Best's Review articles from June 2008

Best's Review archives from June 2008

A heavy burden.(From the Editor's Desk)(Editorial)
June 1, 2008... Office chairs are the basic equipment of most business. They serve the mundane task of offering a place for workers to sit to perform their jobs. However, as our cover story points out, employers now are replacing chairs that are rated to hold...

Talent search.(Comment)
June 1, 2008... Bonnie Brewer Cavanaugh's article "Hire Education" (Best's Review, April 2008) raises two critical points about the talent crisis facing the property-casualty industry: the talent pipeline and the employer as a brand. Both are inextricably...

Quote/Unquote.(Comment)(Quotation)
June 1, 2008... Excerpted from BESTWEEK U.S./Canada and BESTWEEK Europe "I can't pin an exact time. I'm not measuring it in months, I'm measuring it more in years. But I do believe in the medium term, over the next two or three years, we're going to see...

China quake may trigger insured losses of $1b.(Briefing: Highlights From BestWeek)(Report)
June 1, 2008... Total property losses from the 7.9-magnitude earthquake that hit Sichuan province in south central China on May 12 may reach $15 billion to $20 billion, catastrophe modelers Risk Management Solutions and AIR Worldwide believe. AIR...

Worth repeating.(Briefing: Highlights From BestWeek)(Report)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... "The insured property loss... remains the largest in the last decade." --Gary Kerney, assistant vice president with ISO's Property Claim Services, after severe weather in 22 states caused an estimated $3.35 billion in insured losses in...

Legislation bars use of genetic data.(Briefing: Highlights From BestWeek)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... A landmark bill imposing a total ban on genetic discrimination by health insurers or employers was approved May 1 by the U.S. House of Representatives The vote was 414-1. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The U.S. Senate voted unanimously for the...

Health plans' HSA enrollment up.(Briefing: Highlights From BestWeek)(Health savings accounts)(Survey)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Enrollment in high-deductible health plans eligible to be tied with health savings accounts grew to 6.1 million in 2007, up 35% from the prior year. Still, the numbers represent a flattening of the exponential growth the plans saw...

STOLI Bills and Laws.(Best's Review's STATS & NUMBERS)
June 1, 2008... The status of states with or considering the banning of stranger-oriented life insurance: [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Impassioned pleas.(Federal)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... IMPASSIONED PLEAS by coastal lawmakers couldn't save a proposal for the National Flood Insurance Program to begin writing windstorm coverage. The amendment was rebuffed by the Senate even though it voted to extend the program through 2013. That...

A bipartisan Senate bill.(Federal)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... A BIPARTISAN SENATE BILL requiring all Americans to buy health insurance through state pools would be budget-neutral once fully implemented, a study found. The Healthy Americans Act program would eventually be self-sustaining, the study said,...

Alice Molasky-Arman, Nevada's longest-serving insurance commissioner, will retire Sept. 7 after serving 13 years.(States)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... ALICE MOLASKY-ARMAN, Nevada's longest-serving insurance commissioner, will retire Sept. 7 after serving 13 years. Former Gov. Robert Miller appointed Molasky-Arman in January 1995. A department employee since 1977, she previously served as...

Solid finish to 2007.(By the Numbers: Recently published Special Reports from A.M. Best Company)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... A strong fourth quarter capped another solid year for U.S. P/C insurers, but 2007 fell short of 2006's record year. Net premiums written fell almost 1% in '07, the first drop in NPW since 1943. The industry's combined net ratio was 94.9. (A.M....

Creditworthiness: the A.M. best way.(By the Numbers: Recently published Special Reports from A.M. Best Company)(A.M. Best Company Inc.)(Report)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... To increase transparency, A.M Best has outlined its perspective on how risk characteristics are incorporated into Best's rating of key life, annuity and health insurance products. (A.M. Best Special Report, VAs, LTC Occupy Riskier End of...

Back in the black.(By the Numbers: Recently published Special Reports from A.M. Best Company)(Report)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Bermuda-based P/C insurers rebounded from hurricane losses in 2004-05 to post strong results for 2006 and '07, due to the fundamental quality of underwriting. But insurers are approaching July's renewal cycle cautiously. (A.M. Best Special...

