjibolar10(m): 8:18pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Fembleez1:please do ooo Our man here needs your help oo 1 Like |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 8:33pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
lovelygurl:thanks dear, i really appreciate you here.. |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 8:35pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
harjibolar10:thanks bro, but i notice somethinq now, when i typed... Shit, nairaland changed it to bleep, why isn't so? |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by harjibolar10(m): 8:41pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Sweetdreamer:That's nairaland for you oo, just ignore it sir |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 8:45pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
tanx for the invitation...love the story |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 9:08pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
harjibolar10:alright i'll but hope am going fine on the story? |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by harjibolar10(m): 9:19pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
Sweetdreamer:Oga you are making sense, the story line is a bomb Keep 'em coming |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 9:26pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
harjibolar10:thanks bro... I'd keep that up |
Re: The Greatest Risk. by Nobody: 9:28pm On Jan 08, 2015 |
prettydiva89:thanks dear... You welcome here, you can take a sit, or thronekid can help you... Just drop what you want lols!! Thronekid is the waiter here... |
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