Testimonials

”Due to an unfortunate accident our company helicopter was badly damaged by a hard landing and roll over on uneven terrain. Though the aircraft was repairable, the known cost to overhaul and the time required to complete the repair would cause an economic hardship to the company. Paradise Helicopters determined that it would be more beneficial to the company to have the aircraft declared a constructive total loss. SterlingRisk understood our concerns and negotiated a settlement using the extra expenses coverage for a rental helicopter as a means to calculate the total expected claim. The insurer agreed with SterlingRisk and paid the total loss claim less the fair market salvage value. This allowed our company to continue to improve the fleet and reduce the long term loss that would have been generated by a lengthy repair effort. SterlingRisk took the time to understand the economic position of the company, as well as the increased costs that would be pushed to the insurer, which helped negotiate a more positive settlement for both the insurer and our company.

Calvin G. Dorn, CEO — Paradise Helicopters

”SterlingRisk has been an absolute pleasure to work with; our company had previously been denied a claim for loss of parts and labor revenue under or general liability policy. SterlingRisk Aviation reviewed the facts of the case and after further investigation presented the insurer with information pertaining to the intent and policy coverage under the Work In Progress endorsement. The insurer agreed with SterlingRisk and paid the claim. Advanced Helicopter Services is proud to be a part of the SterlingRisk Family.

Sparrow Tang, CEO — Advanced Helicopter Services

”Having previously been told that higher limits of liability coverage were simply not available to the Flight Academy at a reasonable price, SterlingRisk Aviation presented the Flight Academy with a marketing plan on how to secure higher limits. Following SterlingRisk Aviation’s advice, the Flight Academy tripled their limits of aircraft and aviation liability coverage for “zero” additional cost.

Ghassan M. Reslan, Chief Executive Officer — Phoenix East Aviation, LLC

”We have been very pleased with our experience with SterlingRisk through our 6 year relationship. Any question or problem we may have is answered promptly and professionally. Our prior broker would always refer us to the insurance company anytime a claim needed to be called in, an auto added to the policy or we had a question on coverage. SterlingRisk handles all of these and any other insurance questions themselves, saving us time and aggravation. The ability to rely on them to work on a claim, with our best interest in mind, has been eye opening. We have online access to request and print immediately any insurance certificate we need to begin a job, which has saved us countless hours. The renewal process, which is normally an immense burden, has been streamlined as they know and understand our business. In short, we have been very pleased with SterlingRisk and would highly recommend them.

Patrick Moran, Controller — American Carpet South

”I am writing this note to express our total satisfaction regarding our decision to engage SterlingRisk as our general liability and property insurance broker.

Your team has demonstrated knowledge and professionalism throughout our relationship. We are extremely pleased with the commentary we received from your legal division regarding indemnification agreements and other aspects of insurance technical issues.

I look forward to a long and fruitful relationship between our companies.

Charles Krobot, President — Kilroy Architectural Windows

”We hired SterlingRisk very late in the renewal process at the end of last year. The team at Sterling was able to quickly understand our Company’s needs and meet the nearly impossible timeline for renewal. During the process, they took the time to educate us on potential shortfalls in our former policy’s coverage levels and ultimately provided us with a very competitive premium with unbeatable financing. In the few months that followed, Sterling has helped us resolve some open indemnification agreements with a few of our customers and provided training to our documents team responsible for ensuring our vendors are within our newly defined insurance compliance requirements.

Skip Warner, VP of Finance / Controller — FrontStreet Facility Solutions, Inc.

”You know how when you are speaking to someone about a problem you are having and they suddenly say: “Don’t worry, I’ve got a guy for that”? Well, when it comes to insurance of any description or nature, my “Guy for that” is my SterlingRisk Team. Whatever the issue and no matter how complicated the problem, they have always been there to help. Problems, both big and small (and, believe me, we’ve had them all) are eased in their capable hands. They have become as critical to me as any of my key employees. Best of all, we have never been a number or just another client with them – we’ve always been colleagues and friends. I recommend them highly and without reservation.

Gregory E. Campbell, President — Campbell Engineering Support Services, Inc.

