Specialty Insurance Blog

Confidential Data at Risk

A recent survey concerning the protection, or lack thereof, of confidential data should be concerning to insurance agents and brokers (see prior post on insurance agent data). According to an article (see here) on the survey: An astonishing 81 percent of companies and governmental entities report having lost or misplaced one or more laptops containing confidential business information within the last 12 months. While the survey appears to be skewed to large corporations, such as insurers, these results indicate that client data provided to insurers by insurance agents and brokers may be at risk. eSpecialty Insurance is your specialty insurance expert. We have developed a streamlined marketplace to provide multiple proposals from a range of competitive insurers, along with expertise... Read more →

Water Safety

Water safety is an issue for parents and for organizations with a water exposure. A recent article highlights the significant exposure and recommends methods of preventing accidents (see here). Some of the recommendations: Establish barriers to entry Supervise kids Have safety equipment available Teach kids to swim when ready The most important step is being aware of the exposure. Unfortunately, some did not see this article (see here). eSpecialty Insurance is your specialty insurance expert. We have developed a streamlined marketplace to provide multiple proposals from a range of competitive insurers, along with expertise to help you evaluate your exposures and choose the best combination of comprehensive coverage and price. We look forward to working with you. Read more →

NJ Auto Insurance Reform

RiskProf has a good summary (see here) of the impact of auto insurance deregulation in New Jersey. The result has been competition for business among insurers and falling premiums – by as much as 30-40%. Regulators claim that New Jersey drivers have saved $500 million in premium to date. eSpecialty Insurance is your specialty insurance expert. We have developed a streamlined marketplace to provide multiple proposals from a range of competitive insurers, along with expertise to help you evaluate your exposures and choose the best combination of comprehensive coverage and price. We look forward to working with you. Read more →

Virginia Security Breach

Virginia's Bureau of Insurance has discovered that insurance agent data on their web site included social security numbers for a period of approximately six weeks (see here). The data has been removed, and the bureau is advising agents as a precaution. The Bureau advises: Agents may wish to take steps to protect their personal privacy which include obtaining a copy of their credit report or checking for any unusual activity on their bank or other financial accounts. Okay… eSpecialty Insurance is your specialty insurance expert. We have developed a streamlined marketplace to provide multiple proposals from a range of competitive insurers, along with expertise to help you evaluate your exposures and choose the best combination of comprehensive coverage and price.... Read more →

Katrina Claims Settlement

The trial bar has initiated a media campaign against the insurance industry, and the insurance industry is responding aggressively (see here and here). The Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers has released a report, Pattern of Greed - How insurance companies put profits over policyholders, and has launched a petition drive to force insurance companies to pay fair and just insurance claims. At some point the politicians are going to realize that they have to stop pandering to the corporate interests and start helping people… If the insurance companies did the right thing and paid these claims there would never be these lawsuits. The insurance industry has responded by claiming that the trial bar does not have the correct facts (see... Read more →

Investment Reads

BusinessWeek has listed the investment books recommended as most important by the pros (see here): Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk, By Peter Bernstein Extraordinary Popular Delusions and The Madness of Crowds, By Charles MacKay A Random Walk Down Wall Street, By Burton Malkiel Winning the Loser's Game, By Charles Ellis Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment, By David Swensen Stocks for the Long Run, By Jeremy Siegel The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing, Revised Edition, By Benjamin Graham with Jason Zweig Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits, By Phillip Fisher The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need, By Andrew Tobias Informed Investor, By Frank Armstrong And our suggestion for a good starter book,... Read more →

Flood Insurance Ruling

A Pennsylvania court has ruled that an insurance broker does not have a duty to inspect a property in order to offer flood insurance (see here and here), and has used a distinction between an insurance agent and an insurance broker that reflects the reality of business practices rather than theory. The opinion (see here) defined the difference between an insurance broker and an insurance agent: [An ‘insurance broker’ is] one who acts as a middleman between the insured and the insurer, soliciting insurance from the public under no employment from any special company, and upon securing an order, placing it with a company selected by the insured or with a company selected by himself or herself; whereas an ‘insurance... Read more →

Wind v Flood Ruling

The insurance trade and national press have been fully covering the story of the Mississippi ruling in favor of insurers on flood vs wind coverage (see here), but little is clear on the question of insurance agent liability. In this particular case it appears that the claims against the agent (Fletcher) were dismissed. Things may be more complex when a case is tried involving an independent agent, but most independent agents will have documentation concerning flood insurance. And thanks to RiskProf for pointing out that there are two sides to this. From the plaintiffs attorney: The Leonards [ the plaintiffs] did not win as much money as I hoped they would have [about $1600], but they won this case. eSpecialty... Read more →

Cats or No Cats

The insurance market will be bad if we have a bad hurricane season, and will be a bloodbath if we don’t. One catastrophe modeler estimates, in a National Underwriter article, that the industry may be short $82 billion in capital (see below) based on his calculation of the capital needed to provide for the expected hurricane exposure. Another article summarizes the soft market bloodbath that will occur if the hurricane season is moderate (see below). In a separate article (see here), CNA Chairman & CEO Steve Lilienthal warned of a possible $100 billion cat loss. Mr. Lilienthal warned his audience that the insurance business is a win small/lose big proposition, warning that a decade of profits can be wiped out... Read more →

Medical Malpractice Market

The medical malpractice insurance market, particularly for physicians, has benefited from a significant number of new insurers since 2002 leading to greater availability and a leveling of rates. According to Milliman (see here), there have been two years of strong growth in the number of medical malpractice insurers and captives. Key points: 105 med mal insurers have been formed since 2002 There have been additional med mal facilities formed 2/3rds of the new insurers are risk retention groups (RRGs) 3/4ths of all new RRGs formed from 2002 to 2004 provide med mal These 105 startup companies wrote $820 million in premium in 2005 In 4 states, the new start-ups wrote at least 2/3rds of the med mal market eSpecialty Insurance... Read more →