City of Midwest City increases insurance coverage following state tort reform
Tim Lyon speaks during a Midwest City City Council meeting on June 24. Photo by Jeff Harrison
By Jeff Harrison
Midwest City Beacon
The City of Midwest City will be paying more for insurance after a recent state law increased liability limits for municipalities.
Senate Bill 1168 amended limits set in the Oklahoma Governmental Tort Claims Act, doubling the exposure a municipality has to property, liability, personal injury and total liability claims.
The recoverable amount for property damage claims will be increased from the current $25,000 to $75,000 per incident or occurrence.
Losses for personal injury are currently capped at $125,000 for a single act or occurrence for cities in counties with populations below 300,000, and $175,000 for county populations above 300,000. SB 1168 increases the caps to $175,000 and $375,000 and lowers the population threshold to 150,000.
The total liability caps for municipalities also jumped from $1 million to $2 million.
To address this, the city raised its insurance coverage limits. Under the new structure, the city retains the first $250,000 in risk—a self-insured retention—with additional layers of insurance coverage extending to $5 million.
Berkeley Public Entity will provide coverage from $250,000 to $2 million, and States Insurance will cover claims between $2 million and $5 million.
City Manager Tim Lyon, speaking during the June 24 council meeting, emphasized the importance of these measures to protect taxpayers, especially since claims that exceed tort limits in federal court could end up being funded through property taxes.
“We have the same amount of protection, but we have more exposure,” Lyon said. “We are trying to not have that exposure to our citizens, that’s why we have an extra layer of coverage.”
Ward 1 councilwoman Susan Eads emphasized the importance of the changes to the Oklahoma Governmental Tort Claim Act. She thanked city staff for their knowledge and leadership to ensure financial stewardship.
The council approved four separate items related to changes to insurance policies.
SB 1168 will be effective Nov. 1.
