SYNOPSIS – ALL INDUSTRY CONFERENCE CALL October 23, 2013

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 30, please email Michael Barry at michaelb@iii.org.

 

The release Are You Ready For a Long, Cold, Snowy Winter? More Importantly, Is Your Home Prepared and Winter-Proofed? also talks about the fact that standard homeowners policies cover winter-related disasters such as burst pipes, ice dams, and wind damage caused by weight of ice or snow, as well as fire-related losses.  The media advisory on the one-year anniversary of Sandy reminds reporters that the I.I.I. has hurricane fact sheets, articles, videos and other information on the storm as well as flood information. 

 

JP Morgan Chase & Co. faces steep payouts in addition to its tentative $13 billion settlement with the U.S. Justice Department. A group of investors, including investment firms BlackRock and Neuberger Berman Group, is seeking to recover losses from mortgage backed securities JP Morgan sold to them prior to the financial crisis. The investors have already received $8.5 billion from an earlier settlement with Bank of America based on similar allegations, according to this Wednesday, Oct.23 Wall Street Journal (subscription required) article.

 

A new online survey of over 1,100 Americans conducted the last week in September by the National Geographic Channel and Kelton Research found that in the event of a major catastrophe, 57 percent of respondents would turn to family, friends or neighbors for help, according to this Tuesday, October 22 USA Today story. Just 14 percent would turn to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or another government agency. The distrust in government comes amidst the federal shutdown and congressional fight over raising the U.S. debt ceiling.

This Thursday, Oct. 24 Wall Street Journal (subscription required) article noted that many homeowners who live in the waterfront neighborhoods of New York City are having difficulty complying with the federal mandate to elevate their homes to avoid large increases in their premiums for coastal flood insurance. According to maps from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, owners of 1,553 structures insured by the National Flood Insurance Program will be required to pay higher rates because they are no longer eligible for federal subsidies. As the agency revises flood zone maps, owners of another 30,000 structures in the city’s various waterfront areas could also be required to pay higher rates within the next two years.

The Super Bowl that will be held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on February 2, 2014 promises to be an economic boon for the region. However, fears that a major snowstorm could cause the game to be cancelled are leading some businesses and entrepreneurs to look for insurance protection. Dewitt Stern is selling insurance underwritten by the specialty insurance unit of HCC Insurance Holdings that would compensate policyholders either for anticipated revenue from a game that is cancelled or for expenses incurred before a cancellation. Lori Shaw, executive director of the entertainment practice at Aon Risk Solutions, said her company was seeing much greater interest in event cancellation policies for this Super Bowl because of fears over the weather. This Sunday, October 20 article in the Newark Star Ledger also offers advice on types of coverages that businesses should consider. 

I.I.I.’s Steve Weisbart and an NFIP flood representative will appear on WABC-TV to answer insurance calls from consumers who have been affected by Sandy. The station is holding a one-year anniversary special on Tuesday, October 29.

 

Fox Business.com is doing a story on the need for homeowners insurance.  Why it is important, what type of coverage is best.  Donna Fuscaldo (516-724-2645; donnabail@hotmail.com), a freelance journalist, is working on the story. 

The Wall Street Journal is working on a story regarding flood insurance costs and the impact of homes being built on stilts.  The reporter, Candice Jackson (415-765-8287) was referred to the NFIP.

 

NAMIC sent a letter to Congress calling for the NFIP reforms (including rate increases) to kick in.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the Highway Loss Data Institute looked at the question of why teen driving has declined.  Using insurance data, the study correlates the change in the number of insured teens over time with the spike in the teen unemployment rate.  The report is scheduled to be released on Thursday, Oct. 24.  The week of Oct. 28, they will also send out a release concerning new ratings for child booster seats and a report on how vandalism claims to vehicles spike on Halloween.

 

 

An article in the Thursday, Oct. 24 Tampa Bay Times brought to light a disturbing twist in the flood insurance saga. Apparently Wells Fargo didn't pay one of its homeowners flood premiums out of escrow when it was due, forcing the homeowner to take out a new flood policy. The lapse means annual flood premiums for his Shore Acres home will quadruple in January from a little over $2,000 to $8,000.

 

Jeff Atwater, Florida's Chief Financial Officer, called it just a start when he announced that the state had arrested more than 1,500 people for insurance fraud so far this fiscal year. In this Tuesday, Oct. 22 story in the Sun-Sentinel, he said he is proud of the progress the state is making “to get fraudsters out of the pockets of hard-working Floridians.” Fraud-related charges against those arrested include car insurance claims and homeowners insurance issues. The total of 1,571 arrests made through June 30 is a significant increase from only 871 such arrests five years ago. Despite the increase in fraud arrests, the reported cases are just the tip of the iceberg, said Lynne McChristian, Florida representative for the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.). McChristian added that the I.I.I. had recently found that Florida had “the nation's highest insured losses and the most vulnerable landscape.”

