Reilly Throws Up Roadblock to Auto-Insurance Plan
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-22-2005
A proposal to impose $15 million in surcharges on auto insurers hit a political pothole yesterday, with Attorney General Tom Reilly saying he opposes it.Lawmakers are working on legislation that would charge auto insurers 0.25 percent on premiums, with the money helping to pay for police training across the state.Reilly, a proponent of auto-insurance reform and a possible Democratic gubernatorial candidate next year, said he supports raising money for cops, "but not through a surcharge on state drivers....

 The Key to Lower Rates: ; Where Should You Save and Where Should You Spend on Car Insurance
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-22-2005
How much car insurance do I need?Bodily injury liability $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accidentWhen a Consumer Reports article outlined some ways to cut car insurance costs, this wasn't one of them: It advised buying an underinsured motorist policy with the same limits as your liability policy, $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accident....

 Lawmakers Eye $15 Million in Surcharges on Auto Insurers
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-21-2005
Apr. 21--Beacon Hill lawmakers are seeking to impose $15 million in new surcharges on auto insurers, costs that would probably be passed on to consumers, to pay for police training. The move is being fiercely opposed by the auto insurance industry, which argues that the state is already inhospitable to insurers and the new fee would drive more companies out of the state. "We intend to use all the energy available to defeat this ill-conceived measure."...

 Colorado Governor Names Adviser to Insurance Commissioner Post
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-20-2005
Apr. 20--Gov. Bill Owens on Tuesday appointed one of his policy advisers as Colorado insurance commissioner. Pending Senate confirmation, David Rivera, 34, will succeed Doug Dean, who earlier assumed the top spot at the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. Rivera has worked with Owens since August 2001 shaping policy on health care, auto insurance and higher education....

 Insurer Ties Homeowner Coverage, Rates to Auto Policies
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-20-2005
Apr. 20--South Carolina Farm Bureau Insurance is telling many of its homeowners' policyholders they must also insure their autos with the company or pay higher premiums if they want Farm Bureau to keep insuring their homes. Farm Bureau created Palmetto Casualty in 2002 to underwrite business in high-risk coastal areas. The state Department of Insurance said Farm Bureau is the only company currently tying homeowner and auto insurance policies in South Carolina....

 Erie Insurance Celebrates 80 Years
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-20-2005
Apr. 20--H.O. Hirt didn't care for reference checks or personality tests. Instead, the Erie Insurance Group co-founder preferred to look job candidates in the eye, shake their hands and quiz them about their background. While Erie Insurance preaches old-school values, it has become a standard-bearer for Erie County's new-look economy -- an economy rooted less in smokestacks and machinery and more in computers and cubicles....

 Companies Fail to Step Up; Alberta Orders 6 Per Cent Auto Premium Cut
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-19-2005
EDMONTON (CP) - After Alberta's insurance companies showed a distinct lack of enthusiasm for lowering auto rates on their own, the government announced Tuesday it has ordered a six per cent cut.That was after Finance Minister Shirley McClellan directed the Auto Insurance Rate Board in February to review premiums in light of record industry profits."We expected that other companies would be coming forward; I'm disappointed that more companies didn't," McClellan said Tuesday....

 Allstate Debuts 'Smarter' Auto Claims - One Agent Will Handle Customer Instead of Handing Off Services
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-19-2005
PEORIA - Allstate Insurance Co. has unveiled a plan that the company says will shorten and simplify the claims process for more than a quarter-million customers annually.Under the plan, Allstate, the nation's second-largest home and auto insurer, is redesigning the way it handles "total loss" auto insurance claims - unrepairable vehicles that accounted for about 17.7 percent of the company's overall number of automobile damage claims settled in 2004."Allstate is making it easy for the customer to do business with us," said John Edelen, Allstate assistant vice president for claims....

