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, November 20, please email me at michaelb@iii.org.
TYPHOON HAIYAN STRIKES PHILIPPINES, CAUSING MASS CASUALTIES AND GENERATING INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES
Winds of up to 200 miles per hour caused at least 1,800 fatalities (see page 7) after striking the city of Tacloban (population: 218,144) on Friday, November 8. The I.I.I. issued a media advisory on the Philippine insurance market and the I.I.I.’s Bob Hartwig spoke with the Associated Press and the Palm Beach Post in Florida about the financial repercussions of the disaster.
CONSUMER FEDERATION OF AMERICA (CFA) MARKS 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF PROP 103 PASSAGE; CFA SAYS CALIFORNIA DRIVERS BENEFITED
The CFA issued this news release and report on Tuesday, November 12, in Los Angeles, and received same-day coverage from LA’s ABC television affiliate and its CBS-owned radio station. A San Francisco Chronicle blog item and a Omaha World Herald article, also chronicled the CFA’s announcement. In addition, California Insurance Commissioner David Jones released a supportive statement about the CFA.
The I.I.I.’s rebuttal to the CFA report, circulated only to interested media, and the Insurance Information Network of California’s (IINC) talking points, were incorporated into many of those stories, as well as interviews the I.I.I.’s Mike Barry did with SNL Financial and Insurance Compliance Insight.
I.I.I.’s SALVATORE MAKES PRESENTATION TO AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS’ NEW YORK CHAPTER
Her Wednesday, November 13, PowerPoint presentation focused on property insurance market trends, and the role insurers played in the region’s recovery from Superstorm Sandy.
I.I.I.’s WEISBART TO BE NATIONAL JOURNAL LIVE PANELIST ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
The session can be viewed live via this weblink, starting at 9:20 a.m., ET, on Tuesday, November 19, and will focus on the future of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) program.
WALL STREET JOURNAL, BLOOMBERG, AND NEWSDAY HAVE INSURANCE RELATED STORIES IN THE WORKS
The Wall Street Journal’s Mark Ramsey, a Detroit-based auto writer, is prepping a piece on Tesla’s problems, and the potential implications for auto insurers….Bloomberg’s New York City-based Marci Jacobs is exploring why the debate over requiring the purchase of gun liability insurance has faded since the December 2012 Newtown, Connecticut massacre….Newsday’s Maura McDermott is writing an educational story on homeowners and elevation certificates: what they are and who needs them.
CAPITOL HILL
The I.I.I.’s Hartwig testified on Wednesday, November 13, on the future of terrorism risk insurance before the U.S. House subcommittee on Housing and Insurance.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved (221-199) on Wednesday, November 13, the Furthering Asbestos Claims Transparency (FACT) Act, House Resolution 982. The measure was hailed by The Wall Street Journal’s (subscription required) editorial page earlier that day.
The U.S. House subcommittee on Highways and Transit will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, November 19, at 10 a.m., on the issue of driverless cars.
The U.S. House subcommittee on Housing and Insurance is convening on Tuesday, November 19, at 1:30 p.m., to discuss the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012.
Fatal hit-and-run crashes increased nationally by 13.7 percent while at the same time (2009-2011) overall traffic deaths fell by 4.5 percent, USA Today reported, on Sunday, November 10.
STATES
Connecticut
The 2013 Connecticut Insurance Market Forecast drew hundreds to the Connecticut Convention Center on Tuesday, November 12, according to The Hartford Courant.
Florida
The Workers’ Compensation Research Institute issued a report on Friday, November 8, saying outpatient hospital costs are growing rapidly for injured workers in the state’s workers’ comp system.
Kansas
Rep. Clark Shultz is one of four Republicans vying to succeed retiring Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger in 2014, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday, November 12.
Louisiana
The Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act would delay National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) rate hikes, this Tuesday, November 12, New Orleans Advocate article says.
Oklahoma
Police officers now have the power to seize the license plates from an uninsured vehicle, according to a Tuesday, November 12, Tulsa World article.
The deductibles in an earthquake insurance policy should be assessed before a homeowner buys this coverage, the Associated Press reported, in this Tuesday, November 12, story.
New Jersey
Woodcliff Lake (Bergen County) wants to impose municipal accident response fees, this Tuesday, November 12, NorthJersey.com article reports.
New York
American Life Insurance Company and Delaware American Life Insurance Company have caught the attention of regulators, this Friday, November 8, Wall Street Journal (subscription required) article reports.
Long Island Newsday’s editorial page (subscription required) offered a spirited defense of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 on Monday, November 11.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
Typhoon Haiyan has been the biggest topic in social media since it hit the Philippines. The conversations range from humanitarian associations asking for donations to help those affected, to news outlets comparing this catastrophe to Hurricane Katrina. A top tweet posted from CNN, stating that the death toll has risen to over 1,800, has been retweeted over 325 times since last night (Tuesday, November 12).
The 25th Anniversary of Proposition 103 has received only mild interest on social platforms. Consumer Watchdog has been doing some social outreach, updating consumers about the passage of Prop 103 in 1988, and what it means for Californians today.
In I.I.I. news, our Wednesday, October 23, press release on winter proofing your home has been popular on social media, with multiple shares and retweets.
MEDIA MATTERS
On Tuesday, November 12, the Weather Channel launched its new on-air set and a new slogan: It’s Amazing Out There, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
The E.W. Scripps Company announced on Tuesday, November 12, a restructuring and expansion of its political and national reporting bureau in Washington, D.C.
Brian Stelter, who covered the television industry for The New York Times, is leaving the newspaper to become the host of CNN’s Reliable Sources and their senior media correspondent.
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.
