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, July 30, please email me at michaelb@iii.org.
I.I.I.’s PRESIDENT APPEARS ON CNBC’s NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT ON PBS TO DISCUSS THE INSURANCE REPERCUSSIONS OF MALAYSIAN FLIGHT 17
CNBC’s Nightly Business Report on PBS interviewed the I.I.I.’s president, Bob Hartwig, on its Tuesday, July 22, edition. The I.I.I. issued this same-day media advisory after the Thursday, July 17, tragedy, and Hartwig has since spoken about the insurance implications of the crash with The Wall Street Journal, Mashable, National Underwriter, and Insurance Business America.
WILDFIRES ARE BURNING IN THE STATES OF WASHINGTON AND OREGON; FEDERAL EMERGENCY DECLARED IN PARTS OF PACIFIC NORTHWEST
President Obama made federal resources available in response to wildfires in Washington state’s Chelan and Okanogan counties as well on the Confederated Tribes’ Colville Reservation. Meanwhile, two fires in Oregon have burned more than 5,000 acres. The Seattle-based NW Insurance Council issued this news release on Tuesday, July 22.
WALL STREET JOURNAL, NEW YORK TIMES FILE STORIES ON INVESTIGATION INTO CAUSES OF DEADLY MARCH 2014 WASHINGTON LANDSLIDE
The March 22, 2014, landslide near Oso, Washington, resulted in 43 fatalities and a group of independent investigators have theories on why it happened, The Wall Street Journal reports.
U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY IDENTIFIES 15 STATES, BESIDES CALIFORNIA, WHICH FACE A ‘HIGH RISK’ FROM A DAMAGING EARTHQUAKE
The list included: Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.
STORIES IN THE WORKS
The I.I.I.’s Hartwig spoke with Clare McKeen of Barron’s (insurer readiness for hurricanes), Deirdre Fernandes of The Boston Globe (auto insurance market trends), and Insurance Journal’s Don Jergler (insurers and climate change).
The I.I.I.’s Jeanne Salvatore discussed coverage for rental cars and gap insurance with Jessica Anderson of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine.
The I.I.I.’s Steven Weisbart gave Karen Cheney of Money magazine detailed information about disability and life insurance for her Turning Point column.
The I.I.I.’s Mike Barry discussed the difference between a home insurance cancellation versus a non-renewal with SNL Energy, which is covering the Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, pipeline proposal.
Barry also spoke with Road & Track magazine about the different variables used in underwriting a personal automobile policy as opposed to a commercial one.
CAPITOL HILL
Two Wharton School professors previewed in a CNBC op-ed the information they will be conveying about the report TRIA After 2014 on Thursday, July 24, in Washington, D.C.
Former Rep. Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts) testified on Dodd-Frank: Four Years Later before the U.S. House’s Financial Services Committee on Wednesday, July 23.
The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) plans to meet on Thursday, July 31, and could designate MetLife a systemically important financial institution, Bloomberg reports.
Changing the Game: How Business Innovations Reduce the Impact of Disasters, a 58-page report, was released last week by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.
STATES
California
A San Jose Mercury News columnist profiled David Karr, author of Injured Money, an e-book pegged to Karr’s post-accident insurance disputes. The I.I.I.’s Barry was quoted.
Florida
A large sinkhole prompted the evacuation of a four homes on Saturday night, July 19, in Spring Hill (Hernando County), according to this Orlando Sentinel article.
The I.I.I. was mentioned briefly in a Friday, July 18, Tampa ABC affiliate segment about a policyholder who had a poor experience with an insurer-recommended auto body repair shop.
Georgia
David Perdue narrowly won a Republican primary election and will face Democrat Michelle Nunn in November. They are vying to succeed retiring U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss.
Hawaii
Tropical Storm Wali brought torrential rains to the state’s most populous islands, prompting flash flood warnings on the weekend of July 19-20, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
The state’s 21 home insurers are well-capitalized, and $126 million remains in the inactive Hurricane Relief Fund, Insurance Commissioner Gordon Ito told the Star-Advertiser.
Louisiana
FEMA estimates 13.8 percent of National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policyholders will receive premium refund checks starting in October, the Times-Picayune reports.
Minnesota
Eight counties—Chippewa, Freeborn, Jackson, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Renville, and Rock—are eligible for federal aid because of the state’s severe weather between June 11 and July 11.
Mississippi
The Monday, April 28, tornadoes generated more than 10,000 claims and payouts totaling $144 million, Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney told the Daily Journal on Friday, July 18.
North Carolina
Home insurance policyholders are receiving “consent to rate” letters, and Raleigh-Durham’s CBS affiliate broadcast on Monday, July 21, a piece counseling policyholders how to respond.
Ohio
Pay Us Back Ohio, a plaintiffs’ group, is airing TV spots aimed at having Governor John Kasich drop his appeal of a $860 million judgment against the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation.
The Columbus City Council has approved new insurance requirements for transportation network companies (TNCs) and their drivers. The new rules take effect in 30 days.
Oklahoma
The percentage of homeowners carrying earthquake insurance has grown to roughly 15 percent from 3 percent in 2011, according to this Monday, July 21, Tulsa World article.
South Carolina
The number of Beaufort County homes insured by the state’s wind pool has dropped about 25 percent, to 7,600 from 10,000, since 2011, according to this article in The Island Packet.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
Typhoon Matmo continues to make headlines, most recently after a plane crashed on Wednesday, July 23, in Taiwan. Some news outlets, such as Today, are linking Typhoon Matmo to the plane crash—it was attempting to land in bad weather, according to various media reports.
Social media sources reacted unfavorably to news that an Australian company—Lisa Group—bought the keywords “Malaysia Airlines,” to promote life insurance, hours after the plane was shot down on Thursday, July 17. The head of the company was “flabbergasted” to discover these ads and immediately ordered them taken down.
The I.I.I.’s most-clicked tweet this past week came after the I.I.I.’s Hartwig was quoted in an article on Mashable, discussing the Malaysian Airlines crash and aviation insurance.
The Oregon and Washington wildfires have also been getting many hits via social. Most posts involved news media coverage, along with messages of concern about impacted residents.
MEDIA MATTERS
Lisa Gibbs is becoming a senior editor at the Associated Press in New York City. Gibbs had been with Money magazine for many years.
The New York Daily News has laid off 17 newsroom employees, including business writers Phyllis Furman and Elizabeth Lazarowitz.
Rob Marciano, formerly of CNN, was named senior meteorologist for Good Morning America Weekend. He will also cover weather across all ABC News broadcasts and platforms.
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
For an I.I.I. Blog search, click here.