Meetings.(Briefing)(Calendar)
June 1, 2008... June 8-11 Insurance Marketing Communications Association: Annual Meeting and Showcase Awards, Cincinnati. Web site: www.imcanet.com June 16-18 Society of Actuaries: Life Spring Meeting, Quebec City. Web site: www.soa.org June 17-18...

Insurers lose out to dishonest brokers.(100 YEARS AGO in Best's Review)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Some brokers and agents, through unscrupulous practices, had contributed to large company losses, according to the June 15, 1908 edition of Best's Review. Surplus lines companies struggled due to brokers placing lines without authority....

The number of tornadoes in the United States during the first quarter of 2008 surpassed the previous four-year average, and ISO's Property Claims Services Unit estimates insurers will pay $3.35 billion in first-quarter catastrophe claims.(Property/Casualty)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... THE NUMBER OF TORNADOES in the United States during the first quarter of 2008 surpassed the previous four-year average, and ISO's Property Claims Services Unit estimates insurers will pay $3.35 billion in first-quarter catastrophe claims. But...

Cyclone Nargis, which hit Myanmar May 3, is a wake-up call to insurers doing business in areas where risks are not well-understood, said Domenico del Re, senior model manager at Risk Management Solutions.(Property/Casualty)
June 1, 2008... CYCLONE NARGIS, WHICH HIT Myanmar May 3, is a wake-up call to insurers doing business in areas where risks are not well-understood, said Domenico del Re, senior model manager at Risk Management Solutions. Nargis' 12-foot tidal surge and 130-mph...

Record oil prices and surging trade means higher premiums and increased claims costs for maritime insurers, according to Alistair Groom, CEO of London-based Charles Taylor & Co. Ltd.(Marine)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... RECORD OIL PRICES and surging trade means higher premiums and increased claims costs for maritime insurers, according to Alistair Groom, CEO of London-based Charles Taylor & Co. Ltd. Global premiums are approaching $3 billion; Standard's share...

Major European reinsurers still caught in financial swirl.(Briefing)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... European reinsurers have been on edge about softening prices and terms in worldwide property/casualty markets, and as always, they fear the big catastrophes that can strike at their bottom lines any time, anywhere. But as first-quarter...

At the old ball game.(Briefing)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Caption: AT THE OLD BALL GAME: Los Angeles Dodgers Manager Joe Torte welcomed Lloyd's Chairman Lord Peter Levene, second from left, to home plate prior to L.A.'s baseball game against Colorado April 27. Lord Levene,...

A.M. best's stock indexes.(Briefing)(Statistical table)
June 1, 2008... A.M. Best's Stock Indexes Four weeks Ended May 2, 2008 (Dec. 31, 2004 = 1,000.00) BEST'S REGIONAL COMPOSITE INDEXES MONTH/MONTH: U.S. (AMBUS) [up arrow] 2.36 * EUROPE (AMBEUR) [down arrow] -2.36 * AISA/PACIFIC (AMBBAP) [up arrow] 4.91...

Insurance jobs.(Briefing: Employment)(Statistical table)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... U.S. insurance industry payrolls bucked general economic trends for the second straight month, adding 3,200 positions even as the overall economy shed 20,000, according to seasonally adjusted data released May 2 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor...

Career wise.(Briefing: Employment)
June 1, 2008... Question: What kind of planning would be beneficial when you chart a course for a successful career in insurance? Did you ever consider that when you began your first job within the insurance industry that it would turn out to be a career?...

AON Corp.(Agent/Broker)(Gregory J. Besio appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... AON CORP. has named GREGORY J. BESIO chief administrative officer. Besio will serve in his new role as the manager for the corporation's governance, human resources and mergers and acquisitions efforts. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Along...

New York Life Insurance Worldwide Ltd.(Life)(Anthony Mak appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... ANTHONY MAK has been appointed president and chief executive of NEW YORK LIFE INSURANCE WORLDWIDE LTD., the Hong Kong arm of NewYork Life International LLC's operations in the Asia-Pacific region. Mak, who had been interim CEO of the unit...

TIAA-CREF.(Life)(Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association - College Retirement Equities Fund)(Roger W. Ferguson appointed )(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Retirement plan giant TIAA-CREF has named ROGER W. FERGUSON JR., a former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, to succeed HERBERT M. ALLISON JR. as its president and chief executive officer. Ferguson will take over for...

