Best's Review articles from November 2004

Best's Review archives from November 2004

Heading for the hills.(Editorial)
November 1, 2004... As with most of life, being a successful insurer depends on making the right decisions. For homeowners insurers, making the right decisions about risky coastal properties isn't getting any easier. Since the devastation resulting from...

Committing to the Hispanic Market.(Comment)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2004... I want to compliment you on your article "Winning The Hispanic Market," which ran in the September issue of Best's Review. I have more than 25 years of industry experience with several companies. Fifty percent of my clients are Hispanic, and I...

People in insurance.(Briefing)
November 1, 2004... The Insurance Education Foundation presented two lifetime achievement awards at the 109th National Association of Mutual Insurance Cos. convention in Washington, D.C. W. Donald Sullivan, a former executive vice president and chief...

Spitzer sues broker Marsh, alleges corruption in insurance industry.(Briefing)(Eliot Spitzer)(Marsh & McLennan Cos.)
November 1, 2004... Citing what he called "widespread corruption in the insurance industry," New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer shook some of the industry's biggest names with a lawsuit filed against Marsh & McLennan Cos., the world's largest insurance...

Excess and surplus lines premium jumps 28% in 2003.(By the Numbers)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... At year-end 2003, direct premium volume for the surplus-lines industry increased by approximately 28%, according to a Special Report by the A.M. Best Co. Surplus lines companies provide insurance unavailable to consumers in the standard or...

Percentage of premiums surplus vs. commercial lines.(By the Numbers)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
November 1, 2004... Percentage of Premiums Surplus vs. Commercial Lines ($ Thousands) Commercial Lines 1983 $60,752,562 1993 $139,580,777 2003 $250,390,192 Surplus Lines 1983 $2,127,000 3.50% 1993 $8,540,000...

Meetings.(Briefing)(Calendar)
November 1, 2004... Nov. 3-5 Professional Liability Underwriting Society, International Conference, San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina, San Diego. Phone: (952) 746-2580. Web site: www.plusweb.org. NOV. 7-9 LIMRA and LOMA, International...

Suit targets Allstate's rehire moratorium.(Briefing)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Having been cleared in April of claims that a 4-year-old reorganization plan constituted age discrimination against long-time employee-agents, personal-lines insurer Allstate faces a new suit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity...

Coventry to purchase first health in $1.8b deal.(Briefing)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Coventry Health Care Inc. will acquire First Health Group Corp. in a cash and stock combination valued at $1.8 billion. The combined company will have operations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. The combined...

Supreme Court puts state farm case to rest.(Briefing)
November 1, 2004... Late policyholder Curtis Campbell's 23-year-old bad-faith lawsuit against State Farm Insurance has reached its end, with the U.S. Supreme Court denying an appeal by the nation's largest personal-lines insurer of an order by the Utah Supreme...

Best's rating changes.(Ratings)
November 1, 2004... Best's Rating Changes This summary of Best's Rating Changes includes life, health-care and property/casualty insurers domiciled in North America, as well as international insurers that had ratings assigned, changed or placed under review...

Home of the brave: even before four hurricanes hit Florida this year, homeowners insurers had tightened their underwriting along the coastline, opening the market to excess and surplus writers and state-run pools.(Homeowners)
November 1, 2004... Beach people will tell you: There's just something special about the ocean. Americans are continuing to flock to the shoreline in record numbers, not just to vacation, but to live. But where these homeowners envision cool breezes,...

Homeowners multiple peril, top writers by state--2003.(Homeowner)(Illustration)
November 1, 2004... Homeowners Multiple Peril, Top Writers by State-2003 Rank based on direct premiums. ($ Thousands) Direct % of No. of Premiums U.S. Premium State ...

Easing the way: the calculation of residential replacement value and management of risk in real time are tasks for new technology tools.(Homeowners)
November 1, 2004... Carriers are streamlining how they underwrite homeowners insurance with new technologies that enhance a range of capabilities from calculating residential replacement costs to estimating portfolio risk. As a result, they stand to see...

