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, October 9, please email me at michaelb@iii.org.
TIME MAGAZINE POSTS ARTICLE NAMING I.I.I.’s KNOW YOUR STUFF “THE BEST DIGITAL HOME INVENTORY SERVICE”
“The site will walk you through configuring rooms in your home and listing the items, complete with photos and receipts for documentation. Because the site walks you through everything you need to enter, you can be sure you’re recording all of the right information. And everything is stored online, so you have easy access to your home inventory from anywhere you have an Internet connection,” the article, posted at Time.com on Tuesday, October 1, stated.
TROPICAL STORM JERRY—LOCATED ABOUT 1,275 MILES EAST OF BERMUDA—IS 10TH NAMED STORM OF 2013’S ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON
The Associated Press reported on Jerry’s location, and its nearly 40 mile per hour winds, in a Tuesday, October 1, article.
I.I.I. INTERVIEWED FOR CNN STORY ON NON-RENEWALS ISSUED TO HOMEOWNERS WHO HAVE CERTAIN BREEDS OF DOGS ON THEIR PROPERTY
The I.I.I.’s Jeanne Salvatore was interviewed for this segment, which aired on CNN’s New Day program around 7:30 a.m., ET, on Thursday, September 26. Salvatore gave a live interview on the same topic to Gil Gross, host of a late afternoon talk radio program on 910 AM in San Francisco, on Friday, September 27. It can be found 14 minutes into this podcast.
STATE FARM, I.I.I. ISSUE STATEMENTS CHRONICLING THE FREQUENCY, SEVERITY OF DEER-VEHICLE COLLISIONS IN THE U.S.
State Farm foundthat the number of U.S. deer-vehicle collisions dropped 3.5 percent in the 12 months ended June 30, 2013, while the average property damage claim arising out of such incidents increased 3.3 percent within the same timeframe. The I.I.I.’s news release on the topic was issued on Monday, September 30, along with this infographic.
J.D. POWER REPORTS AGENTS WHO FOCUS ON HOMEOWNERS MISS LONG-TERM OPPORTUNITY WITH RENTERS AS RENTERS’ NEEDS GROW
J.D. Power issued on Monday, September 30, a survey which also found that, on a 1,000 point scale, renters (809) rank their insurers higher than do homeowners (787).
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE REVIEW READIES ARTICLE ON JULY 2013 FLOODING AFTERMATH; BOSTON GLOBE COVERS FEMA HEARING IN LYNN, MA
The I.I.I.’s Mike Barry spoke with the Tribune Review’s Aaron Aupperlee about this federal disaster declaration and The Boston Globe’s Christian Wade about the basics of FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program in advance of a Monday, September 30, Lynn, Massachusetts public hearing hosted by FEMA.
CAPITOL HILL
A U.S. House subcommittee hearing on the National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP) status is scheduled for Wednesday, October 9, at 10 a.m., in Washington, D.C, although there are signs it may not be held given the federal government’s budget impasse.
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-California) issued a statement on Monday, September 30, decrying the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) rate hikes being caused by the Biggert-Waters Act.
STATES
Alabama
Homeowners in the state could see their premiums rise 14 percent after filing a claim, the Birmingham News reported, pegging the story to this InsuranceQuotes.com article, which was posted on Wednesday, October 2.
California
Many tankers used by the Forest Service to fight wildfires are retired military aircraft that are costly to maintain and dangerous to fly, sources told The Los Angeles Times, for a Sunday, September 29, story.
The Cucamonga Canyon, a popular part of the San Bernardino National Forest, has been closed as a way to prevent wildfires, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday, October 1.
Auto insurers are in no rush to create policies for drivers who participate in ride-sharing services, according to this Sunday, September 29, Los Angeles Times article.
Colorado
The Wildfire Insurance and Forest Health Task Force submitted its final report to the governor and state Legislative leaders on Monday, September 30.
The report acknowledged the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association’s (RMIAA) contributions to the 2012 and 2013 Wildfire Ready campaigns (top of page 37).
Florida
Robin Smith Westcott, Esq., the state’s Insurance Consumer Advocate since July 2011, submitted her resignation to Florida’s Chief Financial Officer, the Sun-Sentinel reported. Smith Westcott is becoming vice president, government affairs, at the American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS), according to this Friday, September 27, AAIS news release.
Louisiana
U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu (D-Louisiana) said at a Washington, D.C., press conference on Tuesday, October 1, that she is encouraged by the broad coalition committed to delaying the NFIP rate hikes Congress enacted last year. Some federal lawmakers are advocating delays of up to three years, according to this same-day News Orleans Times-Picayune article.
The Times Picayune published an editorial on Sunday, September 29, saying Governor Bobby Jindal should have been “more forceful” in his opposition to the Biggert-Waters Act.
Louisiana Treasurer John Kennedy said the state should look into the possibility of creating a state-run flood insurance company; his comments were picked up by the Associated Press on Wednesday, September 25, the same day.
New Jersey
More than 458,000 non-flood claims were filed after Sandy, and carriers paid out $3.6 billion while to date settling 96 percent of them, Governor Chris Christie’s spokesman told the Associated Press for this Monday, September 30, article. The story was pegged to a Sandy recovery hearing held that day in Trenton by the Assembly’s Environment and Solid Waste committee.
FEMA has disbursed $3.5 billion to NFIP policyholders who filed Sandy-related claims as of Monday, September 30, according to a FEMA news release issued on that same date.
New Mexico
President Obama declared a major disaster exists in five counties and four pueblos due to the severe storms and flooding which struck those communities between July 23-28, 2013, according to this Monday, September 30, White House news release.
New York
The state will pay whatever funds Irene, Lee and Sandy victims would have received, had FEMA’s NFIP not invoked its policies’ ‘earth movement’ exclusion, according to this Friday, September 27, news release from Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office.
According to a Tuesday, October 1, Bloomberg article, the superintendent of the state’s Department of Financial Services said that homeowners insurance policies need more uniformity.
Pennsylvania
President Obama approved a major disaster declaration on Tuesday, October 1, because of the severe storms, tornadoes and flooding that occurred in 10 counties between June 26 and July 11, 2013, according to this White House News release.
South Carolina
Nick Kremydas, chief executive officer of the state’s Association of Realtors, was in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, October 1, to brief a U.S. House committee on how the imminent NFIP rate hikes could impact the state’s coastal real estate market, according to this Wednesday, October 2, article in the Charleston Post & Courier.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
The issue of Dog Bite Liability received some attention in social media, due to the aforementioned CNN segment on the subject. Some animal protection groups are voicing their concerns that insurance companies are biased against certain dog breeds.
The Colorado floods continue to generate conversation on Twitter, with specific interest in the fact that Colorado will pay the National Guard for flood relief efforts despite the federal government shut down.
Other topics of interest: FEMA is extending the deadline for filing Colorado flood insurance claims; the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Act; and an I.I.I Facebook post on the I.I.I.’s Deer-Vehicle Collision release.
A reminder: The I.I.I. will be tweeting about lessons learned from Hurricane Sandy throughout October. You can follow and join in the conversation at @iiiorg #SandyLessons.
MEDIA MATTERS
The Dallas Morning News dropped, effective Tuesday, October 1, a pay wall created in 2011. The newspaper will instead offer a new premium website for its subscribers.
About 20 editorial employees were laid off at Newsweek on Tuesday, October 1, according to this Wednesday, October 2, New York Post article.
Heather Childers and Ainsley Earhardt were officially named the co-hosts of Fox & Friends First, which airs live on Fox News Channel on weekdays between 5 and 6 a.m., ET.
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.
