Insurance Claims Newsletter
Insurance Claim Articles and News
The Ten Worst Insurance Companies in America
How They Raise Premiums, Deny Claims, and Refuse Insurance to Those Who Need it Most
July 2008
Mercury Pays Up for Claim-Handling Violations
Mercury Insurance Group agreed to a quarter-million dollar settlement with the California Department of Insurance (CDI) for alleged claim-handling violations.
July 2nd, 2008
Expensive Electronics Increasing Cost of Lightning Claims
The increasing value of consumer electronics has led to the cost of homeowners claims for lightning damage to rise by 28 percent over the last four years, the Insurance Information Institute said.
June 23, 2008
2004 hurricane victims in Arcadia say they were ripped off
ARCADIA - The days of entertaining guests at Deborah and Clinton Wiley's house ended when Hurricane Charley struck four years ago. With a hole in the living room ceiling and another in the master bedroom, the Wileys deal with the inevitable problems of living in a home that leaks with every Florida downpour. The family isn't the only one dodging raindrops indoors. Since Charley hit in August 2004, dozens of residents in and around this Central Florida town cope with the aftermath.
May 27, 2008
Homeowners battle insurance companies over loss claims
After the devastation of the California wildfires last October and record damage from hurricane Katrina, you’d think the homeowners insurance industry would be struggling. But you’d be wrong.
March 3, 2008
State accuses Allstate of 'ongoing crime'
Allstate Insurance Co. and its affiliates are committing "an ongoing crime" by failing to submit all documents the state demanded as part of an investigation of homeowner insurance prices, according to a legal response state officials filed to an appeals court Wednesday.
January 24, 2008
Senator Says Insurer's 'Dance' Around Rate Questions Is Over
In his order barring Allstate from writing additional policies in Florida, Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty included the remarks of state Sen. Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, from Tuesday's aborted hearing on the insurer's rate-setting policies.
January 18, 2008
Attorney: Allstate guarding profits scheme
Allstate is facing contempt charges in Missouri -- with a $25,000-a-day fine -- and now it can't sell new auto policies in Florida, in part, because it wants to protect a report written by a corporate consultant.
January 17, 2008
Florida Regulator Cuts Off All Allstate Lines
Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty turned up the heat today in his effort to make Allstate lower property coverage rates, revealing that his suspension of the insurer’s license was being expanded to include all lines of insurance.
January 17, 2008
Commissioner Poizner Fines Palos Verdes-based Company for Illegally Adjusting Insurance Claims in South Lake Tahoe
Attorney General Charles Foti filed a lawsuit in Orleans Parish Civil District Court late Wednesday alleging collusion, price-fixing and anti-trust violations by six major insurance companies - including Allstate and State Farm - as well as the firms that manufacture their claims-processing software, and the companies that offer them advice or collect their data.
January 15, 2008
Attorney General files lawsuit against six large insurance companies alleging price-fixing
Attorney General Charles Foti filed a lawsuit in Orleans Parish Civil District Court late Wednesday alleging collusion, price-fixing and anti-trust violations by six major insurance companies - including Allstate and State Farm - as well as the firms that manufacture their claims-processing software, and the companies that offer them advice or collect their data.
December 27, 2007
Claims Software Mistreats Customers, Says CFA
Claims handling software being marketed to insurers is creating a system where underwriters profit by unfairly reducing customers’ claims payments, a consumer insurance expert said today.
November 30, 2007
Collision Repair Study Exposes Problems
Dealing with inexperienced insurer claim staff is one of the top problems named by collision repairers, according to the results of a recent study released by a collision repair association. The study also examines other problems and issues collision repairers face — and it names the insurance companies that they view as being the worst offenders.
October 3, 2007
Florida Supreme Court Ruling Limits Wind-Policy Liability
Insurance companies can be required to pay only for actual damage and just that resulting from covered perils such as wind storms or fires - not other causes - the Florida Supreme Court said Thursday in two rulings affecting homeowner policies.
September 21, 2007
Flood Exclusion Upheld by Fla. High Court
Florida ’s law requiring full payment when a home is a total loss does not apply when part of the destruction involves flood damage excluded by policy language, the state’s highest court decided yesterday.
