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, October 26, please email Michael Barry at michaelb@iii.org.
FEMA REPORTS 46 CONFIRMED FATALITIES DUE TO HURRICANE MATTHEW
The deaths occurred in North Carolina (26), Florida (13), Georgia (4) and South Carolina (3), FEMA’s Daily Bulletin reported on Tuesday, October 18. Additional Matthew stories from those states are below.
FLORIDA, GEORGIA RESIDENTS TELL ASSOCIATED PRESS THEY REGRET EVACUATING BECAUSE OF MATTHEW
The Miami-based National Hurricane Center and the director of the University of Georgia’s Atmospheric Sciences Program generally supported the calls to evacuate nearly two million people.
I.I.I. LINKS TO FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’s GUIDE TO POST-DISASTER MOLD CLEANUP
Created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and a coalition of federal agencies, the four-page brochure notes that cleaning up after a flood can pose health risks.
STORIES IN THE WORKS
The Oregonian’s Anna Marum is readying an investigative piece on Leif’s, a Tigard, Oregon-based chain of auto body repair shops.
The I.I.I.’s Jeanne Salvatore is giving an interview to Consumer Reports’ Daniel Bortz on how your auto insurance policy is impacted by: 1) a friend getting into an accident with your vehicle; and 2) missing a premium payment.
The I.I.I.’s James Lynch was interviewed by Work Comp Central’s Elaine Goodman on an A.M. Best report that chronicled U.S. workers compensation insurer impairments (2000 – 2015).
The I.I.I.’s Michael Barry discussed prominent U.S. insurance fraud cases with London-based BBC Claimed and Shamed producer Carly Fraser. The television series examines fraudulent schemes.
The I.I.I.’s Loretta Worters provided historical U.S. hurricane insured loss data to Chapel Hill, North Carolina-based WUNC-FM data reporter Jason deBruyn.
CAPITOL HILL
Drinks, dinners, junkets and jobs: how the insurance industry courts state commissioners was the title of a Center for Public Integrity article published by The Washington Post.
Nearly one in five U.S. drivers (42.8 million of the 217.9 million) drivers in the U.S. are over 65 years of age, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration reports.
STATES
California
The I.I.I.’s Sean Kevelighan and PCI’s Mark Sektnan were quoted in an online Sacramento CBS affiliate story on the importance of disaster preparedness in the event of either an earthquake or a wildfire.
Four people died when an allegedly drunk driver’s vehicle flew off the Coronado Bridge on Saturday, October 15. Caltrans, the owner of the bridge owner, is being asked to improve its safety, NBC’s San Diego affiliate reports.
Business workers compensation insurance policies will be required to cover certain officers and directors of private corporations as well as working members of partnerships and limited liability companies that may have been previously excluded from coverage. The new law (AB 2883) takes effect on January 1, 2017.
Colorado
The Junkins Fire (Custer and Pueblo counties) has burned more than 13,000 acres since Monday, October 17. Nearly 600 people were evacuated around the towns of Greenwood and McKenzie Junction.
Florida
The state’s insurers have received more than 75,000 Matthew claims, and the overwhelming majority of them (66,000-plus) were from residential policyholders. The insured loss estimate stands at $454 million.
More than 300 homes in St. Augustine’s (St. Johns County) Davis Shores neighborhood have been deemed uninhabitable due to Matthew-caused damage.
Satellite Beach’s (Brevard County) decision to shut off the water supply to a barrier island prior to Matthew’s arrival led in part to a home burning to the ground after a power line landed on its roof.
Matthew caused property damage to every residence in one Port Orange (Volusia County) mobile home park, according to Orlando’s ABC affiliate.
The assignment of benefits (AOB) reform legislation (SB 596) Senator Dorothy Hukill (R-Port Orange) introduced this year should get a second look after Matthew, the Daytona Beach News-Journal’s editorial board stated.
Georgia
Matthew-caused flooding in Pooler (Chatham County) highlighted the area’s municipal drainage problems, according to the Savannah Morning News.
