Category Archives: Insurance Information

Texas to Require Insurers to Justify “Unreasonable” Premium Increases

Written On August 24, 2010 By Bob Kraft

Will Texas really start to crack down on insurance company abuses, or is this just more empty talk from the Texas Department of Insurance? An article in the Dallas Morning News this week quotes state officials as saying they will now question “unreasonable” rate hikes from insurance companies. This change is being forced on the [...]

Posted in Government, Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Insurance Information

State Farm Raising Texas Auto Insurance Rates Again

Written On July 19, 2010 By Bob Kraft

State Farm is at it again — raising auto insurance rates in Texas. Of course under our “business friendly” political environment, the state can’t prevent (even if it wanted to) premium increases.
The State Farm increase is relatively small at an average of two percent. But multiply that by the 3,000,000 drivers insured by State Farm, [...]

Posted in Insurance Information, Vehicle Law or News

25% of Vehicles Uninsured in Dallas County

Written On July 19, 2010 By Bob Kraft

The Dallas area continues to have the highest percentage of uninsured drivers of all large urban areas in Texas, according to a new report from the State Department of Insurance. Statewide, more than 21% of vehicles are uninsured. In Dallas County, the figure is 25%, It is a violation of state law to not have [...]

Posted in Insurance Information, Vehicle Law or News

Featured Link – KnowYourStuff.org

Written On June 25, 2010 By Bob Kraft

The Insurance Information Institute has set up a helpful Web site called Know Your Stuff. It provides an easy way to enter information about items in your home so in case of a loss you’ll be able to prove to your insurance company what you owned, and have some idea of what it cost. The [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Featured Link, Insurance Information

Two Texas Auto Insurers Face Investigation Over Huge Number of Consumer Complaints

Written On June 17, 2010 By Bob Kraft

Finally, someone seems to have noticed the notoriously bad behavior of two of the worst auto insurance companies in Texas. The Dallas Morning News ran a lengthy story this week detailing the volume and variety of complaints the Texas Department of Insurance has received against Fred Loya and Old American County Mutual insurance companies. The [...]

Posted in Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Insurance Information, Vehicle Law or News

Insurers Seek to Recover Payments in Toyota Crash Claims

Written On April 28, 2010 By Bob Kraft

Insurance companies are gearing up to recoup from Toyota money they paid for claims in crashes involving sudden acceleration, the subject of major safety recalls by the Japanese automaker. It could also mean money back for some drivers who paid deductibles, according to a report by the Associated Press. Here are excerpts from the article:
At [...]

Posted in Insurance Information, Product Liability or Medical Devices, Vehicle Law or News

Featured Link – Consumers Guide to the Health Reform Bill

Written On March 22, 2010 By Bob Kraft

This summary of the health care reform bill passed by the House yesterday is very readable. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of all the information here, but I didn’t notice any glaring errors. It’s a good starting point for those who want more information about the effect on them of this historic legislation. The [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Featured Link, Government, Health Insurance, Insurance Information, Political and/or Judicial

State Farm Plans Second Rate Hike in Eight Months for Home Policies

Written On March 18, 2010 By Bob Kraft

State Farm Insurance told the state last week that it intends to raise its homeowners rate 4.5 percent statewide starting May 1, only eight months after the company boosted rates 8.8 percent, as reported by the Dallas Morning News. I have written many times about the ridiculous laws and regulations in Texas that have kept [...]

Posted in Government, Insurance Information

Report: Congress Should Focus on Curtailing Medical Errors, Not Patients’ Rights

Written On March 9, 2010 By Bob Kraft

According to an update of the National Practitioner Data Bank released recently, fewer medical malpractice payments were made on behalf of doctors in 2009 than any other year on record. This contradicts claims by some that medical malpractice litigation is to blame for rising health care costs. Last year was the fifth consecutive year the [...]