 Young Drivers Pay High Price for Mobility
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-18-2005
Apr. 18--Deborah Whipple used to zip five miles home to Easton between classes at Northampton Community College. Now, the 19-year-old finds a place on the Bethlehem Township campus to hang out during her two-hour breaks. My car's on 'E'," said Whipple, a part-time student who relies on her job at Long John Silver's Seafood Shoppe in Palmer Township to buy gas for her Mercury Topaz....

 Insurance Pool Rules Changed, but None Test the Waters
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-17-2005
Receiving overwhelming support from the 23rd Alaska Legislature, a bill allowing businesses, nonprofits and the self-employed to join insurance pools to obtain health care coverage passed in early May 2004. Prior to the passage of House Bill 10, businesses, nonprofit organizations and self-employed individuals were allowed to form pools, or a grouping of employees, for health insurance, if these business owners were in similar industries or members of a trade association.Previous law did not allow dissimilar business owners - such as an owner of a bed and breakfast, landscape contractor and restaurant owner - to form a pool for health insurance....

 Long-Term Insurance Costs Rising
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-15-2005
Insurance carriers that sell long-term care policies have been crunched in recent years by higher-than-expected costs and poor investment returns. One Pennsylvania carrier, AF&L Insurance Co. of Warrington, Bucks County, stopped accepting new customers after taking losses on longterm care insurance and running into other financial troubles, according to a rating agency.Another carrier, a subsidiary of Allentown-based Penn Treaty American Corp., last year requested rate increases as high as 50 percent on many long-term care policies....

 Telematics CEO to Speak at Upcoming Auto Insurance Forum
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-15-2005
The president and CEO of ATX Group, the world's second largest telematics service provider to the automotive industry, will outline the potential benefits to the insurance industry of remote access to data generated from telematics-enabled vehicles at the annual Auto Insurance Report National Conference, April 17-19, in Naples, Florida.Steve Millstein has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of ATX and other predecessor companies merged within ATX for nearly eight years. While the auto insurance industry has monitored closely the growth of the telematics industry because of these aforementioned capabilities, Millstein emphasizes there is other vehicle data that can be tapped through the telematics system that could help insurance carriers lower their costs and costs to consumers....

 Insurance, Tort Reform Take Most of Session
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-15-2005
The 2005 legislative session is over, and some observers said it was incredibly productive, one that will go down in record books for its focus on improving West Virginia's business climate.Others called it disappointing, worthy of a "C" letter grade because it essentially ignored the needs of working West Virginians.Strong leadership in the governor's office made a huge difference," said Brenda Nichols Harper, vice president and general counsel of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce....

 Free Insurance Incentive Boosts Volkswagen Sales
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-14-2005
Apr. 14--Turns out that free insurance does sell cars. A test program in which Volkswagen gave away a year's free Nationwide car insurance to Golf and New Beetle buyers in Illinois and Wisconsin sent sales of those models up 23 percent from 2004 levels in those states. Creative Innovators Associates, the Long Island, N.Y.-based think tank that developed the program, said two-thirds of buyers said the insurance incentive influenced their decision to buy the car....

 Rising Driving Costs and Lower Rates Push Consumers to Shop for Auto Insurance; Top 10 Checklist Uncovers Hidden Savers That Cut Costs for Drivers
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-13-2005
Consumers are countering rising gasoline prices and other vehicle operating costs by capitalizing on lower auto insurance rates, according to Answer Financial Inc., the nation's leading independent insurance agency. "In the face of soaring gas prices, consumers may feel powerless, but they can lessen the pain by shopping for better priced insurance, which remains a large expense of vehicle ownership," says Alan Snyder, CEO and founder of Answer Financial Inc. "Shopping for car insurance slashes costs. -0- *TAnswer Financial's Top 10 Rate-Saver Checklist...

