SYNOPSIS – ALL INDUSTRY CONFERENCE CALL March 5, 2014

To recap the issues raised during today’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 12, please email me at michaelb@iii.org.

 

I.I.I. president Bob Hartwig is cited throughout the article, which appeared in the print edition of USA Today on Monday, March 3.

I.I.I. executive vice president Andréa Basora will preside at a Saturday, March 8, session aimed at helping the public become better informed in the face of severe weather events.

The current version of the I.I.I.’s Terrorism: A Constant Threat was issued in June 2013.

O’Shea joined IBHS on Monday, March 3, and can be reached at toshea@ibhs.org. She was the American Insurance Association’s director of public affairs between 2002-08.

Homeowners insurance customers who filed a property claim between April 2012 and January 2014 gave their insurer an 840 on a 1,000-point scale—up from 836 in a 2013 study. 

The Biggert-Waters Reform Act of 2012 would be largely set aside if the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 became law, The Hill reported, on Tuesday, March 4.

The Wall Street Journal’s Leslie Scism is working on a story about why middle-class households often have inadequate levels of life insurance coverage.

 

Las Vegas’ NBC affiliate is exploring the insurance implications, if any, of a new Las Vegas police policy on auto accidents (see Nevada, in the States section below).

 

Reuters’ Luciana Lopez is developing an article on reinsurance market changes as hedge funds and pension plans compete with reinsurers to underwrite natural catastrophe risks.

 

The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting’s Kristina Goetz is examining the operations of warranty insurance companies regulated by the state’s insurance regulator.

The I.I.I.’s Hartwig taped a radio interview on Wednesday, March 5, with American Public Media about the challenges facing FEMA’s NFIP after the previous day’s U.S. House vote.

 

A $3.2 million medical malpractice judgment against a Montgomery hospital was upheld, even though the institution invoked governmental immunity, the Associated Press (AP) reported.

Heavy rains damaged homes in Glendora, raising insurance coverage issues, according to this Monday, March 3, segment on Los Angeles’ CW affiliate.

 

Undocumented workers are wary of sharing information with the state, even in exchange for a drivers license, The New York Times reported, in this Tuesday, March 4, article.

 

Governor Rick Scott called for changes to the Biggert-Waters Reform Act of 2012 in a Tuesday, March 4, letter to The Wall Street Journal.

 

Alex Sink, the state’s former chief financial officer, is facing David Jolly in a Tuesday, March 11, special election to fill a vacant U.S. House seat in the Tampa area.

The I.I.I.’s Bill Davis did a live interview on Saturday morning, March 1, with The Weather Channel, discussing the insurance impact of 2014’s winter storms.

 

The state’s Department of Insurance announced a workers compensation fraud indictment against a former Crystal Lake police officer in this Tuesday, February 25, news release.

 

The Department of Commerce disclosed on Tuesday, March 4, that a Brooklyn Center woman had been charged with selling bogus auto insurance policies.

The Missouri House voted to reinstate a $350,000 cap on non-economic damages awarded in medical malpractice cases, according to this Wednesday, March 5, AP article.

 

Effective Monday, March 3, Las Vegas police “will no longer respond to or accept accident reports for minor, non-injury car accidents,” the state’s Insurance Division said.

 

Insurance Commissioner Scott Kipper told Las Vegas’ CBS affiliate on Wednesday, March 5, that insured drivers can protect themselves by purchasing uninsured motorist coverage.

A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) antenna has adversely impacted Coast Guard communications, according to a Monday, March 3, Wall Street Journal article.

Governor Nikki Haley wants the federal government to declare the severe winter storm of February 10-14 a disaster, The State reported, in this Tuesday, March 4, article.

 

A Zillah farmer had a dispute resolved after contacting Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler’s office, according to this Thursday, February 27, Seattle NBC affiliate segment.

The U.S. House of Representatives’ approval yesterday of a bill that would ease NFIP rate increases received significant social media coverage. The first article highlighted in today’s I.I.I. Daily is from the Wall Street Journal, and it goes more into detail about how the NFIP bill effects certain industries and property types. The online NFIP conversation peaked when the National Association of Realtors, along with various legislators, tweeted their approval of the U.S. House measure and urged the U.S. Senate to pass it. Those who disapproved of the U.S. House’s vote tweeted their reactions, as well.

 

In other news, Sunday, March 2, marked the first day of Severe Weather Preparedness Week, a joint NOAA and FEMA effort to promote preparedness for severe weather before it strikes. The campaign is doing extremely well in social media. Their hashtag, #BeAForce, is being heavily promoted on Twitter, with many insurance companies and trade groups tweeting out their own preparedness tips.

 

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.