To recap the issues raised during this week’s conference call, here are the key media stories we discussed, and the messages we’re conveying.
If there is a subject you would like to see addressed on Wednesday, August 30, please email Michael Barry at michaelb@iii.org.
Harvey To Bring Heavy Rain And Flash Flooding To Texas
The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey will be discussed on the Wednesday, August 30, 2:30 p.m., ET, all-industry call. It made landfall in Texas as a Category 4 storm on Friday, August 25.
A.M. BEST TV Marks Hurricane Andrew’s 25th Anniversary
The segment (subscription required) focused on the industry’s response to Andrew, and how insurers and reinsurers have changed the way they do business since it made landfall in Florida on August 24, 1992.
STORIES IN THE WORKS
The I.I.I.’s Claire Wilkinson, co-author of the I.I.I.’s cyberrisk white paper, is being interviewed this week by The Wall Street Journal’s Alan Janofsky about the U.S. cyber insurance market, and who needs this coverage.
The I.I.I.’s Steven Weisbart was interviewed by Marketwatch’s Brett Arends (annuities and interest rate fluctuations) and MoneyTalksNews’ Emmet Pierce (fraudulent life insurance claims).
The I.I.I.’s Michael Barry briefed The New York Times’ Ronda Kaysen on U.S. homeowners claim-filing trends for potential inclusion in one of her future Sunday Real Estate section columns.
The I.I.I.’s Lynne McChristian is taping a TV interview today (August 23) with the News Service of Florida’s Tom Urban on how Florida’s insurance market has changed since Hurricane Andrew.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Daniel Moore is exploring how workers compensation insurers use impairment rating evaluations (IRE). The news peg is the case Protz v. WCAB (Derry Area School District).
CAPITOL HILL
Lane departure and blind spot detection technologies are preventing U.S. roadway crashes, according to the latest research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is holding a public meeting on Tuesday, September 12, at 9:30 a.m., to discuss the probable cause of the fatal May 2016 crash of a Tesla car near Williston, Florida.
The corruption trial of U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, September 6.
The Trump administration’s efforts to delay implementation of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule was criticized today by The New York Times’ editorial board.
STATES
California
The South Fork Fire prompted mandatory evacuations in Wawona (Mariposa County), a small community near Yosemite National Park.
A jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $417 million to a 63-year-old Los Angeles woman who has ovarian cancer and used J&J’s talcum powder for years.
Florida
Auto glass claim related lawsuits are rising dramatically, according to The South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Louisiana
FEMA Administrator Brock Long discussed hurricane preparedness with Governor John Bel Edwards and New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu yesterday at the governor’s mansion in Baton Rouge.
The U.S. Senate’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) reauthorization bill proposals are superior to those being considered by the U.S. House, according to the editorial board at The New Orleans Times-Picayune.
Missouri
Torrential rains caused historic flooding in the Kansas City area yesterday (August 22), leaving one man dead in Kansas and others stranded for hours by high water. As much as nine inches of rain fell starting on Monday, August 21.
Montana
The Lolo Peak Fire has burned more than 30,000 acres over a period of weeks in Missoula and Ravalli counties.
New Jersey
Members of the state’s Congressional delegation touted The Sustainable, Affordable, Fair and Efficient (SAFE) National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Reauthorization Act of 2017 at a Union Beach press conference on Thursday, August 17.
Oklahoma
A woman who drove into a crowd during the 2015 Oklahoma State University homecoming parade, killing four people, had more than $100,000 from her car insurance policy disbursed to her victims by a judge.
Aircraft are flying over portions of the state to map faults that are likely to create an earthquake. It is a joint initiative of the U.S. and Oklahoma Geological Surveys.
Oregon
The Chetco Bar Fire began last week near Brookings (Curry County) and has damaged 40,000-plus acres.
The Milli Fire prompted residential evacuations in Sisters (Deschutes County).
Pennsylvania
Thirty-three (33) people were injured when a commuter train crashed into an unoccupied, parked train in Upper Darby, just outside of Philadelphia, on the morning of August 22.
Jessica Altman, the Insurance Department’s chief of staff, was named interim Commissioner this week after former Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller began her new job on Monday, August 21, as the state’s new Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary.
Vermont
Federal funding is available to municipalities in seven counties for recovery efforts in the areas affected by severe storms in flooding from June 29-July 1, 2017.
West Virginia
Federal funding is available to individuals in four counties impacted by the state’s severe weather from July 28-29, 2017. Municipalities in 12 counties are eligible for federal funds to repair or replace facilities damaged by this event.
MEDIA MATTERS
Ross Levinsohn was named CEO and publisher of The Los Angeles Times. Several top editors at the LA Times were dismissed on the same day as Levinsohn’s appointment (August 21).
The Village Voice will no longer publish a print edition.
The I.I.I. is cited regularly in the media as an authoritative source of insurance information. To access the current I.I.I. press clips, click here.
