Monthly Archives: <span>February 2007</span>

CaseLaw Watch

Attorneys Fees State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Lestenkof (Alaska, Sept. 29, 2006) Ruling: In this case, the court considered whether an auto insurer must pay unlimited (Alaska Civil Rule 82) attorney’s fees to settle on underinsured motorist insurance …

New Markets

Hospitality Program Nuts & Bolts: Underwriters at PLIS are offering The Hospitality program, written on Lloyd’s paper covering named perils ranging from Aeromonas hydrophila to Yersinia enterocolotica. The policy has the benefit of: a “trade name trigger;” up to 25 …

Should D&O insurers have a loss prevention role?

Why don’t directors and officers insurers insist on corporate governance reform from their insureds as a precondition of coverage, the way property and workers’ compensation insurers condition their coverage on loss prevention measures? This perennial question is examined in a …

Industry leaders debate federal versus state regulation with Democratic Congress shift

Could federal regulation of the insurance industry become a reality, now that Democrats control both the House and Senate in Congress?And are consumers and the insurance industry ready for such a scenario? Other financial industries operate under federal regulation, why …

The Commissioners: Morris Chavez

Regulator committed to restoring ethics After replacing two insurance superintendents in less than a year over allegations of questionable activities, New Mexico’s Insurance Department seems to sorely need some ethics training. The latest appointed Insurance Superintendent Morris “Mo” Chavez, hopes …

Corporate governance, capital drive D&O liability prices down

Changing corporate governance practices and excess capital in the insurance market have made directors’ and officers’ liability premiums drop in recent years, and rate level erosion in almost every line of business will cut into insurer profits in 2007, according …

A look behind the very good property/casualty results for 2006

The numbers, or estimates, for the property/ casualty insurance industry for 2006 are in. Dr. Robert Hartwig, president and chief economist of the Insurance Information Institute, sat down with Insurance Journal’s Andrew Simpson at III’s Joint Property Casualty Insurance Conference …

Third-generation industry executive shares insight on regulatory matters

Sullivan discusses reinsurance collateralization, surplus lines regulation reform Gerald Sullivan, chairman of Los Angeles-based The Sullivan Group, has been said to have grown up reading insurance rating manuals instead of Mother Goose books. He is the third generation to enter …

St. Paul Travelers changes name to Travelers; reunites with red umbrella logo

The St. Paul Travelers Companies Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to reacquire its trademark red umbrella, and change its name to The Travelers Companies Inc. After the closing of the transaction, the company will begin trading on the New …

Insurance company run-off management strategies face obstacles

The U.S. insurance industry should be paying greater attention to the run-off market, according to a study published by PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) Insurance Restructuring Group. The “US Discontinued Insurance Business Survey” noted that although the market has an estimated $150 billion …