Commission authorizes county administrator to sign 2026 insurance renewal with Fee Insurance

The Reno County Commission authorized the county administrator to sign the county’s 2026 insurance renewal following a presentation by Bob Fee of Fee Insurance Group on market trends, coverage changes and premium options.

Fee reviewed the county’s property, liability, auto, cyber/crime and umbrella coverages and explained market drivers including increased litigation pressure on liability lines, higher automobile repair costs and recent defense costs related to incidents at the county jail. He reported a combined-package premium increase of about 12 percent year over year and discussed options to change deductibles or explore alternative pools or brokers.

Commissioners questioned vehicle loss frequency, departmental budget implications of higher deductibles and the tradeoffs of shifting more risk to departments. Staff and Fee noted that a higher per-vehicle deductible (for example, $10,000) would lower premiums but place first-loss responsibility on departments; the commission decided not to adopt the $10,000 auto deductible option.

A motion to accept the renewal as presented and to authorize the county administrator (Randy) to sign the agreement with Fee Insurance for the 2026 policy passed on a roll-call vote. County staff will finalize the paperwork and execute the contract with Fee Insurance and Travelers as the carrier.