Bipartisan Plan to Save Drivers Money on Auto Insurance Unveiled
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-29-2008
DETROIT, April 28 /PRNewswire/ -- A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers from the federal, state and local levels joined community, business and law enforcement leaders at the Detroit Urban League this morning in announcing a statewide legislative and grassroots effort to reduce the mandated cost of auto insurance in Michigan."The State of Michigan requires drivers to purchase expensive and rarely used insurance coverage that puts the cost of auto policies out of reach for many drivers struggling in Michigan's economy," State Senator Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond, sponsor of the legislation, said. Chairman of the House Insurance Committee, Rep. Virgil Smith, D-Detroit, added: "For too long, many drivers, especially in urban areas, have had to choose between buying insurance and going without in order to afford other things they need for their families....

 Progressive Recommends Rejection of Below-Market ``Mini-Tender Offer''
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-29-2008
The Progressive Corporation (NYSE: PGR) today said it has become aware of a "mini-tender offer" by TRC Capital Corporation (TRC) to purchase up to 5 million shares of Progressive's common stock at a price of $16.60 per share. Progressive cautions its stockholders that TRC's unsolicited offering price of $16.60 per share was more than 4 percent below the $17.37 per share closing price of Progressive's stock on April 15, 2008, the day before the mini-tender offer was commenced, and approximately 11 percent below the $18.64 per share closing price of Progressive's stock on April 25, 2008.Progressive urges investors to obtain current market quotations for their Progressive shares, consult with their broker or financial advisor and exercise caution with respect to this offer....

 AssuranceAmerica Corporation Announces First Policy in Indiana
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-29-2008
ASSURANCEAMERICA CORPORATION (OTCBB: ASAM - News), an Atlanta based insurance holding company with operations primarily in the Southeastern United States, and expanding into select Southwestern and Midwestern states, announced today that AssuranceAmerica Insurance Company wrote its first auto insurance policy in the state of Indiana. While its insurance company or managing general agency (MGA) is licensed to conduct insurance business in fourteen states, Indiana becomes the ninth state in which AssuranceAmerica actively conducts business.In announcing its newly initiated sales effort in Indiana, Lawrence (Bud) Stumbaugh, President and CEO, said "Indiana is attractive because it is a top 20 auto insurance market and its demographics favor non standard auto insurance....

 Defensive Driving Class Offered
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-29-2008
A defensive driving class sponsored by AAA North Dakota is scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday at the Best Western Doublewood Inn, 1400 E. Interchange Ave., Bismarck.The National Traffic Safety Institute class covers concepts necessary to stay safe and free from injury. Those attending the class, which is open to everyone, may be eligible for auto insurance discounts and reduced points on their driving record....

 Interest in Royal's Insurance Arm Sale
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-29-2008
PRIVATE equity bidders were yesterday lining up to compete with trade buyers to secure a slice of Royal Bank of Scotland's insurance arm as Aviva became the first insurer to rule out a bid.Royal Bank shares bounced some way back from a torrid week yesterday gaining 8.25p to close up 2.42per cent at 349p.Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Apax Partners are thought to be putting together a consortium....

 Car KO'D By Mutt
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-27-2008
MY car was damaged after a dog ran into the road and I couldn't avoid it. Who is responsible for the repair bill as the police will not hand over the owner's details?It is up to your insurer to decide whether or not to make inquiries and reclaim costs from the dog's owner....

 Your Money: How to Keep Your Paperwork Safe ; Cash Point
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-27-2008
BILLIONS of unclaimed pounds are wasting away with banks, insurers and pension schemes because of misplaced paperwork. And there's no wonder - most of us tuck vital documents, such as bank books and insurance policies, away in random drawers and cupboards or even up in the attic. In fact, a new survey by Age Concern found two out of three householders had no idea where these documents were, with half even admitting they often spent more than an hour scouring the house in search of them....

 Global Gains Offset Weak UK Insurance ; FINANCIAL SERVICES
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-27-2008
Norwich Union parent Aviva yesterday reported falling first quarter sales in its UK division, but said stronger growth in the US and Asia-Pacific were helping offset the tough domestic market. The group posted a five per cent increase in global life and pension sales to pounds 8.17 billion, despite a three per cent drop in UK new business, at pounds 2.77 billion. Aviva cautioned the UK was set to remain "constrained" this year, but stuck by plans for full-year growth of up to 0.5 per cent as it hoped for a pick-up in sales in the second half....

