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 16, please email me at michaelb@iii.org.
P/C INSURERS’ BOTTOM LINE IMPROVED IN THE FIRST-HALF OF 2013 AS COMPARED TO PREVIOUS YEAR ON STRONGER UNDERWRITING RESULTS
U.S. property/casualty insurers’ (P/C) net income after taxes rose 42 percent in first-half 2013, according to this Thursday, October 3, ISO news release. I.I.I. president Bob Hartwig’s commentary on the results noted that the improvement was propelled chiefly by premium growth, a reduction in catastrophe losses and favorable prior year reserve development.
CONNING STUDY SAYS HIGHER P/C STOCK VALUATIONS ARE JUSTIFIED IN WAKE OF IMPROVED UNDERWRITING FUNDAMENTALS
Property/casualty insurance stocks have now reached a modest premium to book value, according to this Monday, October 7, news release on a Conning analysis of P/C valuations.
TROPICAL STORM KAREN BECOMES A TROPICAL DEPRESSION, THEN DISSIPATES IN THE GULF OF MEXICO WITHOUT MAKING LANDFALL
Karen, the 11th named storm of the season, was about 100 miles south of Morgan City, Louisiana, when it was no longer deemed a threat to the U.S. coastline on Sunday morning, October 6.
U.S. STRONG ISSUES POST-SANDY REPORT; GROUP SAYS NEW CARBON EMISSION TAX COULD FUND FUTURE DISASTER RELIEF EFFORTS
The Asbury Park (NJ) Press story on the U.S. Strong study was posted at USA Today’s website on Tuesday, October 8. The Star-Ledger also covered U.S. Strong’s press conference.
FIRM LISTS THE 10 MOST COMMON MARKET CONDUCT COMPLIANCE CRITICISMS FOR P/C INSURERS
The “failure to acknowledge, to pay, or deny claims within specified time frames,” topped the list, released by Wolters Kluwer Financial Services on Tuesday, October 8.
THE ECONOMIST REPORTS CATASTROPHE BOND YIELDS ARE LOWER TODAY THAN THEY’VE BEEN IN A DECADE
The reasons: an influx of new money into these bonds from institutional investors, such as pension funds, and a dearth of catastrophes, according to this Saturday, October 5, print article.
I.I.I., FEMA VIDEO ON BIGGERT-WATERS FLOOD INSURANCE REFORM ACT, AIMED AT INSURANCE AGENTS, TO BE POSTED BY FEMA
The I.I.I.’s Jeanne Salvatore, who narrated and appears in the video, said FEMA will post it soon to their website.
STORIES IN THE WORKS
The I.I.I.’s Salvatore taped an interview on Wednesday, October 9, with Al Jazeera America for a story about the insurance implications of ride-sharing.
The Wall Street Journal is seeking sources who can brief their reporters on the CEO of Tower Group, a Bermuda-based insurer which issued this news release on Monday, October 7.
Connecticut-based Associated Press reporter John Christoffersen and Queens, NY-based Joe Anuta of the TimesLedger are readying stories on the NFIP’s rate hikes.
The I.I.I.’s Mike Barry spoke with Congressional Quarterly’s Lauren Gardner on insured wildfire losses in the U.S. in 2012 ($595 million), and how they constituted less than 2 percent of all catastrophe claims payouts last year. He also talked to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune’s Jennifer Bjorhus for an article she is writing on that state’s homeowners insurance market trends.
The I.I.I.’s Loretta Worters briefed The New York Times’ Mary Meece on the latest statistics on deer-vehicle collisions in the U.S.
The I.I.I.’s Hartwig gave an interview to A.M. Best’s Washington, D.C.-based Jeff Jeffrey regarding the potential impact of the federal government’s shutdown on P/C insurers.
CAPITOL HILL
FEMA has extended to April 28, 2014, the deadline for filing Superstorm Sandy-related proof-of-loss flood insurance claims, according to this Tuesday, October 8, news release.
President Obama visited FEMA on Monday, October 7; he noted that about 86 percent of the agency’s employees were furloughed due to the federal budget impasse.
STATES
Alabama
Topography, surface roughness and gravity waves provided fuel for the historic tornado outbreak in the state on April 27, 2011, according to a professor at the University of Alabama at Huntsville, this Wednesday, October 2, Huntsville Times article reports.
California
Governor Jerry Brown signed into law bills allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain drivers licenses, and making it harder for pro athletes to file a worker’s compensation claim.
