Figures

0.9%

The workers’ compensation voluntary loss cost decrease approved by the New Hampshire Insurance Department, along with a reduction in assigned risk rates of 0.6 percent. The new figures went into effect Jan. 1. The decision mirrors the request made by the industry’s National Council on Compensation Insurance in a September filing.

$52 million

The value of the transaction by which The Commerce Group Inc., the largest auto insurer in Massachusetts, expects to enter the New York and New Jersey personal lines insurance markets in 2007. ACIC Holding Company Inc., will acquire SWICO Enterprises Ltd., the holding company for Hempstead, N.Y.-based property and casualty insurer State-Wide Insurance Co., for this amount.

4

The number of Massachusetts auto insurers among the top contributors to Gov. Deval Patrick’s inaugural. Arbella Insurance Group, the Commerce Group, the Hanover Insurance Group, and Liberty Mutual Group were among nine donors at the platinum level of giving. All four insurance companies have been active in the debate over reforms to the state’s private passenger auto high risk pool. But they’ve taken different sides. Arbella and Commerce have lobbied to keep the current high risk model, and Liberty Mutual and Hanover have pushed for changes.

21.3 million

The number of Americans hosting parties between Thanksgiving and the Super Bowl who are uninsured, according to a study by Trusted Choice. These hosts do not have a personal umbrella insurance policy, leaving themselves open to potential lawsuits.

13

The total number of state insurance commissioners led by Delaware’s Matt Denn who have taken arguments against insurance industry use of credit scoring to the U.S. Supreme Court by filing a brief in a pending case. The other state insurance commissioners joining Denn on the brief include those from Arkansas, California, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Utah and Washington.

80%

The percentage of Virginia’s 104 state agencies and institutions that are doing an unacceptable job of protecting information like Social Security and credit card numbers, driving records and medical information, according to the Auditor of Public Accounts.

$200,000

The annual salary of former Maryland state Sen. Thomas Bromwell as head of the Injured Workers’ Insurance Fund. Bromwell has agreed to step down and will receive two years of his $200,000 salary plus health benefits for 18 months. Bromwell, once a powerful lawmaker in Annapolis, and his wife, are charged in an alleged racketeering scheme involving minority contracting fraud while he was in office. They have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled to go on trial early next year. He has served as president and CEO of IWIF since April 2002.