 'Caveman' Driving Instincts
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-27-2008
A MAJOR insurance company has taken the controversial step of describing its male customers as having the behavioural instincts of cavemen. On-line insurance company esure said men have spent 99 per cent of their evolution as hunters and fighters with an survival instinct that is now manifest in their driving. The company commissioned a report on the subject to assess the risk posed by various categories of customer so it could work out premiums according to drivers being involved in accidents....

 Drive Rap Comic Fined Pounds 500
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-27-2008
AN award-winning comic has been fined for driving without insurance.Phil Kay, 38, drove his girlfriend Nicola Clark's car while uninsured last year on the A9 between Forres and Grantown-on-Spey in Morayshire.He was fined pounds 500 and given six points on his licence last week while Nicola, 47, was fined pounds 300 and also got six points at Nairn District Court....

 Ohio Fares Well in Insurance Study: Highly Regulated California System Receives Top Ranking
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-26-2008
Apr. 25--Consumers in California have the best auto insurance coverage and rates, but Ohioans also fared pretty well in a new nationwide study. The study, conducted by the Consumer Federation of America, was crafted primarily to show how regulatory polices can affect auto insurance rates. Ohio motorists pay $669 annually on average for auto coverage, the 39th highest rate in the country....

 Report: Prop. 103 Helps California Rein in Increases in Auto Insurance
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
Apr. 24--California was the nation's top-performing state in keeping automobile insurance rates down and providing comprehensive consumer protections in a 17-year period starting in 1989, according to study released Thursday by the Consumer Federation of America. Insurance premiums in the Golden State rose by 12.9 percent from 1989 to 2005, compared with the national average increase of 50.2 percent. The consumer federation, based in Washington, D.C., linked California's rate control to the 1988 approval of Proposition 103, which required insurers to set premiums mostly on driver safety records, experience and miles driven instead of where motorists live....

 Travelers' Operating Profits Top Forecasts; Stock Rises 5%
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
Apr. 25--Net income fell 11 percent at The Travelers Cos. in the first quarter, but operating profits topped analysts' estimates and the insurer raised its profit forecast for 2008. Travelers' bottom line of $967 million included a substantial boost from money that was reserved for previous years' claims but was later not needed....

 Liberty Mutual Pays Up for Safeco
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
Property and casualty insurance provider Safeco Corp. (SAF) agreed on Apr. 23 to be acquired by Liberty Mutual Group in a deal valued at $6.2 billion. Safeco shareholders would receive $68.25 per share for each share held, a nearly 51% premium to Safecos closing price of $45.23 on Apr. 22.Cathy Seifert at Standard & Poors Equity Research, who said in an Apr. 17 note that Safeco could be an attractive takeover candidate if the industry consolidates, called Liberty Mutual's offer generous at more than two times Safecos book value at the end of 2007 and said it would likely serve as a catalyst to shares of other property casualty insurers....

 $62 Billion Savings on Auto Insurance in California Since Voters Approved Insurance Reform Proposition 103 Twenty Years Ago, According to National Study
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
SANTA MONICA, Calif., April 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- California has the best automobile insurance regulation in the nation, with the slowest-growing premiums and one of the most competitive markets in the country, according to a state-by-state study the Consumer Federation of America released in Washington, DC today. In 1988, California voters approved Proposition 103, which enacted the nation's toughest insurance reform.Ironically, Allstate is in a San Francisco Superior Court today asking a judge to block a 15.9% rate cut for its auto insurance customers that was ordered by Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner last month....

 Parker Reports Record Sales After Joining Other Area Firms in Fortune 500
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
Apr. 23--The first two days of the week were good ones for Parker Hannifin Corp. The 57,000-employee, Mayfield Heights-based company on Tuesday reported record sales, net income, cash flow and earnings per diluted share for the third quarter of the fiscal year. Its earnings reports shows that the motion and control technology manufacturer brought in $3.2 billion in sales, a 14.4 percent increase from one year ago....