Shedding excess weight: Medicare's decision to consider obesity an illness could mean cost savings for insurers--eventually.(Health/Employee Benefits)(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)
November 1, 2004... Life has changed significantly for 54-year-old Sherry Huff of Texas since her elective bariatric surgery last year. After losing more than 100 pounds following the procedure, she's not only improved her health, but also eliminated her daily...

Annuity patrol: regulators want new rules to protect investors from predatory sales of variable annuities. But insurers say the new rules are unnecessary and the approach is neither efficient nor sensible.(Life)
November 1, 2004... Regulators have nightmares about advertisements with messages like this: "Sell Annuities to Seniors Who Don't Have Money! Most Have Equity in Their Homes--Help Your Agents Tap Into It!" Silver-tongued salespeople luring senior citizens into...

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co.(New Products and Services)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. introduced Mass-Mutual Transitions Select, a variable annuity that focuses on accumulation and income features that give investors the confidence to stay focused on their goals. Targeted to pre-retirees...

John Hancock launched a new long-term-care insurance program called Corporate Solutions for the small business market to help provide individual long-term-care coverage at the worksite in the way that best suits employers' and employees' needs.(New Products and Services)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... John Hancock launched a new long-term-care insurance program called Corporate Solutions for the small business market to help provide individual long-term-care coverage at the worksite in the way that best suits employers' and employees' needs....

Japanese, U.S. officials begin talks on life products.(life)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Japanese officials began talks in Tokyo in August with the U.S. trade representative over the sale of life insurance products by Japan Post, the country's government-run postal, banking and insurance giant. The Japanese government is...

Survey: Canada and U.S. life industry expected to adopt accounting standard.(life)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... A significant majority--81%--of North American life insurance company chief financial officers believe that the United States and Canada will join with Europe in adopting a global accounting standard for insurance within the next 10 years,...

Building better health plans: spending more time on research before launching a new health plan can lead to greater innovation and reduce expensive rework.(Health/Employee Benefits)
November 1, 2004... Everybody's doing it--innovation! From high tech wonders like MP3 players and camera cell phones, to automotive breakthroughs and blockbuster drugs, it seems that every industry is blazing new trails through innovation and new product...

The surviving few: only a handful of the online insurance-broker pioneers remain in a market that many left when the dot-com boom faded.(Technology)
November 1, 2004... The world of online insurance brokers looked a lot different five to 10 years ago, when many start-up companies raced to gain a share of the market and capture a new opportunity to reach customers directly via the Web. But just as the hype of...

Using her noodle: Kathryn Emmerson brings the knowledge of 30 years as a broker to the dot-com realm.(Technology)
November 1, 2004... Kathryn Emmerson, chief executive officer of InsuranceNoospent 29 years at Aon, then about a year at Marsh before she was recruited for the dot-com she now heads. Her brokerage experience--especially at Aon, where she rose to executive vice...

Call to focus: insurers focus on core insurance improvement to operate effectively and become attractive acquisition targets.(Technology)
November 1, 2004... Due to competitive pressures and the lackluster economic climate of recent years, insurers have suppressed overall spending on technology. According to recent estimates, spending in the insurance industry declined by 1% in 2003 (based on more...

Armed for action: independent agents in many states have mounted successful grass-roots campaigns to push for new laws and regulations.(Agents/Brokers)
November 1, 2004... There was a time when independent insurance agent Jeanne Heisler would field 40 calls a day from desperate people willing to travel as long as two hours to buy automobile insurance at her agency near the Jersey Shore. That was because...

Agency evolution: today's bigger agencies face an array of challenges ranging from cost to recruitment.(Selling Insight)
November 1, 2004... During the past seven years, consistent merger and acquisition activity and the emergence of powerful sales organizations have created fewer, but bigger agencies. In 1997, only 3% of agencies were over $2 million in revenues, while today 11%...