APIW Insurance Woman of the Year: industry needs to attract new talent.(People in Insurance)(Association of Professional Insurance Women Inc.)(Rebecca C. Amoroso awarded)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Communication is a key part of Rebecca C. Amoroso's job as vice chairwoman and U.S. insurance industry group leader of Deloitte LLP, but words didn't come easily when she learned that the Association of Professional Insurance Women Inc....

Mutual of America Life Insurance Co.(Life)(Jeffrey M. Angelo appointed )(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... MUTUAL OF AMERICA LIFE INSURANCE CO. has named JEFFREY M. ANGELO senior vice president for corporate finance. Angelo, a certified public accountant, comes to the New York-based insurer from a chief examiner post with the New York state...

RJ Kiln & Co.(Property/Casualty)(R.J. Kiln and Company Ltd.)(Lloyd Tunnicliffe appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Veteran LLOYD'S underwriter LLOYD TUNNICLIFFE has left ADVENT UNDERWRITING LTD. to join RJ KILN & CO. as active underwriter of Kiln Syndicate 807, the two companies announced. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Tunnicliffe will replace STEPHEN...

Lloyd's North America.(Property/Casualty)(Loriann Lowery appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... LLOYD'S has appointed a former executive of Wells Fargo Insurance Services as the new president of LLOYD'S NORTH AMERICA. LORIANN LOWERY, a 20-year industry veteran, was named to the post previously held by WENDY BAKER. Lowery will be...

American International Group Inc.(Property/Casualty)(Kevin Kelley appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... ROBERT M. SANDLER, executive vice president for AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL GROUP INC.'s domestic personal lines service, will step down from his post after 40 years with the New York-based multiline insurer. KEVIN KELLEY, chairman and chief...

Berkshire Hathaway Homestate Cos.(Property/Casualty)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY HOMESTATE COS. has appointed MARCO J. GIRISH to the position of chief financial officer. Girish is a certified public accountant with more than 12 years of finance, audit, risk management and accounting experience.

Lockton Cos.(Property/Casualty)(Rob Livingston appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... LOCKTON COS. has named ROB LIVINGSTON senior vice president and producer for its property/casualty lines. Most recently a senior vice president with the risk management wing of Aon Corp., Livingston joins the Kansas City, Mo.-based insurance...

HCC Insurance Holdings Inc.(Property/Casualty)(promotions)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... The specialty underwriting agency of HCC INSURANCE HOLDINGS INC. has promoted three of its top executives. HCC SPECIALTY UNDERWRITERS INC. promoted WILLIAM F. HUBBARD to chairman from president and chief executive. HCC Specialty Chief...

The Ace Group of Cos.(Property/Casualty)(Damon Hostetter appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... THE ACE GROUP OF COS. has named DAMON HOSTETTER senior vice president for Ace Recreational Marine, the group's marine insurance subsidiary. Hostetter will work out of the global insurer and reinsurer's Philadelphia office. Hostetter will...

Great American Insurance Group.(Property/Casualty)(Jim Muething appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... GREAT AMERICAN INSURANCE GROUP has named JIM MUETHING president of its agribusiness insurance division, serving as division head of the company's niche farm and ranch insurance operations. An employee of the Cincinnati-based multiline...

AON Re Global.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets)(Alfonso Valera appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... AON RE GLOBAL said it appointed ALFONSO VALERA chief executive of Aon Re Iberia. Valera will replace JAVIER ESTEBAN, who will continue to work with Aon Re EMEA (covering Europe, the Middle East and Africa) in a senior adviser position. ...

Brit Insurance Holdings Plc.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets)(Matthew Wilson and Kevin Huttly appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... BRIT INSURANCE HOLDINGS PLC appointed MATTHEW WILSON chief executive of its global markets business following the resignation of MIKE SIBTHORPE. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The U.K.-based general insurer and reinsurer also named Wilson...

Montpelier Re.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets)(Francis Lockwood appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... FRANCIS "BUD" LOCKWOOD has joined Bermuda-based MONTPELIER RE as president of one of its U.S. operations. A former senior vice president of Catlin Underwriting Inc., and member of the Catlin executive committee responsible for property treaty...

Paris Re America Insurance Co.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets)(Edmund Kelly appointed)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... PARIS RE AMERICA INSURANCE CO. has named EDMUND KELLY chief executive of the French reinsurer's American office, which he will run from his base in Miami. Apart from maintaining Paris Re's U.S. business, Kelly will oversee the company's...

