Auto Insurers to Seek Decrease in Premiums
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-17-2005
The proposed cut is small - one-tenth of 1 percent -- but state regulators may OK a larger rate cut. BOSTON -- Auto insurers will seek a 0.1 percent rate cut for next year, marking the first time carriers have recommended a decrease in premiums for Massachusetts drivers, but state regulators were expected to approve a much larger rate cut, according to a published report. The deadline for rate filing is today, and two company officials involved in the process told The Boston Globe on condition of anonymity that they would seek the small reduction....
Take the TAST Test to Save Money on Auto Insurance
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-17-2005
To get the best auto insurance policy with the lowest rates, pay attention to measures that may save you money on auto insurance coverage, say experts at www.AutoInsurancePlanners.com.Traffic tickets for speeding, failure-to-yield, unsafe lane change or aggressive driving can jack up your car insurance rates. Avoid them by driving defensively, and if you do get a ticket, keep track of the date and re-quote your auto insurance policy when the tickets are removed from your record....
FBI Help From Unlikely Source
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-16-2005
Four illegal immigrants have agreed to work for the government that will then kick them out of the country when their cooperation is finished.The foursome entered guilty pleas this week in U.S. District Court, agreeing to testify against a New Jersey woman they allegedly paid to help them get Tennessee driver's licenses, court records show.Zeneida Concepcion Rivera, a resident alien living in New Jersey, was indicted last week on federal charges she was involved in a plot to secure Tennessee driver's licenses for illegal immigrants....
Crash Scams in Area Seen As Growing Problem
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-16-2005
In the world of automobile insurance fraud, they are sometimes known as "crash test dummies."According to experts, they are part of a massive pattern of fraud that increases the annual car insurance bill of every motorist in New York State by as much as 10 percent.On Tuesday, federal and state investigators charged 30 people with staging fake auto crashes in Western New York....
Churchill to Push Online Business
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-16-2005
Churchill is to promote its web business for the first time in a national TV ad campaign featuring its nodding dog brand icon.The RBS-owned insurer is aiming to capitalise on online sales, which have doubled over the past year.The work, which will run across TV, radio and outdoor, will use the strapline 'Think car insurance, think saving money online, think Churchill.com'....
Editorial; Rate Cut is Nice but Reform is Nicer
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-16-2005
The auto insurance system in Massachusetts is a tangled mess that stifles competition, penalizes the state's best drivers, and has driven literally dozens of carriers to flee the state.As they consider how best to untangle the mess, let's hope state lawmakers won't be bought off by the minuscule rate cut proposed by the industry this week, which amounts to $1 off the average annual premium.It's true that by requesting a rate reduction for the first time in history (one-tenth of 1 percent), the Automobile Insurers Bureau all but guaranteed a much more significant reduction in rates next year....
Now's Time to Ensure Your Insurance is a Bargain
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-16-2005
Auto insurance rates have fallen in Colorado and across the nation, so now might be a good time to shop for a new policy. Some quotes were for a single car and single driver, while others were for multiple cars and multiple drivers. Under a tort-based system, the driver who caused a crash is responsible for paying the victim's medical expenses, according to the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association....
AssuranceAmerica Corporation Reports Record Mid-Year Results
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-16-2005
Atlanta based ASSURANCEAMERICA CORPORATION (OTC BB: ASAM.OB), announced today its financial results for the second quarter and six months ended June 30, 2005.In announcing first quarter results, Lawrence (Bud) Stumbaugh, President and CEO of AssuranceAmerica Corporation said, "Our strategy of entering additional states to enhance our premium growth has paid off handsomely as demonstrated by our six-month increase of 33%. Its principal operating subsidiaries are TrustWay Insurance Agencies, which sells personal automobile insurance policies through its 32 retail agencies, AssuranceAmerica Managing General Agency, and AssuranceAmerica Insurance Company....
Money People: WINSURANCE ; You Could Save Pounds Pounds Pounds S By Shopping Around for Car Cover
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-15-2005
RENEWING your motor insurance with your existing company could prove to be a costly mistake. Increasing competition has meant that now more than ever it's worth shopping around for car insurance. We discovered that the average cost of insuring a five-year-old Vauxhall Astra fully comprehensive was well over pounds 700 a year....
Zacks.Com Announces That David Fried Highlights the Following Stocks: AutoZone and Progressive Corp.
Posted 9:58 AM Aug-15-2005
David Fried, editor of the Buyback Premium Portfolio newsletter, provides a buy recommendation on an auto parts chain and an auto insurance company. Highlights from the August 11 Featured Expert column by David Fried include:Zacks.com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 to compile, analyze, and distribute investment research to both institutional and individual investors....
Police Hold Man, 68, in Insurance Scam Probe
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-13-2005
A LIVERPOOL man has been arrested on suspicion of running a car insurance scam. The 68-year-old Allerton man, who has not been named, was arrested after police searched the office of an insurance company on Walton Road, Walton, yesterday. Officers recovered a large quantity of blank insurance cover notes and other documents using a warrant under the forgery and counterfeiting act....
Deals of the Week
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-13-2005
Students planning gap-year travel need to think about how best to take money with them when they head off round the globe. As an added bonus, to help you plan ahead, you can fix the rate of exchange on euros and dollars before you travel. The Financial Services Authority (FSA), the chief City regulator, is warning motorists in the Birmingham area to avoid H&O Insure Limited, which it believes is selling invalid car insurance....
Auto Insurers Ask Approval of Rate Cut
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-13-2005
Auto insurers yesterday proposed a tiny insurance rate cut for next year, an apparent first for the industry, interpreted by some as a way to deflate efforts to reform the state's car insurance system.The Automobile Insurers Bureau of Massachusetts asked for a cut of 0.1 percent - or about $1 per policyholder - due to a "significant drop" in claims last year by motorists, the group said.The average motorist in Massachusetts now pays about $1,090 per policy per year to insure a car....
