Thread: TX-Border landowners fear loss of insurance coverage

Border landowners fear loss of insurance coverage

May 14, 2008 - 8:34PM
By LAURA B. MARTINEZ
The Brownsville Herald

BROWNSVILLE - A border fence equipped with locked gates could translate into some property and business owners unable to qualify for insurance.

Bobby Lucio, head golf coach and manager of the Fort Brown Memorial Golf Course, said he's concerned that he may not be able to purchase insurance for his business because of the fence.

"Anybody between the border wall and the Rio Grande is going to have a hell of a time, paying either bloated insurance rates or not being able to get coverage," Lucio said.

Reports regarding this are beginning to circulate around business and property owners who fear they could go out of business or have property that is uninsured.

John Greeley, public information officer for the Texas Insurance Industry in Austin, said the agency has not received any inquries from the public or insurance carriers regarding how the border fence could impact the insurance business. Greeley said it's possible that the calls could come later since the border fence issue is something new.

The Texas Insurance Industry is charged with insurance regulation.

Locked gates could prevent emergency personnel such as fire or EMS from gaining entry to the property, Lucio said Wednesday. It is a concern he presented earlier this week before the Cameron County Commissioners Court.

The Department of Homeland Security plans to build a portion of the border fence in Cameron County. The fence's construction is part of the 2006 Secure Fence Act, which is part of the government's comprehensive immigration reform that includes securing the nation's border.

The DHS plans to have Cameron County's portion of the fence completed by Dec. 31.

Lucio has been operating the golf course for about 20 years and now worries about the possibility of losing members.

"It is already affecting our business. Tourists are not renewing" memberships, Lucio said.

Cameron County Judge Carlos H. Cascos said this is the first time he's heard that property owners might not being able to purchase insurance because of the fence.

He said this is one of several questions that landowners need to ask representatives from U.S. Customs and Border Protection when they meet with them on Monday.

Precinct 1 Commissioner Sofia C. Benavides arranged a Monday meeting between landowners and U.S. Border Patrol agents in which the landowners will have the opportunity to voice their concerns about the fence.

Lucio has leased the golf course from The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College for several years. He recently poured more than $800,000 into the golf course to improve its irrigation system and revamp the clubhouse.

As a business owner, Lucio is responsible for having his business insured. Of the several policies he has, the most important is liability insurance.

Should the fence have gates, which is what several property owners have heard, Lucio fears either his insurance will skyrocket or he will not be able to get insurance at all because emergency personnel will be unable to gain access to the property.

"That's a legitimate question, but you are not going to get those answers from Homeland Security. They don't want to talk about that. They are going to fast track it," Lucio said.

Lucio has not discussed the issue with his insurance carrier.

Landowner Michelle Monciviaz has also heard about the possibility of the fence having gates. She is more concerned that if Border Patrol agents issue a "Code Red" during an emergency, the gates will automatically lock and will remain locked until the order is lifted.

The locked gates could prevent either her or her mother from gaining access to and from their home located on Nogales Road off Monsees Road, she said at a recent Commissioners Court meeting.

ela

http://www.valleymorningstar.com/news/i ... order.html

Wouldn't insurance companies issuing insurance to border property be more concerned about gunshots and an invasion rather than a fence?

Locked gates could prevent emergency personnel such as fire or EMS from gaining entry to the property, Lucio said Wednesday. It is a concern he presented earlier this week before the Cameron County Commissioners Court.

How would that prevent US emergency personnel from gaining entry? They're already on the US side. Mexican emergency personnel have no business bringing their people in to use our hospitals!

Locked gates could prevent emergency personnel such as fire or EMS from gaining entry to the property, Lucio said Wednesday. It is a concern he presented earlier this week before the Cameron County Commissioners Court.

Sorry, but i'm a little confused here. Would I be wrong to assume the golf course is in the United States and that such emergency personnel would dispatched be from the United States.

Is there some exchange program along our borders in which American citizens are calling Mexico for emergency assistance when they are faced with an emergency?