Law Would Strenghten Drivers’ Safety Nets
Law Would Strenghten Drivers’ Safety Nets

Guest Viewpoint: Law Would Strengthen Drivers’ Safety Nets This editorial appeared in the September 18th Ithaca Journal. To read another editorial on this issue that appeared in the Buffalo News, click here. As a consumer advocate and former insurance analyst with the New York State…
Bach to moderate water damage panel at First Party Claims Conference
Bach to moderate water damage panel at First Party Claims Conference

UP Executive Director Amy Bach will be moderating a panel of experts on water damage claims during the First Party Claims Conference in Rhode Island in October. This unique conference brings together experts from both the policyholder and insurer side and is a great place…
San Bruno Emergency Preparedness Day
San Bruno Emergency Preparedness Day

On Saturday, September 29th, 2012 United Policyholders participated in the first annual San Bruno Emergency Preparedness Fair.
Two UP advisers score an important legal win for disability policyholders
Two UP advisers score an important legal win for disability policyholders

UP advisers and sponsors Daley, Debofsky and Bryant and Pillsbury and Levinson recently scored a victory for disability insurance policyholders in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on the issue of how an annual bonus gets factored in when calculating lost income.
Tiny words… big $ meaning
Tiny words… big $ meaning

Disability insurance alert Losing your job and income due to a disabling injury or illness is a scary prospect. 3 in 10 workers will become disabled for some period of time before they retire. Yet people often overlook buying the insurance that replaces lost income.…
When it comes to home insurance, read the fine print
When it comes to home insurance, read the fine print

Andi O’Conor has twice lost a home to fire: The first time she was 12, the second time was two years ago. It was Labor Day. She was kayaking hundreds of miles away, when a friend told her about a wildfire near O’Conor’s home on…
Insured see climbing rates, as coverage declines
Insured see climbing rates, as coverage declines

Hurricanes, wildfires, hail storms: all the wild weather the past few years is taking a toll on homeowners’ insurance rates. Many premiums are up 10 percent or more this year. And you may be getting less for your money. Merle Scheiber filed his first-ever hail…
Can mortgage lenders hold your insurance money hostage?
Can mortgage lenders hold your insurance money hostage?

If your home has been seriously damaged or destroyed, your insurance company will release a check made out to both you and your mortgage lender to pay for the necessary repairs. “Lenders have a substantial investment in the property, sometimes more than the homeowner, especially…
Life Insurers on the Hot Seat
Life Insurers on the Hot Seat

Retained Asset Accounts (RAAs) were a relatively obscure feature of certain life insurance policies until a bloomberg News series thrust them into the limelight of controversy in the summer of 2010. Since that time UP has been engaged on several fronts in improving conditions related to these accounts for consumers.…
Hard work lies ahead in Colorado
Hard work lies ahead in Colorado

Our Roadmap to Recovery services will be in high demand again in Colorado when this summer’s horrendous wildfires are contained. Just as we did in Boulder in 2010, we’ll be deploying staff and volunteers and partnering with local government and non-profit groups to educate and…
Amicus wins in CA and HI
Amicus wins in CA and HI

After reviewing a brief filed by Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones and an amicus brief filed by United Policyholders this spring, the California Court of Appeal flatly rejected a lawsuit filed by the Association of California Insurance Companies that tried to overturn regulations designed to reduce…
Disaster preparedness at the local and national level.
Disaster preparedness at the local and national level.

Our Roadmap to Preparedness outreach team has been busy this year spreading our unique and important messages on insurance preparedness at the local level all the way up to the national level. So far in 2012, UP staff has shared our survey results on the…
From Recovery to Reform
From Recovery to Reform

We’re thankful that many people who’ve used our Roadmap to Recovery services over the years have followed through on volunteering with UP. These superstars have gone above and beyond… pitching in on legislative reform efforts, flying out of state to present at a UP workshop…being…
Let go (please) lender
Let go (please) lender

We’re hearing a lot more often about lender banks being uncooperative and refusing to disburse the insurance funds that loss victims need in order to repair their damaged homes. UP published Texas tips on your insurance money and your mortgage to supplement our popular Getting…
(Bad night) Irene
(Bad night) Irene

Tropical Storm/Hurricane Irene inundated homes and businesses throughout the Northeast and the insurance problems have been so severe that the New York State Senate recently held a public hearing to call for action. One Senator shared his constituents’ perspective; “Was it a hurricane or a…
UP featured at national FEMA webinar
UP featured at national FEMA webinar

At FEMA’s invitation, UP Executive Director Amy Bach was recently the featured presenter at a national webinar for “Voluntary Agency Liaisons” (VALs) and Emergency Managers throughout the United States. Bach focused on insurance problems after Tropical Storm Irene and reviewed the resources UP offers through…
UP mediation research wins award
UP mediation research wins award

After Hurricane Katrina a number of states rushed to set up insurance claim mediation programs. We offered suggestions to those that were interested in our input, then published a Policyholders Guide to Mediation to help consumers get better results. Policyholders who have used state-sponsored mediation…
Great grant news
Great grant news

United Policyholders recently received renewed funding from the Austin Community Foundation and the Silicon Valley Community Foundation for the long term recovery support services we are providing through our Roadmap to Recovery program in Central Texas and in Northern California. We’re grateful to the donors…