”The SterlingRisk team has been innovative as well as proactive and has become our trusted advisor with respect to all of our risk management needs.

Our initial contact with SterlingRisk began with an analysis of our directors’ and officers’ exposures and coverages. The analysis outlined numerous deficiencies in coverages that they advised could be rectified. Upon providing them a broker of record letter for these coverages, SterlingRisk provided us with enhanced coverages and higher limits, which our prior broker said was unavailable.

The relationship has since grown with SterlingRisk providing improved risk management solutions with respect to our property and casualty exposures as well as our benefits and student accident coverages.

Ralph Cerulla, Treasurer — Dowling College

”I have had the pleasure of working with the SterlingRisk Benefits team for many years, and I have had only good experiences.

With my huge workload, I can’t tell you how many hours your team has saved me so that I can concentrate on doing other things that need to be done. Every benefits meeting, enrollment process, unexpected problems and, of course, the annual Census are all handled quickly and efficiently. I attribute that to the fine work of your Benefits Department.

I commend the hardworking professionals at SterlingRisk who have made my job at Scotto Brothers much easier.

Michele McGrath, Assistant Controller — Scotto Brothers

”The Cornerstone Environmental Group would like to acknowledge SterlingRisk and how they recently protected our interests when we were confronted with a frivolous litigation claim. SterlingRisk strategized with us and our insurance partner and developed a plan where we were fully protected. Our insurer designated as ‘pre-claim’ the assigned defense counsel fees and with our assigned counsel present to protect our interests we attended a mediation hearing where we helped our client settle and fully resolve their claim. This strategy succeeded in keeping Cornerstone out of the litigation and resulted in a negotiated settlement of all matters. During our nearly decade long relationship with our broker we have been consistently impressed with his expertise and responsiveness with reviewing and assisting with coverage questions, our contracts and certificates, and it is without reservation we recommend SterlingRisk to our clients and subcontractors.

James J. Bradley, Esq. - General Counsel — Cornerstone Environmental

”SterlingRisk is my “go-to” environmental insurance broker.

I am an environmental attorney who has worked with Howard Tollin since 2001 on transactions involving over 200 properties. Howard’s prior background as an environmental attorney, along with his innovative thinking and knowledge of the markets, makes him an irreplaceable partner for my clients and me. Indeed, we have worked closely together manuscripting and negotiating numerous endorsements to enhance coverage that subsequently became part of many carriers’ standard forms. We have also worked together to protect clients’ interests in obtaining reasonable claim recoveries. SterlingRisks’ approach significantly reduces the time I need to spend, which makes obtaining environmental insurance much more cost effective for our clients.

Gordon C. Duus, Partner — Mandelbaum Salsburg

”PUMP’d has been lucky to work with SterlingRisk Insurance since opening our business in 2008. They have researched on our behalf quality coverage for the best premium price. We’ve recently had our first insurance claim (water damage caused from a leaky roof during a rain storm) that has been handled well by the professionals at SterlingRisk Insurance. We’ve been with SterlingRisk since opening our business and wouldn’t think of switching our insurance needs to any other company.

Lori Bettencourt, Owner / General Mangager — PUMP’d

”We are fairly new to the entertainment industry so when it came time for our 1st inspection of our facility last year we were completely in the dark, but SterlingRisk was very helpful to us and when Mr. Vondriska came for the inspection he was very nice and answered any questions that we had. We had one thing that needed to be fixed and he explained how it needed to be fixed and he even gave us pictures and instructions on how to do it! We were so thankful for his help and now we look forward to future inspections.

Thank you.

Tiffany Littrell & Kim Moore — Bounce Around Play World

”My experience with SterlingRisk started long before I opened my FEC. I discovered them at an IAAPA conference. I went to the conference to learn all I could before I opened my center in Atlanta. I have had nothing but positive experiences ever since. Everyone at SterlingRisk makes an effort to provide outstanding service. The whole point of insurance is to give you piece of mind. SterlingRisk gives me the confidence I need to focus on what’s really important….my business!

David Kopel, Owner / Manager — Sandy Springs Funhouse

”Every year I recieve mailers from companies wanting to quote insurance for me. I want the most for my money so I let them. So far, no one has shown me any reason to switch. SterlingRisk offers me good coverage, good service and better pricing, why would I switch?

