Property And Casualty Insurance Industry Trends

Insurance CEO starts transition into retirement ; Charitable fund honors ...

"This was well thought-out, well planned," Wagner said. "It wasn't an overnight thing. ... It worked out real smooth."

Thompson said the company and the insurance industry as a whole face increasing risk because of a higher prevalence of severe weather patterns. This year, insurers, which employ a substantial chunk of Columbia's workforce, were battered by severe tornadoes and storms in the Midwest and Southeast. saw "record" losses from tornadoes, hail and stray winds this year, Thompson said.

Hurricanes often cause the largest losses for insurers, though, and the country was mostly spared from damaging tropical storms this season, Thompson said. Still, the trend points to increasing severe weather losses in the coming years, he said, and pricing changes might have to be made as a result. In December, Thompson told insurance news service Overall, the MIB Life Index has shown stability three years in a row, compared with about five years ago, when the industry was seeing year-over-year decreases, said Lee Oliphant, CEO and president of MIB Group. "The stability that it\'s shown in this difficult economy...bodes well for the industry as it\'s an affirmation that people really recognize a need for life insurance."... The Fed announced that economic conditions are "likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate at least through late 2014," changing its previous statement in August that the federal funds rate would remain low "at least through mid-2013," said James Gillard, senior managing economist at A.M. Best... Feb. 05-- Customers not accustomed to scrutinizing their monthly statements from their bank may be surprised to find the cost of banking has gone up. Monthly checking account charges ranging from $6 to $18 are being imposed on some accounts that were previously free. "Customers ask if we still offer free checking," said Saundra Lockhart, spokesman for BancorpSouth. " Feb. 05-- Teachers in the Bemidji School District fall behind other districts in the state in pay and health insurance benefits, according to Jason Koester, chairman of the Bemidji Education Association\'s settlement committee. He said with annual pay and benefits, teachers here are on the bottom tier of what teachers make on average at school districts in... Feb. 05-- While there have been some lengthy debates on the House and Senate floors, lots of bills going through committees, a few controversies and tons of rumors, not much has been decided by the Legislature so far. Besides the "Feed Bill" to fund the session-- which passed both chambers and was signed into law in the first week-- the House and Senate each have passed only a... The Columbia- based business has taken its own grievance to court, filing a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri alleging its insurer, Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Co., won\'t cover any losses arising from the wrongful death suit. In April, Benita DeRosier and Patricia Hall filed suit against furnace manufacturer Lennox... After more than 40 years with Columbia Insurance Group, Robert Wagner officially handed the reins of the company to Gary Thompson on Jan. 1. In September, Byron Hill abruptly resigned as CEO of ABC Laboratories, and in December, Shelter insurance\'s board of directors tapped Rick Means to succeed Dave Moore as president of the company effective Aug. 1.

I think I have a Business Interruption Claim, Now What ...

I attended both the beginners and advanced business income courses and certainly picked up some gems that will improve my daily practice. Many public adjusters approach me because they think their client may have a business income claim, but they are not really sure. Others will walk away from a business income claim because they do not know where to even begin.

Bruce Smith, CPA , was a panelist in The ABC’s and 123’s if Business Income Losses at the Windstorm Conference. He is a forensic accountant and has vast experience in measuring business income losses. I appreciated the way he was able to point out the nuances between coverage (policy language) and measurement (accounting methodology). A solid understanding of the relationship between coverage and measurement is certainly the recipe for success in complex business income disputes, but where do we start?