Mar
21However, it is important to know how you are covered, and how much you are covered for. And what you must really do when you fall ill.
Mar
17The Texas Department of Insurance has just approved a homeowners-insurance-rate hike for Allstate Insurance of 5.7 percent and 9.8 percent for its companies.
Allstate Texas Lloyds had asked for a 5.7 percent average statewide increase. Allstate Fire & Casualty Insurance Co. sought approval for a 9.8 percent rate average hike.
Allstate had been using the new rates since December 2011 since Texas is a file-and-use state.
The Texas Department of Insurance put out a report saying that it had completed its review of the filings and has found them satisfactory.
Mar
16A recurring issue in coverage litigation is the extent to which insurers are entitled to obtain the file of defense counsel in cases where the insurer has either denied coverage or is at least reserving rights with respect to whether certain claims are covered.
This is an issue of particular consequence in cases involving intellectual property, products liability claims and other cases where the insured settles for a large gross sum without any allocation between those amounts that are covered and other categories of damages that are not.
Mar
09A client asked me a question regarding statutes of limitations for first party insurance lawsuits in Hawaii. Although Hawaiian consumer law is similar to California law, Hawaii’s statutes are distinct. In California, two parties may contract out of a statute, but in Hawaii, they cannot. A statute of limitation stands as just that, the time limit for which one can bring a claim, before the claim will be barred.
Under the HRS (Hawaii Revised Statutes), there are two statutes for breach of contract: a two year statute and a six year statute. First Party insurance lawsuits are mainly premised upon breach of contract claims. B
Mar
07The independent insurance agent trade group, Professional Insurance Agents of Indiana Inc., announced a new slate of officers for 2012. They are:
An active member of PIA, Mansfield has served on the board since 2008 and PIA’s membership committee since 2009. H
Feb
26Landlords that watch over large property portfolios have been warned that times may be getting slightly tougher for them. This advice from BDRC Continental followed its Landlords Panel, which discovered that portfolio landlords took the highest rental yields at seven per cent, yet average rental yields fell during quarter four to 5.9 per cent – a 0.8 per cent drop on the previous quarter.
The report, revealed in Mortgage Introducer this month (February 16th), concluded that rental yields for all landlords fell to a year-low even though nearly half of those surveyed increased rents over the last 12 months. A further third (34 per cent) said they would do the same during the first half of 2012.
