BELLE — Although Belle has closed two liability claims from 2023, city officials say an unresolved liability lawsuit continues to prevent the city from obtaining more favorable insurance rates.

During the June 29 special meeting, the Belle Board of Aldermen approved the city’s 2026-27 property and liability insurance renewal after hearing an update from insurance representative Mike Clark.

Clark said the city has made progress in reducing its claims history, but one open sexual liability case from the 2024-25 policy period continues to affect the city’s ability to secure lower premiums.

“We finally closed out two liability claims from 2023,” Clark told the board. “But we’ve still got that open sexual liability case. It’s a black cloud until it’s closed. It’s hard to shop anything.”

Clark is referring to a lawsuit filed against former Belle Police Officer Erican Sugg, alleging sexual assault occurred when he responded to a female motorist having mechanical issues at Belle City Park.

Clark said insurance carriers closely examine a municipality’s claims history when determining rates, and an unresolved liability claim can significantly limit the city’s options when seeking competitive coverage.

“We can’t fight these claims — especially when one’s still open,” Clark said, adding that he has been working closely with Charro Reasor, office manager-city treasurer, to evaluate the city’s insurance options.

Despite the ongoing liability issue, Clark said the city’s property insurance premium increased slightly, from $17,500 last year to $17,900 this year, which he described as essentially remaining stable.

The largest increase came in the city’s general liability coverage, which rose from approximately $28,200 to $31,400, an increase Clark attributed directly to the unresolved liability lawsuit.

“Your general liability exposure hasn’t increased,” Clark said. “It’s that open loss that’s coming back to haunt us.”

Clark said reductions negotiated in the city’s law enforcement and public officials coverage helped offset much of the liability increase, limiting the overall insurance package to an increase of approximately $1,300 compared with last year.

According to Clark, the city also explored increasing deductibles to help offset premium costs and reviewed several policy options before recommending the renewal.

“We looked at increasing deductibles — maybe bumping them up to save some money,” Clark said. “We also looked at eliminating some coverage limits and increasing the property limit.”

However, he said those options produced little benefit. Increasing the deductible from $20,000 to $50,000 would have reduced premiums by only about $250, while increasing it to $100,000 would have saved roughly $1,000, savings Clark said were not worth the additional financial risk to the city.

Clark said the city’s property values were also updated to account for inflation, but officials intentionally kept coverage limits largely unchanged.

He added that the insurance market itself has begun to stabilize after several years of sharp increases, although rates have not yet started to decline.

“Most carriers’ rates are filed with the state,” Clark said. “You’re seeing 30% rate increases on personal insurance, too.”

Despite the current challenges, Clark said he believes the city’s insurance outlook could improve if it completes another year without major liability claims.

“If we go another year clean, we’ll see rate reductions with Missouri Public Risk and Rural,” Clark said.

Following the discussion, the Board of Aldermen unanimously approved the insurance renewal and authorized monthly recurring payments for the policy.