State Senator Ted Gaines (R-Rocklin) will challenge Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones in 2014, the Sacramento Bee, reported, in this Thursday, October 3, article.
Retrofitting wood-frame apartment buildings, to protect them against earthquake-caused damage, was a major topic at a Tuesday, October 8, 2013 Buildings at Risk conference, and Los Angeles may follow San Francisco’s lead in this regard, according to this Monday, October 7, Los Angeles Times article.
The East Contra Costa Fire District discussed at a public session on Monday, October 7, whether to charge non-residents’ insurance companies for its services if a non-resident is found responsible for a vehicle accident or other emergency situation requiring a District response, according to this same-day Contra Costa Times article.
Florida
Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company has agreed to pay a $1.26 million administrative fine and change its claims and underwriting practices, the Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) announced, in this Monday, October 7, news release.
Governor Rick Scott said Floridians paid $16.1 billion into the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) while receiving $4.5 billion in NFIP claim disbursements over the past 35 years, an assertion The Tampa Bay Times’ PolitiFact column rated “mostly true” on Friday, October 4.
Senator David Simmons (R-Altamonte Springs), chairman of the state Senate’s Banking and Insurance Committee, asked the OIR at a Tuesday, October 8, committee meeting to counsel the Legislature on what lawmakers could do to make Florida more attractive for private companies who write flood insurance, according to this same-day Sun-Sentinel article.
Louisiana
A Katrina-related class-action suit filed against former Jefferson Parish president Aaron Broussard, Jefferson Parish, and its Consolidated Drainage District, will come to trial in January 2014, according to this Monday, October 7, New Orleans Times-Picayune article.
Attorneys for one of the two manufacturers of Chinese drywall are seeking to have the claims and judgment levied previously against the company overturned, according to a story posted on Wednesday, October 9, at the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
Nebraska
A strong tornado in Wayne damaged homes and businesses, and caused minor injuries, on Friday, October 4, prompting Governor Dave Heineman to issue an emergency declaration.
New York
Philip Falcone is banned from exercising either direct or indirect control of any New York-licensed insurer for a period of seven years; the ban also applies to the employees of Harbinger Capital Partners, according to this Monday, October 7, statement from the state’s Department of Financial Services.
Superintendent Ben Lawsky, who has criticized life insurers over how they reserve to pay future claims, made a peace offering to the industry in a Thursday, October 3, speech, according to this next-day Wall Street Journal (subscription required) blog item.
Oklahoma
The state’s Insurance Department is hosting a forum at the Moore Public Library on Monday, October 14, at 6:30 p.m., to help tornado-impacted residents with their May 2013 insurance claims, according to this Wednesday, October 9, Associated Press article.
South Dakota
Thousands of cattle were killed statewide amid a three-day long (Thursday, October 3-Saturday, October 5) snowstorm, which also featured hurricane-strength winds, NBC News reported.
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
The biggest story of this week was Tropical Storm Karen. Many insurance companies, trade associations, news and educational outlets were continuously tweeting about the storm.
A popular tweet sent out by National Geographic, which linked one of their articles, questioned FEMA’s preparedness in regards to Tropical Storm Karen and was retweeted 59 times.
President Obama visited FEMA headquarters on Monday, October 7, which led to many mixed opinions in social media.
The Republican National Committee and National Republican Congressional Committee, for example, criticized the president’s remarks at FEMA while the president’s supporters rallied for him. A tweet posted from the White House, reiterating President Obama’s message to Congress to “Call a Vote Right Now,” was retweeted 198 times.
Bob Hartwig’s commentary on the insurance industry’s first-half 2013 financial performance been clicked on 26 times since last week (via bitly).
The I.I.I.’s deer-vehicle collision news release from last week continues to get shares on Facebook; we’re now up to 20.
MEDIA MATTERS
Luciana Lopez (Luciana.F.Lopez@thomsonreuters.com) is the new insurance reporter at Reuters, succeeding Ben Berkowitz, who left Reuters to join CNBC.com. Lopez had breakfast last week with the I.I.I.’s Salvatore and Worters and told them she has been with Reuters for four years, and was most recently covering credit rating agencies.
PBS’s Nova aired on Wednesday, October 9, at 9 p.m., ET, a documentary on Megastorm Aftermath: How Can Cities Prepare for Rising Seas and Raging Storms?
The Weather Company unveiled the homepage redesign of weather.com on Monday, October 7, with the focus turning to local forecasts and stories “affecting the consumer right now.”
William Marimow, editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer, was fired by the paper’s publisher on Monday, October 7, according to this next-day Inquirer article.
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.
