Villa Park Resolves a Question of Policy--and Santa Will Ride

Things looked bleak for the children of Villa Park when the annual Santa Claus parade was canceled because the small Orange County city lost its liability insurance and feared being sued--for anything.

But on Friday, the city found an insurance company that would cover Santa for one day only, so his ride through town atop a fire engine will go on, although rescheduled for next Saturday.

As they have every year, children can line up to give Santa their letters and receive about 800 pounds of candy Santa will distribute at his various stops.

“This (Santa visit) is such a big deal to our community that it simply was not acceptable to cancel it,” Councilman Wayne Silzel said Friday.

Villa Park lost its coverage when its policy expired at midnight Wednesday. The Chicago Insurance Co., which covered the city for a $27,000 annual tab, refused to renew the contract. Like other insurance companies, the Chicago firm went out of the municipality coverage business, said Ray Morgosh, marketing manager for Knox General Insurance Brokers in Orange.

Morgosh and another insurance Broker, Hull & Co., in Santa Ana, did some frantic shopping Friday and found Scottsdale Insurance Co. in Arizona, which would cover Santa with $1-million liability coverage for one day for $411.55.

“Santa is gonna ride--yeah!” Morgosh said.

But insurance or no insurance, the city is taking no chances. City Manager Carolyn Veregge said the goodies Santa tosses out will include soft candies: “When we throw them out, it won’t konk them out.”