SYNOPSIS ALL INDUSTRY CONFERENCE CALL March 21, 2012

To recap the issues raised during Wednesday’s conference call, here are some of the key media stories, and the messages we’re conveying.

 

If there is a subject you would like to see addressed on Wednesday, March 28, please email Mike Barry at Michaelb@iii.org

 

The print edition of The New York Times on Saturday, March 17, prominently featured Ron Lieber’s story, which was pegged to the car-sharing company, Relay Rides. The I.I.I.’s Loretta Worters was quoted.

Glenn Neasham was found guilty of felony theft, after a jury trial in a California state court, for selling a complex annuity to an 83-year old-woman. Prosecutors alleged that the woman who bought the annuity from Neasham showed signs of dementia prior to making the purchase, according to this Monday, March 19, Wall Street Journal (subscription required) article. 

AM Best’s Catastrophe Frequency Tests Insurers also said March 2012 has already become the most active March for U.S. tornado activity since records started being kept in 1950.

The news release was issued on Tuesday, March 20, and some of themes were previewed a day before in Claire Wilkinson’s blog entry on the topic.

The Orange County Register article appeared the day after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck southwestern Mexico on Tuesday, March 20.

The I.I.I.’s February 2012 I.I.I. Inflation Watch spreadsheet contains the latest data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI-U—the popular measure of inflation, sometimes called headline inflation—was 2.9 percent higher in February 2012 than in February 2011.

 

Reuters’ New York City-based Beth Gladstone (email: beth.gladstone@thomsonreuters.com) is trying to figure out if there is a drop in the national number of “reluctant landlords,” people who moved and then rented out their previous home because they were unable to sell it.

 

The American Insurance Association expressed its concerns in this Thursday, March 22, news release about some of the amendments being considered to House Resolution 5.

The I.I.I.’s Lynne McChristian, Jeanne Salvatore and Steve Weisbart will be among those participating in the 2012 National Hurricane Conference in Orlando, Florida, during the week of Monday, March 26?Friday, March 30.

 

McChristian is writing insurance-related editorial information for inclusion in the upcoming Tampa Bay Hurricane Guide, which is produced annually by the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. The final document will be distributed in the four Florida counties that comprise the Tampa Bay area.

The National Weather Service said three tornadoes touched down on Monday evening, March 19, about 25 miles southwest of San Antonio. The twisters damaged several homes but no injuries or fatalities were reported, according to The San Antonio Express-News. Flash floods were, however, still a concern in that part of the state.

The Associated Press reported on Friday, March 16, that Louisiana’s 5^th Circuit Court of Appeals is blocking, at least temporarily, plaintiff’s attorneys from seizing over $100 million from the accounts of the state’s insurer of last resort, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, for failing to adjust claims quickly enough after hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.

The Mobile Press-Register’s editorial board came out strongly in support of Senate Bill 227 on Tuesday, March 20. The measure would, if enacted, allow Alabama residents to create tax-favored “catastrophe savings accounts.” 

 

At least three tornado touchdowns contributed to the destruction of 13 homes and damage to more than 100 other residences, causing less than $100 million in insured losses in Michigan on Thursday, March 15, according to a statement issued by Eqecat, the risk modeling firm. This Associated Press story, with a dateline of Dexter, Michigan, says that the community’s tornado sirens almost certainly saved lives.

 

Michigan drivers will, effective July 1, 2012, pay $175 per year, rather than the current $145, to fund the Michigan Catastrophe Claims Association, a Friday, March 16, news release states.

 

Tom Hirsig has been named the new director of the Wyoming Insurance Department. Governor Matt Mead made the announcement on Wednesday, March 14. Director Hirsig succeeds Ken Vines. 

 

National Public Radio reported on Sunday, March 18, and The Wall Street Journal a few days earlier, that South Fulton, Tennessee, enacted a new ordinance, allowing their fire department to respond to all calls within a five-mile radius of the city. In the future, if a homeowner does not pay South Fulton’s $75 annual fire response fee, they will be charged $3,500 per call. The community was in the national spotlight in September 2010 when South Fulton’s firefighters allowed a home to burn to the ground because the owner had not paid the $75 fee. 

 

Legal actions arising out of the August 13, 2011, Indiana State Fair accident, where seven people were killed and more than 40 injured when a gust of wind toppled a temporary stage, could result in a judge ordering Sugarland’s band members to provide depositions in lawsuits over their scheduled concert on the night of the incident. Mid-America Sound Corp. owned the stage that Sugarland was to have used for a concert, according to this Tuesday, March 20, USA Today story.

The Pew Research Center’s State of the News Media 2012 offers a detailed analysis of how technological advances are changing the news business.

 

The Associated Press posted a story on Monday, March 19, about changes at The Weather Channel. The network is increasing by 70 percent the amount of original programming it plans to offer this year, and will debut at least one new show each month for the rest of the year, the article states.

The earthquake in Mexico received a lot of coverage on social media platforms. Journalists and insurance agents issued numerous tweets about potential insured losses and quake-related risks; many of these messages linked back to the I.I.I.’s information.   

 

Another popular topic this week is spring flooding and the risk of water damage. Journalists and insurance companies are sharing information on Twitter and Facebook regarding the importance of having flood coverage, and taking steps to prepare the exterior of your home for the spring.

 

Finally, Ron Lieber’s piece from the NYT about car sharing services and insurance is being circulated widely, and has appeared on a handful of consumer blogs.

 

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

 

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