The state Insurance Department established a Hurricane Matthew Catastrophe Claims Village this week at the Home Depot, 11180 Abercorn Street, Savannah.
Jim Butterworth, head of the state’s Emergency Management Agency, is leaving that post in December 2016 for a position in the private sector.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports Attorney General Sam Olens is warning consumers about flooded vehicles finding their way onto the state’s used car lots.
Kansas
The largest recorded earthquake in the state’s history, a 4.9-magnitude temblor near Wichita in November 2014, was likely caused by hydraulic fracturing, the U.S. Geological Survey believes.
Louisiana
The emergency suspension of rules governing insurance operations in the 26 parishes impacted by the August 2016 floods has been extended through Thursday, February 9, 2017.
Many Baton Rouge-area renters have not as yet moved back into the apartments they vacated due to the August 2016 floods, the Baton Rouge Advocate reports.
Nevada
The Little Valley Fire (Washoe County) has destroyed more than 20 homes north of Carson City since it began on Friday, October 14. Governor Brian Sandoval issued an emergency declaration.
New York
New York City’s Council is holding a Thursday, October 20, public hearing on cost overruns at the City’s post-Sandy Build It Back program. The issue was the lead story on New York City’s CBS affiliate this week.
FEMA has agreed to revisit New York City’s flood maps after the de Blasio administration appealed FEMA’s 2015 decision to place 35,000-plus more New York City homes and buildings into FEMA’s highest flood risk areas.
North Carolina
Hurricane Matthew’s heavy rainfall and flooding prompted the closure of more than 40 miles on Interstate 95 last week. The last of the closed sections reopened on Monday, October 17, between Cumberland and Robeson counties.
Governor Pat McGrory said at least 1.8 million chickens and 4,800 hogs died in the Matthew-caused flooding, posing a challenge for both the state’s emergency management staff and its agriculture industry.
The I.I.I.’s Know Your Stuff app was touted on-air by a reporter at Greensboro’s CBS affiliate yesterday (October 18).
Oregon
High winds and rain caused property damage and power outages in the Portland area on Saturday, October 15, a storm spawned by Typhoon Songda.
South Carolina
The Charleston Post and Courier reports Charleston, Berkeley residents are awaiting word on individual FEMA funding.
By the numbers: Hurricane Matthew devastation in Beaufort County was published in The Hilton Head Island Packet.
Officials: FEMA dragging feet on disaster declaration for Horry County, was the headline of an article in The Myrtle Beach Sun News.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
Great ShakeOut
The I.I.I. is participating in the Great ShakeOut, a national earthquake preparedness drill, tomorrow (October 20) at 10:20 a.m., ET, while also chronicling the event at “iiiorg” on Snapchat.
The I.I.I.’s Janet Ruiz offered earthquake insurance insights yesterday (October 18) during a live Facebook Q&A chat hosted by the Southern California Earthquake Center. It is archived at facebook.com/greatshakeout. Ruiz is also participating today (October 19) in a live Q&A Tweetchat on earthquakes and disaster preparedness. To follow the conversation, follow the hashtag #ShakeOutChat.
The Great ShakeOut is on Twitter at @ShakeOut.
National Teen Driver Safety Week (October 16 – 22)
You can follow the conversation by using the hashtag #NTDSW. The I.I.I. has also highlighted facts and statistics on teenage driver safety on its homepage.
I.I.I. issuing white papers on auto insurance cost drivers, cyber insurance
The I.I.I. will be promoting in social media its white paper on Personal Automobile Insurance: More Accidents, Larger Claims Drive Costs Higher as well as an upcoming report on cyber insurance.
MEDIA MATTERS
Ali Velshi joined MSNBC effective today (October 19). He was previously an on-air reporter and anchor at CNN and Al Jazeera America.
Norman Pearlstine, vice chairman of Time Inc., was named Chief Information Architect at Money.Net.
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.