Thank you Sterling for everything you do for us.

Jody Lee, Owner — Fire Mtn. Amusements

”Our in-depth review of the insurance coverage of a broker-dealer owned by another company revealed significant gaps that could have cost the client thousands in losses.

While the broker-dealer was insured by the parent company (which is in a different line of business), the coverage did not properly insure them for trading activity. In the event of a loss, the existing insurance may not have answered many of the broker’s professional exposures. The program SterlingRisk recommended and was subsequently contracted to place does. We now are the insurance broker for all of the investment firm’s professional liability coverage, including their directors and officers, cyber threats and errors & omissions policies.

”SterlingRisk goes above and beyond to accommodate us and keep us informed of any changes in the industry well ahead of time and works closely with us to develop plans and strategies to face any challenge we are presented with.

Our SterlingRisk representative is always just a phone call away and responds within a reasonable timeframe, which is extremely important. She is a great asset to our Benefits department and we are very lucky to have her on our team.

Stacy Scott — Apple Metro

”SterlingRisk has a dynamic team. We work with several of their divisions at many different levels. Their customer service is superior. They are the best insurance partner to have in the industry.

Adele Florie — Apple & Eve, LLC

”When a small outpatient rehabilitation facility grew to include a residential treatment facility, their risk exposure did too, as did their insurance premium.

SterlingRisk worked closely with our client to reduce their risk exposure, counseling them on both their hiring and management practices, including security. We implemented a national background check program on all employees who came into contact with the residents, created proper documentation procedures for all incidents and potential claims, as well as supervisory controls and proper client-counselor reporting forms that followed confidentiality laws. Putting all of these controls into place helped the insured become certified by JCAHO, resulting in money-saving credits on their insurance policy and earning them a designation as a “premier” prospect, which enabled us to access additional cost-effective programs not available to “new ventures.”

”I have had the pleasure of working with SterlingRisk’s employee benefits department since 2007 when I took over the role of controller at ADE Systems.

Right from the beginning, the team has been a source of expert information, guidance through changing policies and a trusted advocate when negotiating new or continued benefits. The level of customer service is superb. We look forward to continuing our relationship with SterlingRisk in the future.

Valorie Mancuso, Controller — ADE Group

”Ken Davies, a classical composer and trombone player, was about seven miles from the Gulf Coast when the storm came in. He boarded up his home and personal studio and gathered up his valuable equipment, such as computers, keyboards and his trombone. He didn’t expect any major damage to happen.

“In our case, there was no reason to expect any kind of water damage unless the wind blew the roof off or something,” he said. “Since it was a hurricane not a tornado, we weren’t expecting anything of that magnitude. We were expecting maybe a tree blowing against the house, but the last thing we were expecting was water. We had boarded up our house and made it as secure as we could.”

But water did flood in, a mixture of salt water from the ocean, rain water and swamp water from the bayou that was only a block away from his home. “From the standpoint of instruments, some of the things on my rack were low enough to get touched by the water,” said Davies. “To make the story fairly short, 20-to 30-foot waves hit the Gulf Coast from Alabama to Louisiana. It took out blocks of buildings pretty much across the board. We’re talking about people’s houses, where they were left with nothing but slab, and all of their possessions floated away somewhere.”

When it came time to collect insurance on his damaged equipment and software, Davies found MusicPro easy to deal with and very helpful. “They were wonderful people to work with,” he said. “It was quick and easy. It seemed as though a lot of the people involved had a good grasp of instruments and a good grasp of electronic equipment.”

Davies says that if he didn’t have MusicPro, he would have been “miserable” because he wouldn’t have been able to rebuild his personal studio as quickly as he did. With the insurance money, he was able to get back on track making and recording music within a few months!

Ken Davies

”On the very last day of my very first “real tour,” most of our gear got stolen. At the time, I didn’t know this was a touring musician’s worst nightmare. I was under the assumption that empty venues with crickets were. Alas, nope, this was worse.