The view from Rendez-Vous: amid the maneuvering, the Monte Carlo gathering focused on hurricanes, ratings and discipline.(Rendez-Vous de Septembre)(Rendez-Vous de Septembre)
November 1, 2004... As corporate hostilities go, the Rendez-Vous de Septembre is very bearable. Every September, the leaders of the world's insurance and reinsurance industries gather in Monte Carlo to begin the extended negotiations that will result in next...

Probing to prevent loss: through nonprofit groups it helped form, the insurance industry has taken public its mission to build a safer world.(Rendez-Vous de Septembre)(Underwriters Laboratories )
November 1, 2004... For more than a century, property/casualty insurers have been doing more about claims than managing them. They also have been researching the root causes of claims and taking action to prevent them, or at least reduce their size. Today, a...

Tracking and preventing losses in homes, businesses.(Homeowners)(Institute Business and Home Safety)
November 1, 2004... Formed in 1971 as the National committee on Property Insurance and based in Boston, the Institute Business and Home Safety took its current name in 1997. The institute is now in Tampa, Fla., where its head-quarters was built to resemble the...

Crash tests yield data, safer autos.(Auto)(Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
November 1, 2004... The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, based in Arlington, Va., broad backing from the automobile insurance industry. No question our support has been very, very strong," said Brian O'Neill, the institute's president. "We have most of the...

Building competition in auto crash parts.(Auto)(Certified Automotive Parts Association)
November 1, 2004... Formed in 1998, the Certified Automotive Parts Association seeks to promote price and quality competition in the collision parts industry. Members include 13 automobile insurers that write most of the business in the United States; seven...

Thinking prevention: too often agents, brokers and even risk managers will use loss prevention only as an afterthought.(Loss/Risk Management Insight)
November 1, 2004... Mark Twain once said," I have seen an entire family lifted out of poverty and into affluence by the simple boon of a broken leg. I have had people come to me on crutches, with tears in their eyes, to bless this beneficent institution. In all my...

Insureds moving to protect their directors and officers.(Loss/Risk Management Notes)
November 1, 2004... More companies are purchasing stand-alone directors and officers coverage, instead of a more comprehensive package that also can be used to protect the company's assets, according to a new survey by Willis. One factor driving this change...

Hartford financial launches new D&O protection.(Loss/Risk Management Notes)(directors and officers)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. has created Priority Protection, a new directors and officers product that protects the individual directors and officers. Hartford's new product is designed for public and private organizations of all...

Ace Westchester enters environmental risk market.(Loss/Risk Management Notes)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Ace Westchester Specialty Group, the U.S.-based wholesale focused property and casualty operation of the Ace Group of Cos., has entered the environmental risk market, resulting in the creation of a new environmental division. Based in Atlanta,...

Willis covers homes with unique risks.(Loss/Risk Management Notes)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Willis has launched VIPHomeGuard, a new product that will provide customized coverage to homes valued $500,000 and more that are subject to unique risk exposures. These homes will likely include coastal locations, mountain properties, lakeside...

Aspen expanding in U.S.(Loss/Risk Management Notes)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Bermuda-based surplus lines writer Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd. said that Aspen Specialty Insurance Co., a wholly owned subsidiary, will open offices in Atlanta, and Scottsdale, Ariz.. Janet Lovell and Glen Plagmann will lead underwriting...

Suiting up: when the top securities class-action law firm becomes two firms, D&O insurers could take a double hit.(Directors & Officers)
November 1, 2004... As courts can be sharply divided in their opinions, so too are opinions surrounding the split earlier this year of the highly successful class-action firm Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach LLP and its impact on underwriters of directors and...

Adjusting the definition: a court ruling maintains that a literal interpretation of the total disability clause would defeat the very purpose of own-occupation disability insurance.(Legal Insight)
November 1, 2004... Own-occupation disability policies generally provide that insureds are totally disabled--and entitled to benefits--if they are unable to perform the substantial and material duties of their occupations due to injury or illness. An insured's...

