House Committee Advances 2 Flood Insurance Bills; More to Come
House Committee Advances 2 Flood Insurance Bills; More to Come

The House Financial Services Committee on Thursday passed two bills to reform the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). One is a broad reform proposal that seeks to encourage more private insurance and move the program toward actuarial-based rates, while the other addresses premium credits for…
NFIP extension pitch draws praise and concern
NFIP extension pitch draws praise and concern

A draft proposal floated by two U.S. senators to extend the National Flood Insurance Program for 10 years is drawing some initial positive feedback, but stakeholders caution that some provisions are potential causes for concern. The draft legislation released by Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Kirsten…
Lawmakers To FEMA: Flood Plan Overhaul Is ‘Too Little, Too Late’
Lawmakers To FEMA: Flood Plan Overhaul Is ‘Too Little, Too Late’

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is making sweeping reforms to the nation’s flood insurance program in the wake of a series of critical reports on NPR and the PBS series Frontline. But lawmakers say this isn’t enough when private insurance companies are profiting millions of…
The “Catch UP” webinar series: Successfully mediating insurance cases
The “Catch UP” webinar series: Successfully mediating insurance cases

The fourth installment of Catch UP was a success! Catch UP on how to successfully mediate insurance cases.  Registration fees support our non-profit’s important work empowering the insured.  A recording of the webinar is available for purchase at www.uphelp.org/catchup.  The one-hour long segment of Catch UP, hosted…
Tried and true may be best for you
Tried and true may be best for you

Does the idea of skipping the traditional blood and urine test to buy life insurance appeal to you? Some life insurers are using “big data” tools to size you up and price your policy instead of tried and true underwriting based on medical tests. The…
Poor Credit History Can Affect Homeowner’s Insurance Rates
Poor Credit History Can Affect Homeowner’s Insurance Rates

The impact of one’s credit history on homeowner insurance rates appears to be intensifying, a new analysis shows. If you have poor credit, your premium is more than double, on average, the rate for a homeowner with excellent credit, a report from the rate comparison…
Gardening and Hardening
Gardening and Hardening

We think your insurance company should help and reward you for taking steps to make your property less likely to be damaged or destroyed in a wildfire. We are working hard to make that happen. This is the official start of wildfire season, and now…
Senate Bill Would Extend National Flood Insurance Program for 10 Years
Senate Bill Would Extend National Flood Insurance Program for 10 Years

U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Kristen Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) have released draft legislation to reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) for 10 years. The NFIP is currently set to expire on Sept. 30, 2017. The legislation, the Flood Insurance Affordability & Sustainability Act of…
2017 Advocacy & Action UPdate
2017 Advocacy & Action UPdate

Insurance impacts every American in some way. Not a day goes by when UP doesn’t hear from a person, business, public official or community with an insurance problem. With 25 years of pro-consumer engagement in sales, claims and dispute resolution scenarios, we have a solid…
Ruling puts California insurers on notice that their policies are unlawful
Ruling puts California insurers on notice that their policies are unlawful

In an a recent order, Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl of the Los Angeles Superior Court ruled that Travelers’ California home insurance policies contain an unlawful notice provision related to smoke damage. Travelers is one of a handful of insurance companies that have begun to include…
Texas Senate Bill 10 Would Adversely Affect All Insureds
Texas Senate Bill 10 Would Adversely Affect All Insureds

All Texas businesses should be concerned about the potential passage of Senate Bill 10 (SB 10). While several lawmakers tout SB 10 as tailored legislation to curb “hailstorm lawsuit abuse,” SB 10 is much broader and impacts all policyholders. Indeed, SB 10 fails to reference…
A Flood of (tightening the) Belt(way) Attention
A Flood of (tightening the) Belt(way) Attention

Reforming and/or re-authorizing the ​National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has moved front and center in our nation’s Capitol in the past month, and was mentioned prominently in the budget proposal recently issued by the White House. The NFIP is basically a privatized government program created by Congress through which insurance companies and vendors…
The “Catch UP” webinar series: Making appraisal work for your client
The “Catch UP” webinar series: Making appraisal work for your client

Catch UP on how to use the appraisal process to settle an insurance dispute from the comfort of your home or office.  Lawyers can earn continuing ed credit for registering for the webinar.  And best of all, your registration fee supports our non-profit’s important work…
Texas Businesses Line Up Against Lt. Governor’s High-Priority Insurance Bill
Texas Businesses Line Up Against Lt. Governor’s High-Priority Insurance Bill

Major business interests are lining up against one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s top priorities — a bill that would make it harder for Texans to force their insurance companies to pay up when calamity strikes. Patrick and his allies say the bill, Senate Bill…
Ability re: disability
Ability re: disability

If you’re fortunate to have disability insurance, but unfortunate to need to use it, there are a few key points to keep in mind when gathering proof of your eligibility for benefits, presenting it and completing insurance claim paperwork. The bottom line is, take a…
First Steps After a Flood
First Steps After a Flood

United Policyholders is a nonprofit organization that is a voice and an information resource for insurance consumers in all 50 states.  UP has helped guide disaster survivors on the road to recovery since 1991.  This information will walk you through the first few weeks.  Here…
Rainpocalypse
Rainpocalypse

If your property has been damaged due to a heavy rain and high winds, it can be tricky to collect insurance benefits to pay for repairs. Home and renters policies exclude some but not all types of water damage.  “Flood” damage (the policy should define…
The “Catch UP” webinar series: Surplus lines/non-admitted insurers
The “Catch UP” webinar series: Surplus lines/non-admitted insurers

Representing policyholders in litigation involving surplus lines/”non-admitted” insurance companies: “Surplus lines” (also known as “non-admitted”) insurers are a form of company set up in part to avoid the full spectrum of regulations, solvency and other oversight requirements that apply to “admitted” companies. Surplus lines companies often…