TORNADO FALLOUT: Pounds 30m FOR CLEAN UP ; Tornado Repairs Bill May Rise
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-12-2005
THE REPAIR bill for Birmingham's tornado is expected to smash the pounds 30 million barrier, it emerged today. Insurance companies have received claims to homes and businesses totalling in excess of pounds 25 million, according to early estimates. That can be added to the expected pounds 1 million damage to cars and the pounds 3 million council clean-up, a figure which is expected to rise....
Wrench Thrown in Auto Insurance Debate
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-12-2005
Aug. 12--Auto insurance rates are headed down and company profits are up, prompting debate among lawmakers and industry officials about whether now is the time to launch an overhaul of the state's auto insurance system. Many industry officials think the state insurance commissioner will ultimately approve a rate reduction ranging from 5 to 10 percent, or about $55 to $109. State Representative Ronald Mariano, the point man in the House on auto insurance, said the good news on rates and profits makes auto insurance less of a pressing issue....
Your Money: Car Insurance
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-12-2005
MOTORISTS could soon face bumper increases in their car insurance. Norwich Union and Royal & Sun Alliance yesterday warned rates will have to go up by five per cent as claim costs spiral. The warning came as a report showed losses in the motor insurance sector across the UK could hit pounds 800million this year....
Tort Has Gap, Panel Told ; Health Care Providers Say Plan Faulty
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-11-2005
The tort auto insurance system costs Kaiser Permanente $15 million a year.To compensate, the health plan has increased health insurance premiums 2 percent this year and will add 1.5 percent next year."We think that's a pretty good hunk of money to ask people to pay," Jerry McElroy, director of government relations for the state's third-largest health plan, told the Interim Committee on Auto Insurance on Tuesday....
Mass. Auto Insurers Set to Seek a Rate Cut
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-11-2005
Aug. 10--For the first time ever, Massachusetts auto insurance companies will seek a rate cut for drivers next year, according to two company officials involved in the deliberations. The industry's proposal would guarantee Massachusetts drivers a break on their premiums and may make it more difficult for Governor Mitt Romney to sell lawmakers on a sweeping overhaul of the state's heavily regulated system for setting rates. The two company officials, who asked for anonymity in advance of the rate filing tomorrow, said the auto insurance carriers will seek a 0.1 percent decrease in rates for 2006....
Hallmark Financial Services, Inc. Approved for AMEX Listing
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-10-2005
FORT WORTH, Texas, Aug. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Hallmark Financial Services, Inc. today announced that its common stock, $0.03 par value per share, has been approved for listing on the American Stock Exchange. Hallmark's common stock has traded on the Emerging Company Market of the American Stock Exchange under the symbol "HAF.EC" since 1994.Hallmark Financial Services, Inc. engages primarily in the sale of property and casualty insurance products....
GEICO Names Tama Ruiz Vice President of Information Systems
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-10-2005
WASHINGTON, Aug. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- GEICO's board of directors recently announced the promotion of Tama Ruiz of Ellicott City, Md., to vice president of the company's information systems. She will manage such main frame systems operations as sales, billing, data warehousing, and the systems operations department.Prior to this, Ruiz was the assistant vice president of applications and maintenance for GEICO's underwriting systems....
GEICO Names Mary Zarcone Midwest Regional Vice President
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-10-2005
MACON, Ga., Aug. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- GEICO's board of directors recently announced the election of Mary Zarcone to vice president with general management responsibilities for GEICO's Midwest regional operations in Macon, Ga.Prior to that, she was assistant vice president of underwriting in GEICO's Fredericksburg, Va., office.Zarcone joined GEICO in 1972 as a sales counselor in the company's Woodbury, N.Y., office....
Teen Driver? Here's How to Keep Auto Rates Reasonable, Says AutoInsurancePlanners.Com
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-10-2005
Car insurance rates for a teen driver are a great concern of many parents, so it's important to shop around for the best insurance quote when your teen starts to drive, say the experts at www.AutoInsurancePlanners.com. Before you contact an insurance company and compare quotes with your current policy or get a new auto insurance policy, do your homework on steps that can keep your insurance rates -- and your claims -- down. Sporty cars might encourage speeding, and SUVs with roll-over possibilities are choices that will drive up car insurance rates, because insurance companies rate these vehicles by statistics on speeding tickets or accidents....
AAA Announces Additional Auto Insurance Discounts
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-09-2005
AURORA, Ill., Aug. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- AAA Chicago will give its members who live in Illinois and insure their autos through AAA an additional 5 percent discount on their insurance premiums beginning August 15, 2005. This action doubles to 10 percent the discount AAA members receive on AAA's MemberSelect Insurance Company auto policies, according to Brad Roeber, AAA's regional president."The new, higher members-only discount will result in major savings for our policyholders who belong to AAA Chicago in Illinois," Roeber said....
Ford Designed Mustang to Be More Insurance Friendly
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-09-2005
DETROIT -- Here's something you don't hear every day: Insurance rates for this year's hottest sports car could go down in 2007.It's not because insurers think Ford Mustang drivers are going to get into fewer accidents. Ford worked in conjunction with Hartford Insurance to develop a more insurance-friendly car....
Most Drivers Break Limit
Posted 8:30 AM Aug-08-2005
MOST drivers admit breaking speed limits, a shock new report showed yesterday. Motorists in north Scotland are the worst offenders with almost one in three regularly flouting the legal limit. In a survey of 2,000 UK drivers by Direct Line car insurance, 94 per cent admitted speeding....