Coming up roses: sales of voluntary insurance products at the work site continue to grow.(Work-Site Sales)
November 1, 2004... A large number of employees are still looking to boost their insurance coverage by buying policies at work, according to a study conducted by Eastbridge Consulting Group, which has tracked work-site results for carriers for the past five years....

Primed for growth: health savings accounts, which offer many advantages over other consumer-driven health plans, are likely to gain momentum in 2005.(Underwriting Insight)
November 1, 2004... As part of the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act, health savings accounts this year joined the consumer-driven health-care market already populated by flexible spending accounts, health reimbursement arrangements and various insurance products....

Be prepared: insurers need ways to monitor their operations and results so they don't fall apart amid the clamor for lower prices and better terms that comes with a soft market.(Management)
November 1, 2004... The past three years of strong pricing allowed insurers to report favorable results. For some companies, however, increased prices and tightened policy terms have masked continuing underlying operational weaknesses, which will be revealed as...

Segueing into segments: certain marketplace realities of pricing, if ignored, could run a micro-segmentation juggernaut aground.(Underwriting Insight)
November 1, 2004... A shift in the pricing aspect of the private-passenger auto operating model is sparking great interest. This phenomenon, called micro-segmentation, involves radical expansion of price points for a market basket of policyholders based on...

Chubb covers life sciences property/casualty risks.(Marketplace)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The Chubb Group of Insurance Cos. is offering a portfolio of policies to protect life sciences companies from property/casualty exposures. Customarq for Life Sciences portfolio offers customers property, general liability, human clinical trials...

Affiliated FM adds All-Risk Manufacturing policy.(Marketplace)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Affiliated FM's All-Risk Manufacturing policy includes a combined business interruption/extra expense form and customized extensions of coverage. The policy's embedded coverage for flood, earth movement and boiler and machinery, reduces the...

Brand touts independent agents.(Marketplace)(Progressive Corp. has launched a branding campaign )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... In a nod to its existing distribution network of independent agents and brokers, Progressive Corp. has launched a branding campaign it plans to market through a multimedia advertising campaign and make available exclusively through agency...

Liberty Mutual's ads grab honors.(Marketplace)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Liberty Mutual won the Best in Show Award for print advertising to consumers at the Insurance Marketing Communications Association's annual meeting in June. Liberty Mutual's "Smile" ad campaign was produced in four executions, each showing...

A helping hand: as insurers work hard to make sure everything is ready to comply with various regulations, their IT departments also are playing a key role in meeting the challenge.(Regulatory Issues)(Information Technology)
November 1, 2004... Key Points * Insurers increasingly are relying on their information technology departments' help in the compliance process. * Insurers' IT leaders believe their companies' investments in compliance already are paying off. *...

Online customers report insurers improved service.(Technology Notes)
November 1, 2004... Insurers such as Western & Southern Financial, Amica Mutual Insurance Co., Phoenix Cos. and Progressive Corp. are faring well with customers who surf their Web sites, according to a recent survey by the Customer Respect Group, an international...

BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina .(Web News You Can Use)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina introduced STATchat, a feature that allows physician offices to call BlueCross over the Internet and gives them priority for customer service. STATchat is located within the secure, self-help My Insurance...

John Hancock.(Web News You Can Use)(John Hancock Freedom 529)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... John Hancock Freedom 529 (formerly Manulife College Savings) introduced a new online Tuition Bill. The tool determines projected yearly tuition, room and board expenses for a client's or prospect's loved one, based on the expected number of...

Securian Retirement Services.(Web News You Can Use)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Securian Retirement Services' online, real-time reports give employers the information they need to manage a 401(k) plan in the best interests of employees. The reports show which employees are not taking full advantage of their 401(k)...

XN Holdings Inc.(Web News You Can Use)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... XN Holdings Inc., an online provider of insurance and financial products, announced the launch of XN Risk Insurance Services (Canada) Inc., a Web-based Managing General Underwriter offering management liability insurance for mid-tier, privately...