September 21, 2007
Nationwide dropping coverage for thousands of Florida homeowners
Another big Florida property insurer is dropping customers to reduce its storm risk statewide. Nationwide Insurance said Tuesday it plans to dump 39,000 homeowner insurance policies, including 6,200 in Palm Beach County and 2,000 in Broward County. -
August 29, 2007
Some Florida property insurers reverse plans to offer lower prices
A dozen Florida property insurers are sharply reversing plans to offer homeowners lower prices.
July 13, 2007
Property insurance rates in your county
On June 1, when lower property insurance rates are supposed to take effect, many in South Florida will still pay hundreds or thousands more for coverage because last year the state gave insurers approval for sharp increases. Insurers are trimming rates to comply with the state law passed in January, but for most consumers the cuts are small when compared with the premium increases in 2006.
You can save money by changing insurer, coverage for your home
Many South Florida homeowners fit into one of two categories: Their annual insurance premiums have increased dramatically, or they've received notice their coverage won't be renewed.
June 4, 2007
The Insurance Hoax
Property insurers use secret tactics to cheat customers out of payments - as profits break records.
Citizens Property Insurance
Corp. has opened its doors to a new group of policyholders, expanding from its initial role as the insurer of last resort.
No longer is Citizens reserved solely for homeowners rejected by private market insurers. The legislature in January gave the go-ahead for other changes at the state-sponsored insurer, including an end to the requirement it charge some of the highest rates in Florida. It also allowed Citizens to insure policyholders who are paying higher rates from their own insurers than what Citizens would charge. The current rule is that if your insurer is charging more than a certain percentage of Citizens' rates, you can switch to Citizens.
May 27, 2007
Pattern of Greed 2007
How Insurance Companies Put Profits Over Policy Holders
Rep. Taylor Blasts Insurers Over Storm Claims Handling
Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss., came out swinging against insurance companies yesterday during a hearing on legislation he authored to expand the National Flood Insurance Program to offer windstorm coverage.
July 18, 2007
Condominium Association and Home Owner Association Claims
Advocate Claim Service is well known for obtaining maximum claims recovery for Condo Associations of all sizes. As State Certified Licensed Public Adjusters we can serve the needs of any Property Management Company of Condominium Association anywhere in Florida.
Serving a Wide Spectrum of Business & Commercial Claims
Commercial claims adjusting requires an experienced adjuster with knowledge of your industry or business category. At Advocate Claims Service, in addition to our expertise in serving Property Managers and Condominium Associations, we are skilled in these commercial categories:
New Lott Bill Would Give U.S. Home Policy Oversight
Legislation providing for federal oversight of homeowners insurance contracts was quietly introduced by industry critic Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., on Thursday night.
The bill, which calls for additional disclosure language on home policies and Federal Trade Commission oversight, was instantly condemned by the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI).
April 1, 2007
Consumer Groups Bash Hurricane Models
Hurricane risk projections used by insurers to hike property coverage rates in coastal states are “severely flawed,” and state insurance regulators should reject them, two consumer groups say.The call, directed at individual regulators and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, came from the Washington-based Consumer Federation of America (CFA) and the Center for Economic Justice (CEJ) in Austin, Texas.
March 29, 2007
Hardball with Homeowners
Don't ask Geoff Still about claims management. In October 2005, a hurricane nearly lifted the roof off his home in Coral Springs, Fla., drenching the interior with torrents of rain. Still, now 38 and the director of finance and operations at a local university, says he called his insurer, Universal Property & Casualty, the next day to report his loss. But it took four months, plus numerous follow-up calls and faxes with "Please Help Us" in 36-point type, to get an initial estimate. Meanwhile, mold spread through the house, and Still, his eight-year-old son, his five-year-old daughter and his wife Stacy, 34, then pregnant with their third child, had to move out.
February 13, 2007
Sisters who turned over insurer's records on Katrina now sued
Depending on whom you ask, Cori and Kerri Rigsby are either whistleblowers or law breakers. It'll apparently
be up to a court to decide. The sisters worked for an insurance adjusting firm that contracts with State Farm. They accuse the insurance
giant of trying to avoid paying claims by manipulating engineering reports on homes damaged by Hurricane Katrina.
