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, March 11, please email Mike Barry at michaelb@iii.org.
I.I.I. INFLATION WATCH SPREADSHEET NOW AVAILABLE
The spreadsheet, developed by the I.I.I.’s Steve Weisbart, contains the latest data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The full commentary and charts are posted on the I.I.I. website.
MARCH IS WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH; I.I.I. HAS PINTEREST BOARD ON PROMINENT WOMEN IN INSURANCE
The I.I.I. has long had a Pinterest Board that features prominent women in the insurance world. Many of these women are insurance commissioners or work at insurance companies. If you have ideas about other women to feature on this board, please send them to Jamey Ballot (jamesb@iii.org) or Alba Rosario (albar@iii.org).
WALL STREET JOURNAL LOOKS AT INSURANCE IMPLICATIONS OF DRIVERLESS CARS
I.I.I. President Bob Hartwig talked with Theo Francis of the Wall Street Journal on March 3 about the insurance implications of driverless cars for an article that ran the same day in the business section (subscription required). The article noted that the automobile has been an omnipresent influence for decades, and the effects of taking the driver out of the equation could be just as far reaching. Insurers may sell fewer individual policies, or have to cover fewer accidents, but the more technologically advanced cars might be more costly to repair.
I.I.I. RECEIVES SHOUT OUT FROM WEATHER CHANNEL ON ITS KNOW YOUR STUFF APP
On March 2, The Weather Channel’s Sam Champion and Sharon Epperson gave a big plug to the I.I.I.’s Know Your Stuff – Home Inventory tool; Epperson also tweeted about the app.
I.I.I. INTERVIEWED ON HISPANIC MEDIA SHOW A NEW DAY
Elianne González did a live interview on Friday, February 27, on Un Nuevo Día (A New Day) as part of I.I.I.’s Hispanic media campaign, “How Insurance Works in the USA,” which explains the benefits of insurance to Hispanics.
CBS’s 60 MINUTES RUNS SEGMENT ON FEMA’s NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM
While the program, Storm after the Storm, was negative, the bulk of the criticism was leveled at FEMA. No I.I.I. member companies were mentioned. However, there were several references to “insurance companies”, but the program failed to explain how the Write Your Own Program works and that private insurance companies do not generally sell first-dollar flood insurance. The 60 Minutes segment resulted in a call for Congressional Oversight Hearings of the NFIP. The local CBS affiliate in New York used part of the program in their own report and included a quote from the I.I.I.’s Hartwig. The segment encouraged those who were unhappy with their flood claim payments to resubmit them to the NFIP. CBS Evening News also aired a piece on Monday, March 2 (in which the I.I.I. was sourced), in which senators called for a hearing into fraudulent reports linked to superstorm Sandy. The I.I.I. posted a Q&A about Sandy flood claims on the front page of its website, which was promoted through its social networks.
NEWS 12 NEW JERSEY INTERVIEWS BOB HARTWIG ON SANDY CLAIMS
The program, which aired on March 3, noted that insurers have no incentive to pay anything other than the amount due the policyholder, the suggestion being that because insurers (at the time Sandy occurred) were required to pay a penalty if they overpaid the claim but not if they underpaid, they were therefore biased toward underpaying in order to avoid the possibility of a penalty.
FEDERAL DISASTER RELIEF OFFICIALS SETTLE FIRST SWATH OF HURRICANE SANDY CLAIMS, REUTERS REPORTS
New York and New Jersey residents have launched about 1,500 court cases over Sandy flood claims, accusing private insurance companies partnered with FEMA of intentionally and improperly denying their claims. FEMA has tentatively settled 160 of the lawsuits and another 90 settlements were imminent, plaintiffs’ attorney Steve Mostyn said in this Tuesday, March 3, Reuters article.
NY ASSEMBLYMAN GOLDFEDER PROPOSES LEGISLATION FOR NEW YORK FLOOD INSURANCE ASSOCIATION, NEW YORK 1 REPORTS
Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder announced a plan to help residents get affordable flood insurance for their homes, according to New York 1 News, Monday, March 2. People who own houses in designated flood zones, like the Rockaways, are required by law to purchase flood insurance but FEMA allowed rate raises after Sandy. Goldfeder is proposing legislation for a New York Flood Insurance Association that he says will offer state subsidized insurance policies. He says the association will protect residents from being overcharged for premiums or denied coverage after a major weather event. Goldfeder will present his proposal before the State Assembly's Insurance Commission.
PROPUBLICA/NPR DO INVESTIGATIVE PIECE ON DISPARITIES IN WORKERS COMP BENEFITS
Some of the findings of the piece state that since 2003, legislators in 33 states have passed workers’ compensation laws that reduce benefits or make it more difficult for those with certain injuries and diseases to qualify for them. Florida has cut benefits to its most severely disabled workers by 65 percent since 1994. It also notes that where a worker gets hurt matters. Because each state has developed its own system, an amputated arm can literally be worth two or three times as much on one side of a state line than the other. The maximum compensation for the loss of an eye is $27,280 in Alabama, but $261,525 in Pennsylvania. Reports appeared on both NPR and ProPublica.
STORIES IN THE WORKS
Jeanne Salvatore will be on The Weather Channel Thursday morning, March 5, to talk about winter-related damage.
Jeanne Salvatore was interviewed by Parents magazine on home and renters insurance and promoted I.I.I.’s Know Your Stuff – Home Inventory tool.
Loretta Worters provided information to the Boston Globe’s Beth Teitell (beth.teitell@globe.com) on winter losses.