We had been up until 2am in a Seattle recording studio, spending the last day of our West Coast tour laying down some demos. We had to wake up at 6am to catch our flight back to NYC. I came out in the wee hours of the morning to get something from the car, and noticed the driver’s side door was jimmied open. Then I looked back and thought “Man, the van looks empty. Guess we took more stuff inside than I thought. Wait. A. Second. I didn’t take ANYTHING inside because we are at a nice little suburban house that has a dog and the van is parked in a driveway!”

My band members came out and we assessed what was missing. Essentially it was my flight case and Yamaha P120 keyboard, two guitars and a few suitcases that had all sorts of goodies in them, from clothes to pedal boards to cables. My guitarist had purchased some vintage pedals on the tour and was pretty bummed to see those missing.

One of us called the cops, one of us called the airline to move our flight, and one called our insurance (we all had MusicPro). Six minutes later, the only person still on the phone was the one that called the airline. Everything else had been taken care of.

When I got home, the mail had come. I had in my hand a check from MusicPro for the exact amount of the purchase value of my missing gear, enough to go and start fresh.

Cheryl Engelhardt

”Thank you Laura.

Though I have never met you, you've been a good friend and certainly a great asset to MusicPro. Thank you for your help and patience with my somewhat sloppy records keeping. We travel quite a bit and I am very much at ease regarding the safety of my equipment while we are gone. I know that, emotionally, nothing could replace my first "professional guitar" - a Gibson Johnny Smith Jazz model, but knowing that I have you watching my back - potential loss wise - is very comforting.

Orrin

”If you don’t have insurance for gear through MusicPro, get it.

I remember back in 2010 when I had just got off the tour bus after a month long trip around the US. I got in my car and drove down to Soundcheck here in Nashville where I had a lot of gear stored (amps, guitars, cases). I pulled over and looked down by the river only to see Soundcheck immersed half way up the side in water. This was the great Nashville flood of 2010. I remember going into my locker two weeks later only to see some of my favorite gear caked in mud after being under water for weeks. I called MusicPro for the first time to see what they would do. Less than 10 days later I had a check for all that I lost! I mean it was amazing how fast they worked to get me going. It was effortless. Fast forward to January of this year… I was on a cruise playing with a bunch of other artists and on the way home my main pedal board was destroyed on the trip home…. Much of it was irreparable. Same thing, under 10 days later I had a check for what had been broken.

This is the best money I spend all year on gear, as it is my piece of mind. If you don’t have insurance for gear through MusicPro, get it. Don’t wait. I hope you never need it but if you do you will be glad you read this.

Brian Oaks

”I’ve been a MusicPro customer for almost eight years now. When I first started out using MusicPro, I was living in a crappy neighborhood in Hollywood, and thought it would be a good idea to insure my music gear. At the time, I only had two guitars, one electric and one acoustic, and a laptop that was insured.

Within six months of having the policy, my laptop took a dive off my desk and the screen was shattered. At the time, the loss of my laptop was catastrophic, and if it wasn’t for MusicPro, I would have been unable to replace it. They handled my claim quickly and without fuss.

Today I have a much larger policy, and I count on MusicPro to insure my recording studio and my gear on the road.

Ethan Roberts

”I just wanted to write and say thank you for processing the claims on my recent losses so promptly and professionally. For years we have sent our annual coverage premiums and thankfully I’ve not really had to utilize anything with you guys, despite spending so much time out on the road as a working musician. I was (and am) sad to lose instruments that I cared about and gear that I use to provide income for my family, but because I was insured with MusicPro, I was able to resume my tour with confidence.

At the end of the day, it helped me to see that these are just things and they’re not as important as say relationships. I’m not sure I would have been able to think as clearly had I not had the insurance to cover my basic needs for getting back on the road. I will not give up hope anytime soon that the thieves who stole my guitars will try to unload them in a way that allows me to recover the instruments, but I’m so very thankful that MusicPro was there to help keep me in business. I have four daughters and a wife who appreciate it too. Let me know if there is anything I can ever do for you and again, thanks for existing.

Stephen Kellogg

”SterlingRisk has been with us since our firm’s early days, servicing our professional liability needs as our firm has grown.