- September 26, 2006
Atlantic insurance to cancel policies
About 140,000 Florida homeowners will lose their insurance policies after a large
provider said it will begin canceling them just over a month into
this year's hurricane season. - April
6, 2006
Another Insurer Drops Florida Policies After Hurricane Losses
About 140,000 Floridians are going to lose their homeowners insurance.
Atlantic Preferred Insurance is a subsidiary of Tampa-based Poe Financial Group.
Atlantic will begin dropping its policies July 13th as they come up for renewal. - April
5, 2006
The old hand fumbles
In the four-way race for governor, Tom Gallagher is the old hand.
In one capacity or another, he's been in public office almost continuously
since the 1970s. His resume includes state legislator, state insurance
commissioner (twice) and commissioner of education. - February
4, 2006
CFO's trades may be probed
Expect the state's ethics commission to determine if investments
made by a gubernatorial candidate violated state laws barring conflicts
of interest. - February 2, 2006
Poe Group Of Insurers Had Most Complaints
Three Tampa-based homeowner insurance companies that form Poe Financial
Group have received almost 1,700 complaints from consumers who
suffered damage from 2005 hurricanes, the highest number of complaints
in Florida, state officials say. - January 17, 2006
Klein
Calls for Direct Election of Insurance Commissioner Klein:
Commissioner Needs to Have "Real Authority" and
Accountability
State Senator Ron Klein (D-Boca Raton) today announced that he will
pursue legislation to create a directly elected insurance commissioner.
This legislation would put the question of amending the Constitution
to create the new post in the hands of Florida's voters. - January
17, 2006
Citizens, spinoffs top '05 complaint list
Citizens Property Insurance and its spin-off insurance companies
again lead the state in hurricane-related complaints — though
the industry as a whole is drawing less fire than last year. -
December 13, 2005
Prohibition on Cancellation or Nonrenewal of Property Insurance
October 25, 2005
Gallagher
Ethics Inquiry Is Likely
Expect the state's ethics commission to determine whether investments made by
a gubernatorial candidate violated state laws barring conflicts of interest.
- October 18, 2005
A
call for tougher ethics law
Attorney General Charlie Crist said Monday it's time to eliminate the ''lucrative
revolving door'' at Citizens Property Insurance and other state-run entities
where employees have left to start companies only to come back seeking contracts
from their former employer. - October 18, 2005
Klein Calls For Hearings On Massive Insurance Rate Hikes
State Senator Ron Klein (D-Boca Raton) asked Senate President Tom
Lee and Attorney General Charlie Crist for investigations and
hearings into the recent massive rate hikes proposed by major
insurance companies in Florida. - July 20, 2005
A.M. Best Downgrades Poe Financial Group Subsidiaries
A.M. Best has downgraded two subsidiaries of Tampa-based Poe Financial Group,
warning that the insurer has refused to share financial data with the ratings
company after last year's hurricanes. - February
18, 2005
Hurricane Wilma Insurance Claims
If you had Residential
or Commercial damage from Hurricane Wilma, call upon a local
Claims Adjuster to be your Personal Advocate … Click
here for help
Insurance Company Toll-Free Catastrophe Hot Lines
Homeowners, automobile, flood, renters, and other insurance companies
Catastrophe Hot Lines listed alphabetically
Lessons Learned from Last Years Hurricanes in Florida
By Steven D. Venook
Public claims adjusters can level the playing field for
you.
By Insure.com
The Florida Department of Insurance Dictate Public Adjuster Fees
By
Steven D. Venook
Hurricane
Preparedness & Disaster Planning From an Insurance Perspective
By Steven David Venook
Why Do I need a Public
Adjuster?
By Steven David Venook
What Are Your Mold
Limits in your Insurance Policy?
By Steven David Venook
Does Your Homeowner Policy Cover
Mold?
By Steven David Venook
Hurricane
Francis a Slow Path to Destruction
By Steven David Venook
Hurricane
Charley Hits The West Coast of Florida
By Steven David Venook
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