The Insurance Council of New Jersey (ICNJ) held their 36^th annual meeting and conference on Friday, October 18, reported ICNJ President Christine O’Brien. The meeting included a workshop on pending PIP regulatory changes as well as health care changes on the horizon. I.I.I.’s Jeanne Salvatore gave a presentation, Superstorm Sandy: Lessons Learned and the Changing Landscape of the Homeowners and Commercial Insurance Markets.

 

Missouri, the Show-Me state, tops a new ranking of states that have the best discounts on auto insurance.  The list was compiled by Insure.com, which surveyed the availability and savings potential of 49 discounts in all the states for several large companies. Missouri had the most potential discounts, with savings available 33.1 percent of the time. It was followed by Connecticut, Indiana and Wisconsin, which all have savings available more than 32 percent of the time. Rounding out the top 10 states were Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Kentucky.  Alabama ranked No. 13, with savings available 29.8 percent of the time, according to this Monday, October 21 article in the Birmingham, Alabama News.  See the full list of state rankings.  Insure.com has gotten a lot of media pick-up from this survey.

 

Worries began to rise over the changes made to the federal flood program and what it all could mean for coastal Alabama homeowners. A panel outlined some of the potentially devastating effects at the Battle House Renaissance Hotel Mobile.  The Coastal Alabama Partnership organized the meeting to inform residents about the program. The advocacy group recently added flood insurance to their list of legislative initiatives to tackle for the upcoming year, according to this Thursday, October 17 article in the Mobile, Alabama News.

The grants for wind damage mitigation are now available to Coastal Alabama homeowners.  Lawmakers and state insurance officials announced the pilot program may pave the way for even more residents to access similar funding if it’s successful, according to this Friday, October 18, Mobile, Alabama News article.

 

A strategy is evolving among a multistate and bipartisan group of U.S. House members intent on blocking large increases in flood insurance premiums for their constituents. Their hope is to draft legislation in the next several weeks that would delay rate increases until two years after FEMA, which administers the program, completes an affordability study, according to Hill staffers. Lawmakers don't expect the study to be complete for another two years — potentially meaning a delay of four years, according to this Friday, October 18, Times-Picayune story. 

 

State legislators will gather this week to discuss a possible solution to the unaffordable flood insurance premiums that could result if the National Flood Insurance Program reform law is fully  enacted.  A joint-committee on insurance will meet at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 23, in the state capitol. Sen. Dan Blade Morrish, R-Jennings, said members will discuss whether the Legislature can provide relief to property owners who could face staggering flood-insurance premium increases, according to this October 20, Houma Today story.

With the one year anniversary of Superstorm Sandy quickly approaching, more companies and insurance organizations, such as PCI, are talking about the insurance implications of another storm like Sandy hitting us. The hashtag for our own Sandy campaign, #SandyLessons, is getting some pick up on Twitter, mainly through retweets by insurance companies and local insurance agencies/agents.

 

An online survey conducted by the National Geographic Channel and Kelton Research showed that in the event of a disaster people are most likely to turn to their family and friends and a mere 14% would turn to FEMA for help. This sentiment can be seen all over social media with many people referencing FEMA’s response (or lack of response) to Hurricane Katrina as it relates to Superstorm Sandy.

 

And, in government related news, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) continues to be a huge trending topic. Citizens, political parties and their affiliates are talking about their support or lack of support for the ACA and most recently, the problems the administration is having with the federal website, Healthcare.gov.

 

Al Jazeera America is crowd sourcing Sandy stories and creating a map of people’s personal experiences—it’s very cool, and worth keeping an eye on. Here is the link: http://america.aljazeera.com/multimedia/2013/10/map-reliving-hurricanesandyoneyearlater.html

CNN’s director of network bookings and executive editorial producer, Maria Ebrahimji, has stepped down from her roles. We don’t know where she’s headed.  But there’s been a considerable movement of CNN reporters to Al Jazeera America.

 

Al Jazeera America will be carried by Time Warner CableandBright House Networks.  The channel, which is owned by Qatar-based Al Jazeera and launched in August, will be available on digital basic cable packages in New York, Los Angeles and Dallas in the next six months, according to a statement by Time Warner Cable on Thursday, according to this Reuters, Thursday, Oct. 24 story.

 

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.