Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Tuesday, June 3
Jun 3, 2008
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Hartford loses bid to raise insurance rates
State regulators denied Hartford’s rate request, but the company can still ask a state appeals court for one last review.
State regulators denied a nearly 40 percent insurance rate increase sought by The Hartford Companies, noting the request wasn’t fully justified in the company’s rate filing last year.
Trade Groups Voice Outrage To NAIC Over McCarty Remarks
Trade group representatives appearing before a National Association of Insurance Commissioners panel yesterday leveled heavy criticism at the group for allowing one of its members to appear before Congress and make negative remarks about the insurance industry’s use of credit scoring.
‘Opting out’ in homeowners’ insurance saga
Q. I got a letter from Magnolia Insurance, which informed me that it was going to assume my homeowner’s policy from Citizens and, unless I were to contact them before Friday, the assumption would be automatic.
EDITORIAL: Straight to the point
Veto Was Right
Gov. Charlie Crist made the right move in vetoing a provision in an insurance bill that would have raided the financial reserve of Florida’s public-insurance company.
FEMA policies for the new hurricane season
The Bush administration has been lambasted for its 2005 response to Hurricane Katrina – particularly the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s handling of disaster housing.
Hurricane simulation tests Florida
Disaster-recovery teams started a hurricane drill in the modernized emergency center Monday with a new watchword to grab the attention of Floridians lulled into complacency by two seasons without a big blow: Survivor.
State should document health insurance experiment
Gov. Charlie Crist says the stripped-down health plans authorized by the Legislature in the recent session, and signed into law last week, will be better than nothing for the 3.7 million Floridians lacking health insurance.
STATE HOUSE CANDIDATE: Insurance demands attention
In 2007, three years after one of the worst hurricane seasons in the state’s history, the Florida Legislature passed a bill that provided insurance companies with a cheaper financial safety net to insure Florida properties.
Smoke-Free Rule Legal, On Table
A hiring policy that excludes smokers, now being considered by Pasco County commissioners, is legal and has been implemented in at least one other Florida county.
STRESS associated with impending storm can wreak havoc on health
Not all of a hurricane’s damage is obvious. Even before one blows through, it can wreak havoc, and this we may not see.
Feds OK more reservoir water for Georgia
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued an opinion Monday clearing the way to store more water in a north Georgia reservoir that would otherwise flow to the parched Apalachicola River and Bay in Florida.
Florida Attorney General names new Sunshine Law attorney
Alexis Lambert is the state’s new Sunshine Law attorney, taking on the job to ensure compliance with Florida’s broad open-government laws.
Florida-based First Guard Reduces Driver Error Claims By 25%
Venice, Fla.-based truck insurer, First Guard Insurance Co., reduced driver error claims by 25 percent through underwriting improvements, according to company officials.
RMS Launches New U.S. Hurricane Loss Index
Catastrophe risk modeling firm Risk Management Solutions (RMS) has launched a new index for assessing insured industry losses from U.S. hurricanes.
Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c93485) has announced the addition of “Catastrophe Insurance Industry – Global Strategic Business Report†to their offering.
Survey: Nearly Half of Americans Unprepared for Disasters
As the nation braces for the hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes and floods that accompany the spring and summer disaster season, nearly half of U.S. consumers are insufficiently prepared — in terms of their insurance coverage — to deal with potential losses, according to research by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).
U.S. insurers see tough pricing conditions eroding profit
Insurance chiefs see tough times for the industry over the next few years, plagued by softening market conditions eroding profitability, and the difficulty of adapting technology to a constantly changing risk landscape.
New Life Insurance Guidelines Protect Travelers
Amendments Address Unfair Underwriting Decisions
Members of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) today adopted guidelines that protect insurance consumers from discriminatory underwriting practices in the sale of life insurance.
Regulators Adopt Solvency Work Plan
Includes Analysis of Solvency II’s Impact on U.S. Market
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has adopted a Solvency Modernization Work Plan, which will analyze international solvency standards and propose related enhancements to the U.S. regulatory system.
U.S. Senate votes to begin global warming debate
The Senate began what is expected to be a weeklong, contentious debate Monday over legislation to combat global warming by mandatory reductions in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
Louisiana: Private insurers take 28,000 policies out of Citizens
Private insurance companies took over responsibility for about 28,000 policies in Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. as of Sunday, the start of the Atlantic hurricane season.
Louisiana denies home insurer’s grant request
It was a small item tucked inside last week’s New Orleans Times Picayune.
Five percent of Mass. taxpayers uninsured, some fined
Massachusetts taxpayers have been fined for failing to obtain health insurance, even as a major survey concludes the effort to create near-universal coverage in the state is meeting key goals.
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