SYNOPSIS ALL INDUSTRY CONFERENCE CALL May 5, 2010

Companies with exposure to the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico are insured for losses totaling about $1.4 billion, according to initial reports from the companies involved in the incident as well as early insurance and reinsurance industry estimates compiled by the Insurance Information Institute, this Wednesday, May 5, news release explains.

Bob Hartwig spoke with FBN about British Petroleum’s (BP) potential liability, and other Gulf-related insurance matters, in this Tuesday, May 4,  interview.  Hartwig’s Friday, April 30, Power Point presentation placed the current oil spill in historical perspective, with a look back at Occidental Petroleum’s Piper Alpha oil rig disaster in the North Sea in 1988, which killed 167 (see slides 12 through 17).

I.I.I. vice president Claire Wilkinson reported in this Wednesday, May 5, blog entry that at least one prominent attorney says a ‘gusher of claims’ will emerge from the Deepwater Horizon incident.

After speaking with the I.I.I.’s Lynne McChristian, reporter Cristina Silva wrote an article on business interruption coverage, explaining that it generally protects policyholders who have suffered direct, physical damage to their properties.  Her article appeared in the St. Petersburg Times on Wednesday, May 5.

The letter, when finalized, is expected to urge BP to spell out what it means when the company says it will pay all “legitimate claims,” a term attorney general Troy King of Alabama said was unacceptably nebulous, a Wednesday, May 5, New York Times article reports. 

Commissioner Mike Sole, head of Florida’s Department of Environment Protection, should brief the governor, CFO and attorney general on the state’s response to the Gulf oil spill at the Tuesday, May 11, Florida Cabinet meeting, according to CFO Alex Sink.

CFO Sink said in this Wednesday, May 5, news release that claims for damage or lost income should be filed with BP, and listed a toll-free number for the company in the release.  The text goes on to say that callers to Florida’s toll-free Consumer Helpline should note that, “The two primary damage concerns for businesses will be property damage and losses to earnings due to business interruption.  Unfortunately, this is a peril not listed in most insurance policies, but affected consumers should sit down with their agent to review their particular policy.” 

Louisiana’s governor, New Orleans mayor outline state’s coastal protection plans:

Governor Bobby Jindal held a press conference on Tuesday, May 4, with New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and St. Tammany Parish president Kevin Davis to outline the state’s coastal protection plans. The governor also reported that that 1,100 National Guard members have been dispatched to respond to the oil spill, most of them to Louisiana parishes east of the Mississippi River.

This ABC World News Tonight segment, broadcast on Tuesday evening, May 4, offers details on the situation in Nashville, Tennessee.  Associated Press news researcher Judy Ausuebel (email: jausuebel@ap.org) sought the I.I.I.’s assistance the same day, in putting Nashville’s flood event into historical perspective.  The AP wanted to know how many non-hurricane related, deadly U.S. floods have occurred since 1900.

The I.I.I.’s Jeanne Salvatore gave a live interview for Fox Business Network (FBN) on Saturday morning, May 8, offering guidance to consumers on how to purchase flood insurance in light of last week’s heavy flooding in Nashville, Tennessee.  Salvatore also spoke about flood insurance and the situation in Nashville with a CNN producer and a reporter with The Tennessean.

The Palm Beach Post carried Julie Patel’s Monday, May 3, article, which said that, if enacted, SB 2044 would make it easier for insurers to raise homeowner’s premium rates while the St. Petersburg Times in a Tuesday, May 4, story said that Governor Crist may veto the measure, even though Florida Insurance Commissioner McCarty believes SB 2044 is a solid bill, balancing the interests of insurers and policyholders alike.

U.S.Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon) is working to protect the authority of state insurance regulators under the financial regulation reform legislation now being considered in the U.S. Senate.  The lengthy bill drafted by U.S. Senate Banking committee chairman Christopher Dodd (D-Connecticut) includes a provision that would establish a new Office of National Insurance (ONI) to oversee insurers at the federal level.  Merkley criticizes the ONI measure for giving federal regulators the authority to negotiate international insurance agreements, powers that could preempt state regulations.  Merkley is proposing an amendment that would limit federal power and protect the authority of state insurance regulators, according to this Monday, May 3, article in The Hill, a D.C.-based publication.

The I.I.I.’s Hartwig was quoted in this Sunday, May 2, Hartford Courant look at auto body repair workers who say that fixing crashed cars with generic bumpers compromises safety.  The auto insurance industry argues that generic bumpers are as safe as the more expensive ones made by auto manufacturers, and allow auto insurers to hold down premium rates.

Some large auto insurers are increasing their rates to cover drivers who are teenage girls, reflecting the erosion of the conventional wisdom that young women are more responsible drivers then young men, according to a lengthy article in the Wednesday, May 5, edition of The Wall Street Journal (subscription required).  The piece appeared on the front page of the WSJ’s Personal Journal section.

New Mexico insurance superintendent resigns:

Morris Chavez, who had held the post since October 2006, stepped down on Tuesday, May 4, a front-page story in the Albuquerque Journal reported. Tom Rushton, who had been the chief deputy superintendent, is now the agency’s acting superintendent.

Wisconsin governor signs into law a ban on text-messaging while driving:

Governor Jim Doyle signed the measure on Wednesday, May 5, making Wisconsin the 24^th state to ban text-messaging and/or emailing while driving.  The law takes effect on December 1, 2010.

Former Wall Street Journal reporter writes book on News Corporation’s 2007 purchase of Dow Jones:

Sarah Ellison’s War at the Wall Street Journal: Inside the Struggle to Control An American Business Empire (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) is being released on Wednesday, May 12.

The weekly news magazine posted financial losses from 2007 to 2009 and will continue to be unprofitable this year, this Wednesday, May 5, Bloomberg Businessweek story reports.  Newsweek’s bleak financial picture has prompted the Washington Post Company, Newsweek’s parent company, to explore a sale of the magazine.

Horse named Hurricane Ike to run in the May 15 Preakness Stakes in Maryland:

Born in 2007, a year before a different Hurricane Ike struck Texas, this Hurricane Ike is a three-year-old thoroughbred horse who is running next Saturday in the second of the Triple Crown’s three races (Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes).