Declarations

Garden Variety Fraud

“Consumers should know that in addition to being wide-spread, insurance fraud also affects a wide-spread group of people: everyone.”

—New Jersey Insurance Commissioner Tom Considine, commenting on the launch of a new unit within the Department of Banking and Insurance that will focus exclusively on insurance fraud. Last year, New Jersey had 5,683 new insurance fraud cases, approximately 4,500 of which were civil investigations. The opening of the unit was announced as part of “Insurance Fraud Awareness Month” in October.

Pioneering Research

“This new lab is a tangible, dramatic, generous demonstration of the property insurance industry’s deep commitment to reducing and preventing losses that disrupt the lives of millions of home and business owners each year.”

—Julie Rochman, CEO of the Institute for Building and Home Safety, commenting on the opening of its new $40 million research center in South Carolina. The center’s massive test chamber is capable of pummeling at least two, full-size houses with wind and water in order to test improvements in building techniques and materials. The testing done in South Carolina could help lower natural disaster-related claims, which topped $26 billion in the U.S. last year alone.

MedMal Claims Improving

“We’re continuing to monitor the impact to claim activity by changes in tort reform, patient safety initiatives, and use of technology to improve quality of care.”

—Leo Carroll, of insurer Zurich, which released a new study showing that the frequency of medical malpractice claims in the country is declining slightly, and the severity, or average cost, is stabilizing. New York, Pennsylvania and Illinois rank as the most severity prone states in the country.

Fighting On

“It’s a turnaround I want to complete.”

—American International Group Inc. Chief Executive Robert Benmosche, who announced last month that he has been diagnosed with cancer and is undergoing “aggressive” chemotherapy. Benmosche vowed to continue his work as CEO of the troubled insurer, but said his long-term health prognosis may not be clear for several months.