Axa S.A. names Rivet as CEO of insurance operations in U.K.(People in Insurance)(Philippe Maso y Guell Rivet appointed)(chief executive officer)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Philippe Maso y Guell Rivet has been named chief executive of Axa S.A.'s insurance operations in the United Kingdom. Rivet, who had been group finance director of Axa U.K. for the past five years, will head the unit's Axa Insurance...

Making dating connections.(BRANDING)(www.iheartcavemen.com)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... TO MAKE GOOD USE of its creative approach to technology and to advance its popular Cavemen branding, Geico recently launched a new interactive mock dating portal, www.iheartcavemen.com. Visitors to the interactive site can upload user...

Three points.(BRANDING)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THE HARTFORD FINANCIAL SERVICES GROUP INC. recently drafted a new "All-Star" player for its Playbook for Life lineup. Basketball coach, broadcaster and author Dick Vitale joins a group of former student and...

State Farm's new advertising campaign.(ADVERTISING)
June 1, 2008... STATE FARM'S NEW ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN, "Intersections," centers on the different ways the company's products, services and agents are there for customers. The campaign is "heavily rooted in consumer research," said Mark Gibson, assistant vice...

Study touts life guarantees.(SPOTLIGHT)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Target-date mutual funds or guaranteed lifetime income through an insurance option? An Ernst & Young analysis concludes that a guaranteed withdrawal benefit solution, on average, leaves behind a larger inheritance than target-date funds when...

Hartford's 401(k) has income option.(Employee Benefits)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Starting in 2009, employees of Hartford Financial Service Group will have an option to buy guaranteed lifetime income in $10-per-month increments in the company's 401(k) plan. Like the plan's other investment...

Sun Life introduces retro disability.(Employee Benefits)(Sun Life Financial)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial has introduced Retro Disability Benefits, which it describes as the group insurance industry's first product to retroactively pay extra benefits for seriously ill or injured employees. Long-term...

Index Annuity goes Global.(Life)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... American General Life Insurance Co., a subsidiary of American International Group, has launched the AIG Global Index Annuity Series of three index annuities. All offer the Global Multiple Index Account, which is linked to the S&P 500, the Dow...

VUL customizes benefit guarantee.(Life)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Nationwide Financial's new variable universal life insurance policy, YourLife Protection VUL, comes with flexible death-benefit protection guarantees. Level premiums to endow will guarantee the policy for 10 years, but with a rider for an...

Overseas danger for smaller firms.(Property/Casualty)(Survey)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... As American businesses continue to grow their overseas operations, small to midsize companies are more likely to experience a loss to corporate assets outside the United States or Canada than larger companies, according to the Chubb Group of...

Zurich covers pet business.(SPOTLIGHT)(Zurich Financial Services)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Property/casualty insurer Zurich now offers coverage to owners of boarding kennels, doggie daycares and pet grooming operations. The plan offers directors and officers liability coverage, employment practices liability insurance and risk...

Beazley offers D&O product.(Property/Casualty)(directors and officers)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Beazley Group plc has introduced Beazley Armour, a Side A policy form designed to protect directors and officers and, on an excess basis, provide a seamless fit over traditional D&O programs. Side A D&O policies protect directors and...

Aetna opens provider site.(Technology)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Aetna recently launched a new secure provider Web site with NaviMedix, an innovator in automating health-care provider communications. Located on the NaviNet portal (https:// navinet.navimedix.com), Aetna's secure provider Web site via NaviNet...

Online features to help women.(Technology)(www.newyorklife. com/womenandfinance)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... New York Life Insurance Co. has launched a site for women consumers (www.newyorklife. com/womenandfinance) that provides easy access to detailed information and organizational tools for meeting financial goals. The site focuses on the top...

Grand theft auto.(SNAPSHOT)(Statistical table)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Grand Theft Auto The 10 Metropolitan Statistical Areas with the highest vehicle theft rates per capita in 2007: 2007 Ranking * Actual Thefts 1. Modesto, Calif. 5,358 2. Las Vegas ...

Learn more.(Product News)(Brief article)(List)
June 1, 2008... Prudential Insurance Company of America A.M. Best Company # 06974 Distribution: Career agents, independent agents and brokers, brokerdealers, banks American General Life Insurance Co. A.M. Best Company # 06058 Distribution:...

