SYNOPSIS ALL INDUSTRY CONFERENCE CALL September 19, 2012

If there is a subject you would like to see addressed on Wednesday, September 26, please email Mike Barry at michaelb@iii.org.

 

More than 44 percent of the oldest U.S. Baby Boomers are at risk of not having sufficient retirement resources to pay for “basic” retirement expenditures, as well as uninsured health care costs, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).  USA Today explored this issue in its Monday, September 17, print edition.

 

This Tuesday, September 18, PowerPoint presentation provides an overview of auto and homeowners personal lines growth by state and for the U.S. Sections analyze profitability and personal lines growth drivers, and found the economy is creating some growth opportunities and consumer sentiment is strong enough to propel auto sales and insurable exposures but not yet homes.

The 53-page document includes charts on gross state product, employment, premiums, catastrophes, and many other factors impacting the insurance industry in New York State.

 

The one-hour call will include brief presentations from LIMRA’s director of communications, ACLI’s vice president, communications, and Dr. Steven Weisbart, the I.I.I.’s chief economist.  He will discuss the issue of unclaimed life insurance policies and how the I.I.I. has worked to educate the media and the general public about this matter.

The Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) released on Thursday, September 20, a report on insurance losses by vehicle make/model under six auto insurance coverages. 

 

The American Insurance Association (AIA) supports the Strengthening Medicare and Repaying Taxpayers (SMART) Act, House Resolution 1063.  It is bipartisan legislation the AIA believes will help improve and speed up claims settlements for Medicare beneficiaries while continuing to reimburse the Medicare trust fund appropriately. The U.S. House’s Energy and Commerce subcommittee was considering the measure at its Thursday, September 20, gathering.

 

U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-West Virginia) sent on Wednesday, September 19, a letter to Fortune 500 CEOs, asking them whether their firms could successfully combat a cyber attack.  The letter was publicized in this same-day news release from a U.S. Senate committee he chairs.

 

Los Angeles, San Bernardino and San Diego counties have the most number of homes deemed to be at high risk to wildfires while Alpine, Mariposa and Tuolumne counties have the greatest proportion of residences at high risk, according to a report issued jointly by the Insurance Information Network of California and Verisk. The Los Angeles Times published this Wednesday, September 19, article on its findings, which included a quote from the I.I.I.’s Bob Hartwig.

 

Governor Jerry Brown signed into law on Tuesday, September 18, a worker’s compensation reform bill. He held press events that day in San Diego and Burbank to publicize the enactment.

Insurance Commissioner James Donelon is being sued by Louisiana’s State Medical Society and the state’s Hospital Association on the grounds that a Hurricane Isaac-related rule Donelon imposed on them was “unconstitutional and unenforceable.” The lawsuit was filed on Monday, September 17, in Baton Rouge district court, the Associated Press reports. 

The board of Louisiana’s state-run property insurer of last resort, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, unanimously approved on Thursday, September 13, a $61 million settlement of two remaining class-action lawsuits over claims handling after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, according to this same-day Associated Press article. The settlement comes after Citizens paid a $104 million judgment in July 2012 to more than 18,500 policyholders who sued over delays in the handling of their claims after these same 2005 hurricanes.

 

More than 67,000 Citizens  policyholders have migrated to private-sector property insurers over the past four years.

The Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) reports that the industry’s Colorado Rebuilds Fire Adapted Communities initiative was launched during a Thursday, September 13, news conference at Denver’s state Capitol Building, along with an announcement about three upcoming community wildfire preparedness workshops at Lowe’s home improvement stores in Fort Collins, Littleton and Colorado Springs.

 

Insurance Commissioner Jim Riesberg was interviewed on Monday morning, September 17, by Denver’s CBS affiliate about the aftermath of the state’s June 2012 wildfires.

 

The state’s Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) is holding a public hearing on Thursday, September 20, between 4 and 8 p.m., at Miami-Dade College’s Wolfson Campus, in Miami, to discuss the Citizens Property Insurance Corporation’s proposed rate increases. The Florida Channel will stream the hearing live online via Web Channel 9.

 

Premier Group Insurance Company is challenging the OIR’s assertion that Premier earned more than $3 million in “excess profits” between 2005 and 2007. The dispute was the subject of a Thursday, September 20, administrative court hearing, according to this Wednesday, September 12, Florida Current article.

 

The state’s Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) said it saw no reason for an increase in workers compensation premium rates in 2013 in this Monday, September 17, news release. 

 

Washington state’s Democratic Party criticized Attorney General Rob McKenna, the Republican nominee for governor, in a news release for wanting to allow private-sector workers compensation insurers to do business in Washington.

 

Former Wall Street Journal personal finance writer Jonathan Clements has published his first novel, 48 and Counting: A Story of Money, Love and Bicycling.   

 

Auto insurance was a prominent topic in social media with stories on teen drivers, diminished auto values and avoiding insurance mistakes trending on Twitter and Facebook.

 

An I.I.I. article on the diminished value of a damaged car has achieved noticeable reach thanks to insurance agents and other users sharing the content on Twitter. This goes along with a larger trend involving a blog article entitled, 6 mistakes to avoid when looking for cheap car insurance that is very popular on Twitter and includes a reference to the I.I.I. Insurance companies and agents, as well as some consumer groups, are sharing this blog post. There is some debate about the benefits vs. the risks of dropping comprehensive and collision coverage in an attempt to save money.   

 

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.