Allstate Corp. estimates after-tax cat loss at $1.06b.(Numbers Still Coming in From Hurricane Season)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Allstate Corp. estimates third-quarter catastrophe losses related to hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne to be about $1.06 billion after tax, or $1.64 billion pretax, and $1.53 a share after-tax, net of recoveries from the Florida...

Four hurricanes likely to put pressure on Florida property insurance rates.(Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The unprecedented combination of four hurricanes, Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne, and possibly more, in a single hurricane season, is likely to put pressure on property insurance rates in Florida, according to some industry experts. But just...

Swiss Re.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Swiss Re Group said a preliminary estimate puts its losses from Hurricane Jeanne at about $150 million, bringing total loss estimates from tropical storms this year to about $750 million for the world's second-largest reinsurer. Swiss Re...

AIG.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... American International Group Inc. said Oct. 14 that its total after-tax net losses would be in a range of $500 million to $515 million relating to hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne, and typhoons Chaba, Songda and Meari. The...

Safeco.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Safeco Corp. expects pretax catastrophe losses of $195 million for the third quarter, with the bulk of claims arising from the impact of four hurricanes that hit Florida and the U.S. Southeast in August and September, the property and casualty...

Hannover Re.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Hannover Re Group revised its 2004 earnings estimate downward nearly 25% as a result of storm-related catastrophe losses in the third quarter. The world's fifth-largest reinsurer said it anticipates net income of about 300 million euro...

Axis Capital.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Axis Capital Holdings Ltd. expects after-tax losses from hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne to be in the range of $190 million to $210 million, the Bermuda-based specialty insurer and reinsurer said. The estimate includes expected...

Scor Group.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... French reinsurer Scor said it anticipates more than 30 million euro in pretax losses from the hurricanes that hit the Southeastern United States over recent months, plus typhoons and floods in Japan and China. Scor estimates that claims from...

Munich Re.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Broken down by event, Munich Re anticipates a loss of 75 million euro from Hurricane Charley; a 65 million euro hit from Hurricane Frances; a loss of 215 million euro from Hurricane Ivan; a loss of between 80 million euro and 100 million euro...

American Superior: 4th storm one too many.(Companies)(American Superior Insurance Co.)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... If Hurricane Jeanne had stayed away from Florida, American Superior Insurance Co. would have been "fine" and wouldn't have been put into receivership, according to the company's chief executive officer, who noted that no one could have...

St. Paul Travelers.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... St. Paul Travelers Cos. expects its total losses from Hurricane Ivan's strike on Florida and the U.S. Southeast to be roughly $94 million, net of taxes and reinsurance, the nation's second-largest commercial insurance writer said. The company...

RenaissanceRe.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. warned that the combined impact of hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne would mean an estimated hit of about $425 million when third-quarter earnings are complete. The figure is an estimate, the company...

Ace.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Ace Ltd. said it expects to see about $480 million in pretax charges associated with third-quarter storms in both the Atlantic and Pacific areas. The losses will generate an estimated after-tax charge of about $400 million in the third...

Arch.(Other Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Arch Capital Group Ltd. said it expects to take a $140 million hit to third-quarter net income from losses associated with the four hurricanes that struck the U.S. Southeast, plus a typhoon in Japan, in recent months. The Bermuda-based...

Safeco executives outline their roles in company's new leadership structure.(Companies)(Safeco Corp.)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Safeco Corp. has formed a new leadership structure, which company executives say will meld the company's many lines of business and reflect the insurer's evolution from a turnaround concern to a profit-and-growth company. The newly created...

Anthem annual report wins gold in competition.(Companies)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Anthem Inc.'s 2003 summary annual report has won a gold award at the 18th Annual International ARC Awards. This is the second consecutive year that Anthem has been internationally recognized, having won a silver award for its 2002 annual...

An apple for the agent: insurers agents find urban markets take well to insurance education.(The Last Word)
November 1, 2004... Today's savvy Web surfer can pick up home safety tips and get real-time quotes on policies and coverage with a click of a mouse! But for those on the other side of the digital divide, it's easy to feel intimidated about insurance issues....