FEMA extends deadline for Superstorm Sandy flood insurance claims review
FEMA extends deadline for Superstorm Sandy flood insurance claims review

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has extended the deadline for policyholders to respond to its offers under the Superstorm Sandy flood insurance claims review process. Lack of responses Last month, FEMA sent out a letter notifying policyholders, many of whom had been offered money…
Wells Fargo Has Yet Another Scandal Brewing, This Time Over Car Loans
Wells Fargo Has Yet Another Scandal Brewing, This Time Over Car Loans

Wells Fargo is in the hot seat again. The jumbo bank, which is still recovering from a massive fake account scandal that broke less than a year ago, is now under fire for its auto loan practices. The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco has…
Delaware Governor Carney Signs Insurance Consumer Fairness Bill
Delaware Governor Carney Signs Insurance Consumer Fairness Bill

On Tuesday, August 1, 2017, Delaware Governor John Carney signed into law House Substitute 1 for House Bill 80 (HS 1 for HB 80), a consumer fairness bill that targets unfair discriminatory practices by automobile and homeowners insurance companies to determine premium costs. “Insurance rates…
Wells Fargo To Repay Borrowers $80M For Insurance Charges
Wells Fargo To Repay Borrowers $80M For Insurance Charges

Wells Fargo will reimburse $80 million to car loan borrowers who were wrongly charged by the bank for insurance, it said late Thursday. The 570,000 borrowers had car loans with Wells Fargo but, because “there was no evidence” that they had car insurance, the bank…
Too Close for Comfort
Too Close for Comfort

With both wildfire and hurricane season in full force it is so important to know what to do if a fire or storm come too close for comfort. If you are told to evacuate immediately, do so ASAP. If there is a chance you may…
Minnesota Insurance Commissioner Acts to Protect Drivers from Unfair Auto Insurance Prices
Minnesota Insurance Commissioner Acts to Protect Drivers from Unfair Auto Insurance Prices

Insurance giant Farmers has been ordered to refund money, pay a penalty, and change its pricing practices in Minnesota by Insurance Commissioner Mike Rothman after the state’s Commerce Department found that the company charged higher auto insurance premiums to drivers who did not own their…
Right where we’re needed: Advocacy and Action Program UPdate
Right where we’re needed: Advocacy and Action Program UPdate

UP has been a powerful voice for insureds in 7 of the 10 biggest insurance rulings of the year so far and in the ones to watch for the balance of the year. In Washington D.C. we’re working hard on extending and reforming the National Flood Insurance program…
Louisiana Supreme Court gives ‘duty to defend’ new meaning for insurance lawyers
Louisiana Supreme Court gives ‘duty to defend’ new meaning for insurance lawyers

For decades, Louisiana law maintained that—under standard language found in most commercial general liability policies—insurers who had a duty to defend their policyholders must defend the entire lawsuit, including in long-latency cases. In other words, your defense attorney was on the case—at the insurance company’s…
If you’re on a spouse’s health plan, what happens if the worst should happen?
If you’re on a spouse’s health plan, what happens if the worst should happen?

My wife and I were chatting the other night about Republican efforts to reboot the U.S. healthcare system as a horror movie — stripping health coverage from more than 20 million Americans, boosting premiums for many and gutting Medicaid. She finally brought the conversation home…
11th Circ. Set To Weigh Insurance Bad Faith Standard
11th Circ. Set To Weigh Insurance Bad Faith Standard

The Eleventh Circuit will hear arguments Thursday on whether Nationwide’s mere negligence in failing to settle claims against a policyholder is sufficient to hold the insurer liable for a judgment exceeding policy limits, in a case that could have a widespread impact on insurance bad…
New York Regulator Seeks Details From Life Insurers Using Algorithms to Issue Policies
New York Regulator Seeks Details From Life Insurers Using Algorithms to Issue Policies

New York’s top financial regulator is investigating life insurers’ use of big data, complicating the industry’s efforts to boost sales by forgoing medical examinations in favor of algorithms for sizing up risk. New York’s top financial regulator is investigating life insurers’ use of big data,…
Guest Blog: United Policyholders Amicus Project Scores Victory For Texas Homeowners and Businesses
Guest Blog: United Policyholders Amicus Project Scores Victory For Texas Homeowners and Businesses

The availability of insurance coverage for loss or damage can hinge on the smallest details.  Did your insurer record that it received your notice letter?  Did your insurer’s investigator take note of those small but critical facts you pointed out during the investigation?  Did you…
Insurance companies dropping homeowners in Nevada County
Insurance companies dropping homeowners in Nevada County

Ted Peach, a Nevada County resident who lives on Banner Mountain, said the rate for his home insurance policy recently went up from $1,200 to $3,800. “The house has cementboard siding, metal roof, ironwood deck and has very good vegetation clearance,” he said. “Our rates…
House Committee Adds 5 More Bills to Its Flood Insurance Reform Package
House Committee Adds 5 More Bills to Its Flood Insurance Reform Package

The House Financial Services Committee advanced five flood insurance proposals on Wednesday, adding to the two bills it passed last week. The House measures seek to reform and reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which is set to expire on September 30, for five…
Insurance Cases To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2017
Insurance Cases To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2017

Courts around the country will have their hands full with key insurance issues over the next six months, with the California Supreme Court considering whether a company’s negligent supervision of an employee is an accidental occurrence and the New York high court weighing the scope…
Your CLUE report could save you money on auto and home owners insurance
Your CLUE report could save you money on auto and home owners insurance

If your car is in an accident, or your house is damaged in a storm, the insurance claims you file will wind up in your CLUE report. The trouble is most people have never heard of a CLUE report, even though the data in it…
The Biggest Insurance Rulings Of 2017: Midyear Report
The Biggest Insurance Rulings Of 2017: Midyear Report

The first half of 2017 was rife with major insurance law rulings, with the Texas Supreme Court issuing key guidance on the requirements for maintaining statutory claims against insurers for deceptive practices, and with Washington’s high court limiting policyholders’ ability to sue for bad faith…
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…