New rules for homeowners insurance have been implemented in California to help to protect people when disaster strikes their homes. The regulations have been implemented to help consumers to make sure that they have the coverage that they need when they have been paying into an insurance policy and the time comes that they need to make a claim following a disaster. According to Amy Bach, the head of United Policyholders, following a large loss, people frequently discover that they don’t have as much coverage as “they thought they had…
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Report shows insurance is an economic player in California
A new report has shown that the property and casualty industry for California insurance is responsible for bringing billions of dollars into the state. The report, which was released by the Insurance Information Institute, showed that in 2008, that sector of the insurance industry brought $34.7 billion into the economy. It also showed that insurers are responsible for approximately 2 percent of the total gross state product for California. In fact, in that state, there are more insurance professionals employed than in any other state in the country. In 2009,…
Read MoreNew death benefit battle rages on with life insurance companies
Insurance companies are now facing a new battle in the challenge for data management as state regulators are now requiring that they verify their life insurance policies against the data from the Social Security Death Master File. This is only the most recent of several changes that have been made by state regulators that are designed to help to identify life insurance policy beneficiaries by working with the Social Security Death Master File and checking it against the records for the insurance policies. While the actual regulations for this effort…
Read MoreNew York Attorney General institutes and inquiry into the operations of nine of the state’s life insurance companies
Nine life insurance companies in New York have come under regulatory scrutiny and will be subject to inquiry regarding the identification of deceased customers and their beneficiaries. The state Attorney General has issued subpoenas to the companies to determine whether they have issued appropriate payouts on the policies of clients that have passed away. Few companies have confirmed the reception of the subpoenas but the Attorney General claims that the recipients are among the leaders in the life insurance market. The inquiry is a result of a growing number of…
Read MoreCalifornia life insurer’s under investigation
Ten of California’s largest life insurance companies have come under investigation by state regulators for their handling of dormant policies. The ten are the latest in a sleuth of insurance companies nationwide that have been accused of withholding benefits from a policyholder’s family upon their death. Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, along with State Controller John Chiang, will be leading the investigation. “The goal is to determine whether the insurance industry has engaged in unfair practices,” says Jones. The state’s probes uncovered some troubling information throughout the state, much of which…
Read MoreUnclaimed billions from life benefits…who will get it?
Lawmakers in the U.S. are battling over billions of dollars in unclaimed life insurance benefits. A number of states have stepped into the legal arena, hoping to lay claim to the money. Technically, the money belongs to beneficiaries, but states have laws that impose statutes on how long benefits can go unclaimed. The money presents an enticing opportunity for states that have dangerously thin wallets. California, in particular, has been aggressive in their pursuit of these funds. The state, after meandering through the legal process, is now pressuring insurance companies…
Read MoreCalifornia insurance bill addresses health premium rate hikes
Lawmakers in California are pushing a new bill that would grant the state’s insurance regulators the authority to either reject or approve rate increases imposed on health insurance policies. The issue of rate hikes is not a new one in California. Several months ago, some of the state’s biggest insurers proposed rate increases by as much as 40%. The debate raged until the insurers withdrew their proposals, but the turbulence left many legislators wondering where the decision making power for these issues should lie. The bill caused division within the…
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