Longtime advocate: Insurance chief from Louisiana could be bad news for consumers

Robert Hunter has spent decades in the insurance industry as a consumer advocate. When he heard the name of the man being considered for the state's insurance regulator job, he was "shocked."

Gov. Rick Scott's office confirmed Monday that Ron Henderson, Louisiana's deputy insurance commissioner for consumer advocacy, is being considered as the replacement for Kevin McCarty, who has been commissioner of Florida's Office of Insurance Regulation since 2003 (and is favored by Hunter, incidentally).

"It's really shocking to me that a guy who's supposed to be in consumer advocacy I haven't heard of," said Hunter, who was Texas insurance commissioner and founder of the National Insurance Consumer Organization before his current job as insurance director for the Consumer Federation of America. "I know everyone who's done anything in consumer work."

The size of Hunter's Rolodex aside, he said hiring an insurance regulator from Louisiana could be bad for consumers in Florida.

The insurance commissioner plays a critical role in setting rates for property insurance, and Hunter said Louisiana's reputation for in the industry is decidedly not pro-consumer.

"Louisiana's one of the worst states in the country for insurance regulation," he said. "They just don't regulate. They've done a very bad job protecting consumers."

Insurance rates in Louisiana have risen twice as fast as the rest of the country, said Hunter, who recently started a study on 20 years of rate increases.

Reference : Tampa Bay Times

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Federal Legislation to Repeal Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) Introduced

Federal Legislation to Repeal Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) Introduced

Equal Treatments of Public Servants Act was introduced by Kevin Brady, representative of Texas and Richard Neal , representative of Massachussets last week.  If passes, this bill would help in abolishing the Social Secutiry Windfall Elimination Provision(WEP). This shall be then replaced by a fairer formula which will help those who have had a negative impact by the WEP.

Already, members of Texas Retired Teachers Associatiaon(TRTA) has been advocating for the abolishment of WEP by the Congress.

The abolishing of WEP will result in                     

• ·         Public servants shall be considered like rest of American workers.
• ·         Public servants are guaranteed to receive benefits that had been earned by them whilethe Social Security was paid by them.
• ·         WEp will be reduced  by one third for currently retired personnel and upto to half for future retirees.
• ·         This will not have any impact on Social Security trust fund.

This site was last updated on 20th November 2014.

To know more visit http://www.rseala.org/category/latest-news/

Health Insurance Costs for State workers lowered-Louisiana

Health Insurance Costs for State workers lowered-Louisiana

Governor Bobby Jindal administration has said that it will try ways to reduce the impact of newly added changes for the state worker health insurance program. This decision comes after lawmakers and retirees have put great deal of pressure on the administration

Out-of-pocket costs and deductibles for employees have been reduced by 10% whereas the increase of the same planned for the retired people from  March 1 have been stopped. The trade-off premiums are set to rise by 11% for both the retirees and employed by July1.

Retirees and employees have unanimously said that they prefer a hike in premium to massive increase in their our-of-pocket costs.

To know more about this piece of news visit http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southcentral/2014/11/09/346332.htm  which has been last modified on Nov 9^th 2014

Olympic Insurance-The Motorcycle Insurance Specialist

Many people did not realise the importance of bike insurance until recently. The challenge here is to find the right company that understands your need in all circumstances. That is where we come in. We have hands on experience in this field. Besides that we are proud members of the prestigious Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America and Louisiana. We would be happy to offer you guidance regarding far-reaching coverage and specialised claims.

So start with a motorcycle insurance quote and get the motorcycle insurance you desire.

https://www.olympicinsurance.us/motorcycle_insurance

"I've got a deal for you" Insurance Trap

This is something we come across very often in our life be it for furniture or buying insurance. The fact is that 'you get what you pay for'. Initially going for cheap things later on turns out to be expensive. (Ref Insurance Journal) Read more..

Huge Loss From Deadly Tornadoes

Insurance companies were the worst hit due to the series of tornadoes which caused loss to human life and property. Allstate incurred a loss of $2 billion while Travlers lost $1 billion due to the heavy storms. As a result of this, property insurance rates have been rising steadily for the first time in years, as losses soaked up excess capacity. (Ref: Insurance Journal) Read more

City Council of Denham Springs approves flood regulations

The Federal Emergency Management Agency had given the city a deadline of April 3 to make the changes or lose the right for city residents to purchase federal flood insurance.The City Council approved changes to its flood ordinances Monday night. Changes to the regulations require all construction or substantial improvements within the city to be built with materials resistant to flood damage.

(Ref: theadvocate.com) click to read more..

Dozens Charged in Massive Insurance Fraud Scheme in New York.

Federal and local authorities in New York unveiled charges today against 36 defendants — including 10 doctors and three attorneys — allegedly involved in a systematic scheme to defraud auto insurance companies of more than $275 million under New York’s no-fault insurance law.

According to the indictment, the scheme involved creating fraudulent medical clinics to defraud insurance companies under the state’s no-fault law. The charges include conspiracies to commit racketeering, healthcare fraud and money laundering dating back to around 2007.

The majority of defendants were arrested on Wednesday morning, according to news reports.

http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2012/02/29/237602.htm 

(Insurance Journal News February 29, 2012)

LTCi sidelined?

When it comes to long term care insurance (LTCi), many insurance agents claims that getting their customers to purchase it is a difficult sale. Getting a life insurance is easy because it financially supports a family incase of a sudden premature death. In case of long term insurance its the longevity risk that matters. According to National Center for Health Statistics, the life expectancy of a new born American male today is 75, but it was 46 in 1900. With increase in life expectancy, long term insurance might have gained more importance. 

                                 A 2011 study sponsored by Genworth found that most adults believe that LTCi should be purchased between the ages of 45–64, yet 82% of this age group has not purchased a policy. The study also found that since the 2008 financial crisis, only 20% of adults have taken any action on their financial strategy. This means there is a large group of people who realise that they should take action, but need to learn about their options. People also have misunderstanding about Medicare’s coverage for long-term care. Agents should clearly explain to their clients about the benefits of LTCi like its received income tax free.

 (Ref: IA Magazine, Cover story Feb 2012 issue) (What’s Keeping LTCi from Achieving its Full Potential?)

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