PIANY – NJ 75th Just Ahead

PIANY – NJ 75th Just Ahead

Sad news. Ken Pollack wrote to advise of the passing of Joseph Costa, a lifelong insurance professional who became a leading volunteer in the IIABNY and its several affiliated chapters. Joe was President of Queens and Kings County Association in 1979 – 1980, a member and President of the Downstate Council and its Golf Outing Chairman. He served on the Board of IIABNY as a Director and Committee member and was a frequent participant in the Association’s legislative events in Albany and Washington. He is being remembered by many who have communicated with us as a great friend to his fellow independent agents and to the business itself. He leaves a loving family and many longtime friends in the business, including this writer.…CORREX: In a Courtside feature in our March 17th issue, our reporter’s story requires some clarification and correction. We regret any factual and interpretive mistakes. We have invited those involved in the case to respond to the piece in a full length article and pledge to run it with equal emphasis, as is our policy. Mr. Jeff Daniels, who is mentioned in the article, wrote to us to clarify several points. We summarize the observations made in his letter to us as follows: First, in the article, we report that Mr. Daniels owned Goldan; in fact, he notes that it was an LLC and the members were Mark Goldman and Mr. Daniels. Mr. Daniels advises that, in 2008, he discovered that Mark Goldman had used Goldan to commit certain crimes and reported his conduct to the affected parties and the authorities. Mark Goldman was subsequently charged with certain federal crimes and was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of approximately 13 years. Second, it was not clear from the language in the article whether we are saying that it was Goldan or Daniels who failed to repay the loans and filed bankruptcy. Mr. Daniels advises that Mr. Goldan was placed into an involuntary bankruptcy and that it was he who failed to repay the loans. Third, K2 and Atas did not sue Goldan for legal malpractice. Goldan is not a lawyer. K2 and Atas sued Mr. Daniels for malpractice. Fourth, the malpractice company did not deny coverage because Daniels had filed for bankruptcy. In fact, Daniels never filed for bankruptcy. The carrier denied coverage due to exceptions in the policy, Daniels advises. Fifth, there is a sentence that says: “In turn, Daniels turned his claims (including a claim of bad faith) against American Guaranty.” Daniels indicated that he assigned all of the claims against American Guaranty to K2, including a claim for bad faith based on American’s refusal to provide a defense in the initial malpractice action which the Court of Appeals found as improper. Now that the Court of Appeals has reversed itself, the case will proceed and all the issues in the K2 Investments case will be litigated. Again, we invite any of the parties to recount their view and to relate any and all relevant facts in this case and do regret the mistakes in our article.… Benjamin M. Lawsky, Superintendent of the Department of Financial Services (DFS), announced that the DFS is proposing new regulations enshrining (sic) enhanced policyholder protection standards for private equity and other acquisitions of insurance companies. Those reforms – which include heightened transparency, disclosure, and financial standards – are modeled on the conditions that DFS required for several individual transactions last year in which private equity and other investment firms purchased annuity companies, according to the Department’s missive. Superintendent Lawsky stated: “Insurance is vital to the economic and retirement security of millions of families, and regulators have a critical responsibility to make sure policyholders are protected. We’re seeking to strike an appropriate balance that keeps markets open to new entrants, while at the same time putting in place necessary safeguards.” DFS highlighted a spike in private equity firms and other investment companies moving into the insurance business – particularly through the purchase of annuity companies. This trend raised concerns since such firms typically have a more shortterm oriented business model than traditional insurers, and the insurance business is focused on ensuring long-term security for policyholders. Moreover, consumer protections are especially important for annuity companies since they help support secure retirements for seniors, the DFS correctly reminds us. In 2013, DFS reached agreements on enhanced policyholder protections with three investment firms – Guggenheim, Apollo, and Harbinger – related to purchases of annuity companies. The proposed regulation DFS is putting forward, which is modeled on those agreements, includes several important reforms… ….. The Professional Insurance Agents of New Jersey and New York State will celebrate 75 years representing professional, independent agents at their 2014 Joint Annual Conference at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, June 8-10. The event is expected to exceed last year’s attendance, according to PIA, which included some 2,000 insurance- industry representatives—making it also the largest gathering of insurance industry professionals in the Northeast. The 75th anniversary will include a gala banquet, featuring a red carpet entry, on Monday, June 9th. The three-day conference will also allow individuals to earn continuing- education credits, attend networking opportunities and participate in an expansive trade show. The New Jersey Young Insurance Professionals, an affiliate of PIANJ, will host its 30th annual Fun Run to benefit Special Olympics New Jersey (SONJ). To date, these organizations have raised more than $3 million for SONJ. See you there!…ISO has announced the expansion of its ISO Risk Analyzer® Personal Auto predictive modeling tools to include a new module to help with determining vehicle liability risk. The new module, together with its counterpart for physical damage, provides insurers with a powerful pairing of pricing refinement tools for vehicle rating programs. The characteristics of a vehicle are a major factor in determining the liability risk associated with insuring it, hence the vehicle module for liability analyzes loss experience along with data on individual vehicle attributes, such as body style and dimensions, vehicle performance and safety features (including ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety), and information related to the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP). In doing so, the module can produce Symbols in detail down to the vehicle level – not just the vehicle series level – for model years 1981 to the present. The new vehicle module for liability provides Symbols and analytical output – in the form of components – that insurers can use as a basis for enhancing their own vehicle-level modeling and analysis for five coverages: bodily injury, property damage, personal injury protection, medical payments, and single limit liability. ISO has filed ISO Risk Analyzer Personal Auto Vehicle Liability Symbols with insurance regulators in 36 states. The filings introduce an alternative rating rule that insurers can adopt after they license the module. “Delivery of the vehicle module for liability through VINMASTER makes it easy for our current Symbols customers to implement the new tool with minimal IT involvement and begin using it right away,” said Neil Spector, president, Verisk Insurance Solutions – Underwriting. “The ease of locating a correct Symbol by either VIN or the vehicle description makes VINMASTER a powerful tool, whether quoting a rate or renewing a policy.” The spate of new analytical tools available for auto has grown dramatically as science enters the insurance field with positive force.