 Manufacturers May Insure Cars
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-12-2005
Apr. 12--In an attempt to lure consumers into their new vehicles, automakers and their dealers have given away cash and other freebies, such as fuel, computers and even compact cars with the purchase of a big truck. Now, following the example of Volkswagen AG, some automakers are considering giving away a year of free car insurance, one of the biggest expenses in car ownership. Volkswagen just ended a pilot program that ran during the first quarter of the year and provided one year of coverage through Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. for every new Golf, Beetle and Beetle Convertible purchased or leased in Illinois and Wisconsin....

 UTAH: Insurance Tax: Surplus Line Insurance Transactions Definition Amended
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-12-2005
For Utah insurance company gross premiums tax purposes, the gross premium for a surplus lines insurance transaction means the monetary consideration for an insurance policy, including all fees charged to the insured. (Ch. 124 (H.B. 200), Laws 2005, effective May 2, 2005.)Copyright CCH Incorporated: Federal and State Tax Apr 12, 200...

 HIPAA's Latest Compliance Deadline Approaching Quickly
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-11-2005
Meeting the April 20 compliance deadline for the new security rule for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) hasn't been as challenging for healthcare providers as complying with earlier HIPAA mandates.The changes were more contained within the organizations, which made it easier."The privacy rule under HIPPA, which became effective April 14, 2003, applies to all PHI (protected health information) for patients....

 Bankruptcy Law Changes Put Health Coverage into Focus
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-11-2005
Millions of Americans don't have health insurance, and medical bills are a leading cause of bankruptcy. Mississippi Insurance Commissioner George Dale said it is currently up in the air what impact the new bankruptcy laws will have.The number of people who can't qualify to get health insurance is also increasing."...

 Speak Not of Error
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-01-2005
Does legal fear increase the risk of medical error?THE UNITED STATES IS CURRENTLY IN THE midst of its third medical malpractice crisis in 30 years. In a curious twist, they blame the high error rates on the legal system, charging that fear of liability discourages them from reporting errors and prevents them from making health care safer....

 Terrorism Insurance 2005
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-01-2005
Where do we go from here?The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 (TRIA) signed into law by President Bush established a temporary national insurance program that provides up to $100 billion commercial coverage against terrorism losses perpetrated by foreign interests on U.S. soil. Even after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in 1993 and the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, insurers in the United States did not view either international or domestic terrorism as a risk that should be explicitly considered when pricing commercial insurance....

 Introduction to the Special Issue on "Risk Management in Operations"
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-01-2005
Key words: hedging; operations and risk; operating risk; real options; risk managementSince the absorption and implementation of these quantitative tools has been more rapid in the context of financial assets, the financial services industryindividual trading desks, financial firms, and regulators-have been quick to integrate these risk management techniques into their current practices. There is growing recognition that some of the risk management concepts can be applied to the operations of firms and agencies, both private and public, going beyond financial assets....

 "As Quoted"
Posted 12:00 AM Apr-01-2005
Auto insuranceLong before Canada signed the 1965 pact that eased the crossborder shipment of cars, our auto industry was defined by General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. BILL DAVIS, Ontario premier in 1980, calling for a ban on the sale of Russian Lada cars....

 Scam Lands Twins in Jail Pair Sentenced for Roles in Insurance Fraud Case
Posted 12:00 AM Mar-31-2005
Shannah Sipp looked the picture of perfect health Wednesday, especially for someone who claimed she died 1 1/2 years ago.A judge sentenced the 23-year-old Chicago woman to 180 days in jail for trying to con an Oak Brook auto insurance firm out of $45,000 in an elaborate fraud scheme.In that case, Sipp tried to collect $250,000 in fake claims when he faked his grandmother's death in June 2003, when the elderly woman was alive and well in Chicago...

 All Aboard
Posted 12:00 AM Mar-28-2005
With the way companies are scrambling to insure New Jersey drivers, the state's auto insurance marketplace may soon be crowded. Esurance is the third company to enter the local market since the state's 2003 insurance reforms.Copyright Snowden Publications, Inc. Mar 28, 200...