Ben Eisler, an Associate Producer with 60 Minutes, reached out to the I.I.I. to find out what the rate of malpractice claims was per 1,000 surgeries for all U.S. outpatient surgery centers.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
With the exception of a comment from United Policyholders on Twitter (UP has only 204 Twitter followers), the 60 Minutes segment, which aired Sunday, March 1, received little interest or traction on social. The majority of the tweets about the show were geared toward the company Lumber Liquidators, featured in the subsequent segment. FEMA has settled lawsuits with 160 homeowners in relation to their Sandy claims. The general sentiment on social has been very negative. Many homeowners feel that they were cheated out of claims money and are voicing their dislike for FEMA and the claims process.
In honor of Women’s History Month in March, the I.I.I. is promoting its “Women in Insurance” Pinterest board on social as well as sending out factoids throughout the month.
I.I.I. has created a Spanish Twitter handle @III_EnEspanol to promote its Spanish-language content, as well as to promote I.I.I. and member company initiatives.
STATES
California
The California State Senate Committee on Insurance will hold an oversight hearing on Wednesday, March 25, at 1:30 p.m. in the State Capitol, Room 112, Sacramento, to discuss the challenges in offering UM/UIM coverage, including the moral hazard, the potential of fraud in fashioning existing law, as well as the impact of alternative UM/UIM requirements in other states. (Attached is an essay by Robert W. Peterson, Professor of Law, Director, Center for Insurance Law and Regulation, School of Law, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA on the issue).
Georgia
In Georgia, an insurer currently has 60 days to process and fulfill a policyholders claim on uninsured motorist coverage. After 60 days, the policyholder can file a lawsuit claiming the insurer is acting in “bad faith” on their claim. If the court finds that the insurer did act in bad faith, the court can award a penalty up to 25 percent of the policyholders uninsured motorist coverage limit. HB 303 is increasing this penalty on the insurer to 100 percent and allowing the court to award attorneys’ fees and litigation expenses. If HB 303 were to become law, insurance companies would process all claims without a thorough review to avoid the possibility of the court finding them in bad faith.
A Consumer Reports article, “How to Protect Yourself Against Uninsured Drivers,” was published Monday, March 2, and noted that an estimated 30 million U.S. vehicle owners “go naked”—industry lingo for not having insurance—according to a study by the Insurance Research Council (IRC), an organization financed by insurance companies.
Florida
The Florida Legislature kicked off its 60-day session Tuesday, March 3. Legislators are expected to tackle a number of issues over the next several weeks. Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, wants to set statewide standards for insurance requirements and background checks for ride-sharing businesses like Uber and Lyft. These companies have argued that they are technology firms, not taxi services. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, has a bill giving the state all regulation of ride-sharing services. Brandes’ bill would still allow cities some local regulation.
Alabama
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange said Friday he hopes that the state’s case against BP stemming from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill can be tried by a jury in Montgomery, and that the spill contributed to Alabama's budget woes, according to this Friday, February 27, Birmingham News article. Strange met with several coastal Alabama business leaders and local government officials in Gulf Shores, updating them on the latest developments in the federal government’s civil case against BP for violations of the Clean Water Act, and Alabama’s lawsuit against BP for lost tax revenue and other damages incurred during the spill.
Louisiana
Louisiana—unlike most other states—does not have a point system for drivers. In places such as Texas and Arkansas, drivers are assigned points each time they are convicted of a traffic offense. Once drivers have amassed a certain number of points, they face penalties such as surcharges and license suspensions from the department of motor vehicles. But in Louisiana, there is no such system, according to this February 28 Times-Picayune article.
A New Orleans area flood-protection board voted 5-4 against abandoning its appeal of the dismissal of a coastal erosion lawsuit against oil, gas and pipeline companies. The Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East filed suit in 2013. It sought damages over the loss of coastal wetlands that form a natural hurricane buffer for New Orleans reported Monday, March 2 in this New Orleans City Business article.
Mississippi
Homeowners on the Mississippi Gulf Coast saw their insurance shoot up significantly after Hurricane Katrina and their prices have not come back down by much. Now, there is a plan in the state Legislature to try to help them. House Bill 1134 set up a “catastrophe savings account” to help pay the insurance deductible for a policy that covers a taxpayer’s legal residence for hurricane, flood, windstorm or other catastrophic event damage. A Friday, February 27 article in the Clarion-Ledger noted that the money put in the catastrophe savings account wouldn’t be counted as part of a taxpayer’s gross income. Interest income and distributions from a catastrophe savings account would also be excluded from taxable gross income.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak on Tuesday issued a bulletin to insurance companies clarifying his department’s expectations for earthquake insurance coverage, as reported by the Oklahoman on Tuesday, March 3.
MEDIA MATTERS
Crain’s New York Business will lay off 40 percent of its editorial staff, including deputy managing editors Valerie Block and Erik Ipsen; reporters Lisa Fickenscher, Chris Bragg, Thornton McEnery, Nazish Dholakia. Senior editor Theresa Agovino will stay on as a contributor.
Kristen Bellstrom will join Fortune on March 9 as a staff writer overseeing the Broadsheet email. She will also edit the Most Powerful Women channel on Fortune.com. Bellstrom previously served as a senior editor for Money since June 2012. Prior to that she worked for SmartMoney. Also Timothy Smith has left his role as senior features editor.
CNNMoney.com has named Greg Wallace as associate editor. He was previously a reporter and producer at CNN’s Money since September 2013. Prior to this, he was news and production assistant for CNN since December 2011. Additionally, Richa Naik is now associate producer. She has worked as a production assistant for various CNN outlets since 2012.
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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