Rating actions.(Ratings)
June 1, 2008... This edition reflects all financial strength rating changes--assignments, changes or placed under review--that occurred for life, health and property/casualty insurers domiciled in North America, as well as non-U.S, insurance companies, since...

A weighty issues: increasing obesity is placing a heavy burden on U.S. workers' compensation claims.(Property/Casualty: Worker's Compensation)(Cover story)
June 1, 2008... The statistics are staggering: Not only are obese workers more likely to file workers' compensation claims, but those claims are likely to be more costly. A Duke University Medical Center study found that obese workers filed twice the...

Tough and tougher: in a soft market, MGAs work harder to keep the bottom line flourishing.(Agent/Broker: Managing General Agents)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When the market gets tough, managing general agents get tougher. They get inventive. And they tend to knock on a lot of doors. "We have to be as creative as possible in this market," said Doug Grahn, director of...

Bank on it: UnitedHealth Group set up its own bank to administer members' HSAs. Will more plans follow suit?(Health/Employee Benefits: Health Savings Accounts)(health savings accounts)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When the leading U.S. seller of consumer-driven health plans wanted a central place to manage its health savings accounts, it went where no other health plan has gone before. In 2003, UnitedHealth Group chartered...

Caught in the rain 2007's record floods in Britain and Australia cause about $7 billion in insured losses.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets: 2007 Catastrophe Update)(Report)
June 1, 2008... Freakish weather in the United Kingdom and Australia in the spring and summer of 2007, marked by weeks of no rain succeeded by days of cloudbursts, was responsible for an estimated $7 billion in insured losses. The severity of the flooding...

To the rescue: hoping to revive long-term-care insurance sales, the industry is trying new combination products.(Life: Long-Term Care)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Long-term care continues to be a largely uninsured risk in the United States, but insurers are enthusiastic about the potential for a new generation of so-called combination policies now in development. These...

The ripple effect: the subprime meltdown has impacted the insurance industry--and more trouble might be lurking.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets: Subprime Crisis)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Prior to the collapse the subprime residential mortgage-backed securities market, few people outside of the insurance industry or Wall Street were even aware of monoline financial guaranty insurers. They're the...

Home team: convert the replacement cost-estimating process from a source of friction with the homeowner into a positive, relationship-building experience.(Property/Casualty: Homeowners Policies)
June 1, 2008... For years, writers of homeowners insurance have had the insurance-to-value process backward. First they underwrite the risk. Then they try to overcome customer resistance to get the correct amount of coverage. Later, when a loss occurs,...

Where's your underwriting? For underwriters, the challenge is finding the right client at the right price and at the right time.(Property Casualty: Loss/Risk Management Insight)
June 1, 2008... An executive of a large insurance company was showing a "new-to-the-industry" employee around. When they came to the Underwriting Department, the new hire asked, "What do they do?" The executive responded," Nothing, when we're making money;...

Solving the puzzle: insurers find that building a successful IT project begins and ends with effective strategy.(Technology: Project Management)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When a child builds a puzzle, he often lays out the pieces, plans his strategy, sometimes seeks the advice of others, carefully executes the build and evaluates the end result. That's similar to the process...

Meeting demands: improving technology is among the ways insurers can try to outperform the market.(Technology: Technology Insight)
June 1, 2008... To gain insight into how insurance chief executive officers can earn superior financial ratings in a turbulent marketplace, Accenture commissioned a global survey of more than 100 leading property/casualty and life insurance equity analysts in...

Tolling benefits and pre-existing conditions: some individual state laws may prohibit an insured's coverage for a certain period of time, but as one court ruled, not forever.(Regulatory/Law: Legal Insight)
June 1, 2008... Most group disability policies include a provision that excludes coverage for illness or physical conditions that existed before the policy took effect. These exclusions typically preclude coverage for disability that begins within 12 months of...

Best's Review's Annual Corporate Changes 2007: all companies listed are U.S. life/health or property/casualty insurers. Changes occurred in 2007, unless otherwise indicated.(Regulatory/Law: Corporate Changes)(Statistical table)
June 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] LIFE/HEALTH MERGERS Aetna Health Inc. (a Massachusetts corporation) (AMB# 68699), Waltham, Mass. This company was merged into Aetna Health Inc. (a Pennsylvania corporation) on Dec. 31, 2007. Aetna Health...