The company has helped us to navigate the complex liability risks we’ve faced as we’ve taken on high-profile cases such as the injury claims of the rescue and recovery workers of the September 11, 2001 attacks. SterlingRisk has been both a source of knowledge and a safety net, answering any questions or concerns we’ve had, while making sure we’re protected with the right coverage in place.

Paul J. Napoli, Senior Partner — Napoli Shkolnik PLLC

”The owner of 2,500 apartment units faced substantial losses in the face of Superstorm Sandy when their previous broker failed to advise them of a rent abatement waiting period on their existing business income policy.

Unaware of the three-day waiting period, the owner forgave the rent of all tenants who experienced a power outage during that time due to the storm, expecting to be reimbursed for the lost income. Unfortunately, the policy’s stipulated waiting period eliminated the reimbursement at significant cost to the property owner.

Now their broker of record, SterlingRisk, not only obtained the additional business income coverage but was able to negotiate with the incumbent underwriter at renewal to obtain this coverage with no change in premium.

”I have had the pleasure of working with the SterlingRisk Benefits team for many years, and I have had only good experiences.

With my huge workload, I can’t tell you how many hours your team has saved me so that I can concentrate on doing other things that need to be done. Every benefits meeting, enrollment process, unexpected problems and, of course, the annual Census are all handled quickly and efficiently. I attribute that to the fine work of your Benefits Department.

I commend the hardworking professionals at SterlingRisk who have made my job at Scotto Brothers much easier.

Michele McGrath, Assistant Controller — Scotto Brothers

”When SterlingRisk was first referred to us, we allowed them to perform a complimentary review of our insurance program. Upon their review, they exposed a serious void in our insurance program.

Our current broker was unaware of the issue, and after exposing the void, the broker was unable to fix the problem without a substantial financial penalty to my company. Now they not only represent us on our property, casualty and workers’ comp lines, we’ve engaged their affiliated TPA services and are thrilled with the service they provide as well. Sterling has become one of our most trusted business advisors.

Brian Emmert, CPA — Jetro Holdings, LLC

”It is with much enthusiasm that I am writing to recommend the services of Dennis Sturtz, with Essential Services & Programs.

Mr. Sturtz contacted our company, Orlando Aircraft Services, regarding our Workers' Compensation policy and the amount we have been paying for Workers' Compensation is being overcharged. At first, we were very hesitant and said "No Thank You and Not Interested." After his persistence, he offered to fly to Florida and meet with us and explain what his company can do at no cost to us. Mr. Sturtz promised us that he would do all the leg work and go though the ins and outs and he will get a refund for us for the present time and three years prior.

Mr. Sturtz delivered after many emails, phone calls, and a visit to the Capital to protest the coding for our facility. With the persistence and dedication of Mr. Sturtz, we reclaimed a substantial amount of overcharged Workers' Compensation payments. From this time forward, we will be paying the fair value of Workers' Compensation due to Mr. Sturtz' hard work and efforts.

John A. Webb, President — Orlando Aircraft Services

”I met with Dennis Sturtz Several years ago. He had phoned and asked for an appointment to discuss our Workmans' Compensation coverage. He said that he could save us money on our insurance by looking at the classification codes to be sure they were correct.

I was skeptical. I had personally reviewed the codes and I was sure they were correct, but I also really dislike my Workmans' Comp. rates and thought that I had nothing to lose in meeting with Dennis. So we met.

My part was easy. All I had to do was supply Dennis with a few details about our policy and he did the rest. Dennis save us 10's of thousands of dollars. Not only did we get a refund of overpayments from the past, but we also see these savings in the future.

Dennis is very personable and a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend his services. What do you have to lose?

Peggy Mills, President — Turbines Inc.

”I am writing to express my satisfaction with Dennis J. Sturtz of Essential Services & Programs.

We had consistently been paying high rates for our Workers' Compensation insurance largely because of being categorized in an industry with much higher risks. Dennis was able to determine a proper category and followed through with obtaining the change from his first call to the final step - a hearing with NCCI's board.

Dennis was professional, knew the detailed steps to obtain the change, and a pleasure to work with. I would work with him again and recommend him should you find the need for his services.

Mike Long, President — Air Orlando Aircraft Services