Steve, I don't think a CRC owner is, by definition, "dirty, rotten, [or]
stinkin".

Other persons have covered the notification issues perfectly well, so I
will discuss solely the insurance and response.

When I worked at the New York City Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP), I bid out a fairly large (estimated US $ 7.5M)
contract for records management services (which included storage).

I put in the Bid's insurance requirements the language copied below:

----------- beginning -------------

(1)	For loss of inactive records, $10.00 per standard storage
container.

(2)	For damage to inactive records, a per-container amount
sufficient to cover either restoration of the original records or
conversion to microfilm. If conversion to microfilm is chosen, the
specifications for the microfilming work shall those provided by DEP (a
sample DEP Microfilming Specification shall be made available upon
request).

(3)	For loss of Special Collection records (records judged by DEP to
have intrinsic historic or aesthetic value as described in section 7.4),
$200.00 per standard storage container.

(4)	For damage to Special Collection records (records judged by DEP
to have intrinsic historic or aesthetic value as described in section
7.4), a per-container amount sufficient to cover either restoration of
the original records or conversion to microfilm, the choice to be at the
sole option of DEP. If conversion to microfilm is chosen, the
specifications for the microfilming work shall those provided by DEP (a
sample DEP Microfilming Specification shall be made available upon
request).

----------- end -------------

There were several questions at the Pre-bid Conference regarding these
requirements, including "why don't you take out your own insurance?",
and my answers were (a) this is an industry that, at the sales pitch
stage, claims it is a reliable vendor of best-practices storage of
high-value information, so live up to your own claims; (b) price the
cost of insurance into your fees; (c) "self-insurance" is simply
refusing to face the consequences of disaster BEFORE it occurs, and I
won't do it.

We got TWELVE bids in response. The total bid dollar amounts fell on a
standard distribution curve.

As always, prevention is the "best cure", so why does your question not
touch on this area?

Finally, the various methods and techniques for dealing with typical
records storage disasters (in commercial facilities or otherwise) have
been thoroughly documented for years, and there are a number of
organisations that help storage facilities use them (in fact, there's an
entire industry). Do YOU have a disaster plan?

Best regards.

Fred
===================================================================
Frederic J. Grevin
Deputy Commissioner and Chief Information Officer
The City of New York,
Department of Records
Email: [log in to unmask]
Land phone: 212.788.8615
Cell phone: 347.436.5360
Fax:  212.788.8614
31 Chambers Street
New York, NY 10007
USA
-----Original Message-----
From: Records Management Program [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Richards, Steve
Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2007 14:41
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [RM] Insuring your records at a CRC

First of all, I am a dirty, rotten, stinkin CRC owner.    (Amy's
disclaimer...)  

I have some questions - for records managers who place their records
with a commercial records center.  

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