Posted in Insurance Information, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Insurance Rates Not Accelerated by Toyota Recall

Written On February 15, 2010 By Bob Kraft

With the big auto recalls from Toyota, Honda, and other companies in the news recently, people are wondering how the recalls or defective parts might affect their insurance coverage. The ABC News Web site had a good article about the questions consumers are asking of their insurance carriers. Here are a few excerpts:
Many drivers of [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Insurance Information, Vehicle Law or News

Insurance “Oversight” in Texas — FAIL

Written On January 12, 2010 By Bob Kraft

Sadly, this is what passes for insurance oversight by the Texas state government: Farmers Insurance raised their homeowners coverage rates by 10% last June without permission from the state, which under our “fair and balanced” laws they are allowed to do. At the time, the State Insurance Commissioner called the rate hike “excessive and unfairly [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Government, Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Insurance Information

Texas Homeowners’ Insurance Rates Drop to Number Two

Written On December 31, 2009 By Bob Kraft

That headline is misleading, because homeowner insurance rates for Texans have actually risen, again, as always. The tiny sliver of good news for us is that Florida homeowner rates have risen even further than Texas, so we have temporarily lost our long-held position as the state with the highest insurance rates in the nation. I [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Insurance Information

26 Percent of Vehicles in Dallas County Are Uninsured

Written On December 10, 2009 By Bob Kraft

According to the Dallas Morning News, more than one in four vehicles in Dallas County are uninsured, the highest percentage in any of the state’s large urban counties. Despite efforts over the years to encourage or force Texas drivers to maintain liability insurance, the percentage of uninsured drivers has remained relatively constant.
This is a continuing [...]

Posted in Insurance Information, Vehicle Law or News

Texas Drivers Pay High Auto Insurance Premiums

Written On December 3, 2009 By Bob Kraft

As reported in the Dallas Morning News, Texas drivers pay some of the highest auto insurance premiums in the nation — just as we do for homeowners insurance. In my opinion, this is because the regulatory agencies are totally controlled by the insurance companies, and have been for years. Republican Rick Perry is the longest-serving [...]

Posted in Insurance Information, Vehicle Law or News

AMA Report Card Ranks Health Insurance Companies

Written On July 22, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The AMA has issued its 2009 Health Insurer Report Card, which measures the nation’s eight largest health insurers on claim denials, timeliness, accuracy and transparency. For more information than you could ever want on this subject, you can visit the AMA Web site. Fortunately, the Dallas Morning News has summarized the findings for us:

Doctors frustrated [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Insurance Information

Insurance Premiums Rise Due To Stock Market Losses

Written On April 20, 2009 By Bob Kraft

USAToday has an article today about the increases in auto, life and home insurance premiums, brought on by loss of insurance company investment returns. Normally, when there is a downturn in the stock market and insurance companies bring in less revenue, they start talking about tort reform, and blaming their decrease in profits on trial [...]

Posted in Insurance Information

Stimulus Bill Gives COBRA a Boost

Written On March 23, 2009 By Bob Kraft

As reported in the Dallas Morning News, a
little-noticed provision of the stimulus bill signed last month by
President Barack Obama may give the growing ranks of unemployed workers
some relief with their medical bills. COBRA is the federal law that gives laid-off employees the right to continue their health insurance for 18 months, but at their own [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Insurance Information

Fifth Circuit Appeals Court Overturns Homeowner Insurance Ruling Against State Farm

Written On March 13, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The New Orleans Times-Picayune (3/13, Mowbray) reports, "A Port Sulfur couple whose home vanished in Hurricane Katrina won't be able to collect penalties, bad faith and attorneys fees from State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. after the 5th Circuit Court of Appeal overturned the finding that the state's largest insurer acted in bad faith in [...]

Posted in Insurance Information

Texans Still Pay Highest Insurance Rates for Homeowner Policies

Written On March 3, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Texas homeowners
still have the dubious distinction of paying the highest insurance
rates in the nation – despite measures designed to lower rates and much
worse weather losses in other states.
The Dallas Morning News reports today that the homeowner insurance situation is not improving in Texas. Please read the entire article. Here is a very brief excerpt:
A [...]

Posted in Insurance Information

Dead Peasant Insurance Policies Draw Litigation

Written On February 25, 2009 By Bob Kraft

In a blog on the Wall Street Journal website (2/24) Ashby Jones wrote that "dead peasant" insurance policies are "spawning a good deal of litigation." Jones said, "The point of 'dead peasant' policies seems to be this: Companies contribute money to the policies, which then can be used to pay for a variety of company [...]

Posted in Insurance Information