High on PPA: insurers find much to like about the 2006 Pension Protection Act following its first full year of implementation.(Health/Employee Benefits: Pension Protection Act)
June 1, 2008... Tom Foster, national spokesman for The Hartford Retirement Plans, speaks enthusiastically about the automatic enrollment provision in the 2006 Pension Protection Act. That's the section of the law that allows employers to auto-enroll...

On message: Web-based marketing portals help agents connect with customers.(Agent/Broker: Marketing)
June 1, 2008... Today, thanks to the Internet, there is an overwhelming array of marketing tools available to anyone with a credit card or PayPal account. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Several Web sites, for instance, sell segmented data fists that may be...

Marriage counseling: look for signs to determine if a prospective tech vendor is a dream or a nightmare.(Agent/Broker: Selling Insight)
June 1, 2008... There's a lot of sexy software out there and it's easy for insurance agents and brokers to become enamored with products that automate everything from data management to customer service to policyholder communications. Indeed, entering a...

Honey, I shrunk our retirement benefits: working into the golden years might not work out as planned.(Life: Underwriting Insight)
June 1, 2008... Whether by choice or necessity, the financial implications of working in retirement are significant in The Retirement Red Zone--a time Prudential Financial has defined as the critical investment window five years before and after retirement....

Event coverage of the 2008 Life Insurance Conference & Retirement Industry Conference.(Life: Retirement & Financial Planning)(Conference news)
June 1, 2008... Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, April 7-9 On-site coverage by Best's Review Senior Associate Editor Ron Panko [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Individual annuity sales have best-ever year.(Life: Retirement & Financial Planning)(Statistical table)
June 1, 2008... The individual annuity industry enjoyed its best sales year ever in 2007, with some $257 billion in new sales, led by variable annuities. Deferred annuity assets also reached a new high at nearly $1.5 billion. The results were reported by...

Demographer: obesity trends may reverse longevity gains.(Life: Retirement & Financial Planning)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... The life insurance industry plans for continued gains in life expectancy, but at least one demographer is saying "not so fast." S. Jay Oishansky, a demographer with the School of Public Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago,...

Insurers urged to better understand dynamics of future wealth transfer.(Life: Retirement & Financial Planning)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... As the baby boomers' parents die, as much as $25 trillion could pass from one generation to the next over the next 20 years. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] If this shift pans out, it would represent the largest intergenerational transfer of...

Cultural knowledge opens Hispanics' doors.(Life: Retirement & Financial Planning)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Despite the fact that the Hispanic population in the United States is booming at 44 million, most Hispanic families here still lack adequate life insurance. A big part of that gap in coverage is insurers' ignorance of Hispanic culture,...

Skills, discipline required to enter large-case market.(Life: Retirement & Financial Planning)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... The large-case market for life insurance has long been a focus of top achievers in the industry and a market for which insurers have competed intensely. But that doesn't mean insurers are all proficient in this market segment, said Dennis...

ACLI, LISA favor different approaches to regulating STOLI.(Life: Retirement & Financial Planning)(American Council of Life Insurers)(Life Insurance Settlement Association)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Representatives of the American Council of Life Insurers and the Life Insurance Settlement Association squared off at the Life Insurance Conference over which model regulation would better control stranger-originated life insurance...

E-commerce calls, but no one's home: the life industry should harness technology to save money and improve efficiency.(Life: Management Insight)
June 1, 2008... Despite extraordinary potential, few would characterize life insurance as a growth industry. The past few years have seen the sales of insurance products barely hold their own, if not actually decline. This situation has caused a strain not...

Staying alive: adaptability key to surviving rocky insurance cycle.(Property/Casualty: RIMS 2008 Conference Coverage)
June 1, 2008... The ability to adapt in times of change and upheaval has always set apart the losers and winners in the insurance world. What's different today, in this age of evolving risks, is that adaptation requires such skillful balance between ingenuity...

Lloyd's focuses on both U.S. and emerging markets.(Property/Casualty: RIMS 2008 Conference Coverage)(Lloyd's of London)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Even as it ventures into emerging regions, the world's largest specialist insurance market remains focused on strengthening its position in the United States, where it has had a presence for about two centuries. Lloyd's chairman Lord Peter...