 Judge Orders Allstate to Lower Auto Rates
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
Apr. 24--A San Francisco Superior Court judge on Thursday ordered Allstate Insurance to comply with a regulatory order to lower annual auto insurance rates by an average of $133 per vehicle. That works out to an average per-vehicle premium dropping from $834 to $701 based on calculations by a consumer group derived from Allstate data. The judge's action denies Allstate's request for a stay to keep their current rates in place while the appeal is being considered....

 Judge Won't Delay Rate Cut for Allstate Customers
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
Apr. 24--A judge in San Francisco on Thursday denied Allstate's bid to delay cutting its auto insurance rates an average of 15.9 percent as the insurer appeals state action ordering the reduction. The rate reductions amount to an average of $124 per vehicle each year, according to the state Department of Insurance, which disagreed with Allstate's proposed rate revision filed in 2006. San Francisco Superior Court Judge Peter Busch's ruling denying Allstate's attempt to keep current rates in place could prompt rate reductions as soon as Monday, according to consumer groups who argued against Allstate...

 MODERN MOTORISTS ARE STILL DRIVEN BY PRIMAL INSTINCTS ; Insurance Firm Study Finds Men Revert to Prehistoric Behaviour
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
A MAJOR insurance company has taken the controversial step of describing its male customers as having the behavioural instincts of cavemen.On-line insurance company esure says that men have spent 99 per cent of their evolution as hunters and fighters with an overriding survival instinct that is now manifest in their driving.The company says it is a male phenomenon that pays no heed to cultures, faiths or nationality....

 California Judge Won't Let Allstate Delay Cutting Auto Insurance Rates
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-25-2008
Apr. 25--On the same day a new study dubbed California the nation's leader in holding the line on auto insurance rates, a judge in San Francisco denied Allstate's bid to delay cutting its rates an average of 15.9 percent as the insurer appeals state action ordering the reduction. Allstate said Thursday that it will continue to appeal the auto insurance rate-reduction order issued last month by an administrative law judge. The rate reductions amount to an average of $124 per vehicle each year, according to the state Department of Insurance, which disagreed with Allstate's proposed rate revision filed in 2006....

 55 Alive Refresher Course Set for Today, Wednesday
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-24-2008
ROCHESTER - A 55 Alive Refresher Course will be held from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. today and Wednesday at Rochester Public Library, 1 Community Drive, in conjunction with AARP.The course consists of two four-hour sessions on consecutive days and is for experienced drivers aged 50 and older.Fee is $10 for the course, with checks made payable to AARP....

 RECORD Money: Making Payments is Bacs' Real Forty
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-24-2008
THE UK'S automated payments system, Bacs, has handled more than 68billion transactions since it was first launched 40 years ago.More than 5.5billion payments were made through the Bacs system during the past year - an average of 90 for every person in the UK, the group said.Three-quarters of adults now have at least one direct debit set up on their account, while 90 per cent of workers are paid through the Bacs direct credit system....

 More Than a Quarter of a Million Trees to Be Planted on Behalf of Car Insurer's Customers
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-23-2008
To thank customers who opt to use less paper and do business electronically, Progressive will plant more than a quarter of a million trees in U.S. National Forests countrywide. Also, this month, Progressive began offering a discount to customers who choose to go paperless.The program is simple: customers can choose to enroll in the company's Paperless Policy option and opt to receive just bills, or bills and policy documents, electronically....

 Cash Points
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-22-2008
AS ARRANGEMENT fees on remortgages soar, many borrowers add them to their advance to avoid paying a hefty fourfigure bill. But price comparison service uSwitch.com warns that the average mortgage arrangement fee of pounds 987 costs pounds 2,094 when it is added to a 25-year mortgage - that's 112% more than the original fee. USwitch.com reckons almost 8m people have added arrangement fees to their mortgage instead of paying up-front - adding an extra pounds 8.7bn to their repayments....

 GEICO Honors 6 Associate Teams With Corporate Quality Awards
Posted 8:00 AM Apr-22-2008
GEICO honored six teams of associates from around the country with the company's highest honor, the Corporate Quality Award, during special ceremonies today in Washington, D.C.This is the 16th year that GEICO is honoring its associates for completing special projects which made GEICO more efficient with lower costs, increased the company's competitive advantage and helped maintain GEICO's service of the highest quality.The awards represent the work of more than 1,000 GEICO associates....