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, February 10, please email me at michaelb@iii.org.
I.I.I.’s PRESIDENT TO STEP DOWN IN AUGUST TO JOIN THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
The details are in this news release, which the I.I.I. issued on Thursday, February 4.
REGULATORS NEED TO EXAMINE UNIVERSAL LIFE (UL) INSURANCE POLICY PROVISIONS, CONSUMER FEDERATION OF AMERICA (CFA) SAYS
The CFA’s news release charged that life insurers were improperly raising UL policies’ cost of insurance (COI) rate schedules. The I.I.I.’s Steven Weisbart offered an industry perspective in a CBS Money Watch article on the matter.
NORTH CAROLINA AND COLORADO INSURANCE COMMISSIONERS MAKE FRIENDLY BET ON SUPER BOWL 50
The North Carolina Insurance Department offered details on the wager in a Tuesday, February 2, news release. The Carolina Panthers will face the Denver Broncos on Sunday, February 7.
STORIES IN THE WORKS
The I.I.I.’s Bob Hartwig taped an interview today (February 3) with PBS’s Frontline program. The interviewer wanted to learn about the relationship between FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and its Write Your Own (WYO) companies, among other things.
The I.I.I.’s Jeanne Salvatore (jeannes@iii.org) would like to hear from companies who have been contacted by CBS’s 60 Minutes for its upcoming story on unclaimed life insurance policies.
The I.I.I.’s Loretta Worters provided interviews and information to Cosmopolitan magazine (women and insurance) and CNBC.com (business interruption insurance).
The I.I.I.’s Steve Weisbart explained to NerdWallet why life insurance policies have contestability clauses, and how they work.
The I.I.I.’s Michael Barry said a CBS network news researcher is trying to quantify how many fatal U.S. truck crashes occur each year because the driver has a health issue that impairs his or her ability to drive.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
CoreLogic releases its 2015 Natural Hazards Report
The interactive report includes maps, images and multimedia content. It is available for download on their website.
NOAA says the January 23 snowstorm was a ‘Category 4’
A tweet sent out this past Friday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) about the Saturday, January 23, snowstorm received heavy engagement this week. NOAA categorized the storm as a Category 4, a “crippling” event, for the Northeastern U.S.
The intensity of the storm in the Northeast ranked sixth out of the 199 snowstorms since 1900 that were analyzed by the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).
National Weather Service (NWS) issues warnings for the Southeast
The NWS issued Twitter warnings this week for severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flooding, particularly in Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. The updates are on their Twitter page (@NWS) as well as a separate Twitter account covering the Southern Region (@NWS_Southern_US)
February is Insurance Careers Month
February 2016 is the first-ever Insurance Careers Month. Insurers are using the hashtag #CareerTrifecta on social media to inspire millennials to choose an insurance career because it is “stable, rewarding, and limitless.”
Property Casualty 360’s “5 ways you can help recruit the next generation of insurance professionals” discusses the industry’s aging workforce. By 2022, more than 295,000 insurance professionals will need to be replaced, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
CAPITOL HILL
The National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report on May 2015’s fatal Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia.
The number of cars impacted by the Takata air bag recall has widened.
STATES
Alabama
A tornado damaged dozens of homes in Sapps (Picken County) on Tuesday, February 2.
Governor Robert Bentley received recently a Working Group report on the state’s coastal property insurance market.
Alaska
Anchorage’s NBC affiliate broadcast an earthquake insurance segment after a 7.1-magnitude quake struck the state on Sunday, January 24.
Arizona
The premium tax paid by the state’s property/casualty and life insurers would gradually drop to 1.7 percent from 2 percent, between now and 2021, (subscription required) if House Bill 2002 became law.
California
Strong winds in the San Diego area caused at least one fatality, and extensive property damage.
Prospective Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program customers can now apply online for the state-sponsored policy.
Georgia
State lawmakers are weighing whether to exempt motorcyclists over the age of 18 from having to wear helmets.
Hawaii
State Senator Josh Green (D-Kona) has proposed a bill that would require gun owners to secure firearms liability insurance from private carriers.
Idaho
Dean Cameron won confirmation from the state Senate to become director of the state’s Insurance Department.
Maryland
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is holding an Open House at its Silver Spring office on Saturday, February 6, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Minnesota
Three life insurers agreed to a regulatory settlement, which dealt in part with unclaimed life insurance policies.
Missouri
Premiums for sinkhole insurance purchased through the state’s Property Insurance Placement Facility, also known as the FAIR Plan, are decreasing dramatically effective Monday, February 1.
Nebraska
Former U.S. Senator Ben Nelson’s career was the subject of an article marking Nelson’s retirement as the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ chief executive officer (CEO).
New Jersey
A U.S. Naval exercise caused sonic booms in the state’s coastal communities on Friday, January 29. The I.I.I. informed the Asbury Park Press that plane-caused noise damages are generally covered under a standard homeowners policy.
New York
A 39-year-old Hewlett (Nassau County) man who was convicted of running a multi-million dollar no-fault auto insurance fraud scheme was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Oklahoma
Governor Mary Fallin said she will allocate $1.4 million from the state’s emergency fund to install seismic monitoring stations, and study the link between hydraulic fracturing and earthquakes.
Governor Fallin requested a major disaster declaration from the federal government related to the winter storms, ice, sleet and flooding that began on December 26, 2015.
A lawsuit filed in Oklahoma City accuses two New York financiers of taking control of the now-insolvent Red Rock Insurance Company in 2013 with $30 million in counterfeit or worthless assets, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The annual National Tornado Summit is being held in Oklahoma City from February 29 – March 2, 2016.
South Carolina
The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) held a Fraud Summit in Greenville this week.
Washington
The president approved a major disaster declaration for the severe winter storm, straight-line winds and flooding that hit 10 western counties between December 1 – 14, 2015.
MEDIA MATTERS
The Weather Channel (TWC) will continue to be owned by private equity firms as well as NBCUniversal but IBM now controls the other assets housed within the Atlanta, Georgia-based Weather Company, TWC’s parent.
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
