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Root Expands to Minnesota

Article 0 Comments Root has announced the availability of Root Insurance in Minnesota. The insurer now serves drivers in 35 states, extending its auto insurance offering to over 4 million registered drivers in Minnesota and covering more than three-quarters of the U.S. population. Root is coming off the first quarterly net income in the insurtech’s history. Root turned in a combined ratio of 91.1 in the third quarter. The company recorded third quarter net income of approximately $23 million. Root reported a 131% increase in new writings in Q3. Founded in 2015 and based in Columbus, Ohio, Root, Inc. is the parent company of Root Property & Casualty Insurance Company and Root Insurance Company. Topics Minnesota Was this article valuable? Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article. Submit No Thanks Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it. Submit No Thanks Here are more articles you may enjoy. The most important insurance news,in your inbox every business day. Get the insurance industry’s trusted newsletter

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A Look at the $100B Disaster Relief in the Government Spending Bill

Article 0 Comments Congress is allocating more than $100 billion in emergency aid designed to address extensive damage caused by disasters after this week’s scramble to find consensus on a government spending bill. The money comes after back-to-back hurricanes — Helene and Milton — slammed into the southeastern United States this fall, leaving havoc in their wake. But the money would go to much more than just those two storms under the bill signed Saturday by President Joe Biden that keeps the federal government funded through March 14. Biden said in a statement that the bill “delivers the urgently needed disaster relief that I requested for recovering communities as well as the funds needed to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge ” in Baltimore, which collapsed under the impact of a massive container ship that lost power and veered off course in March. The disaster funding looked set to pass earlier this week until President-elect Donald Trump issued new demands that tanked a compromise and threatened a pre-Christmas federal shutdown. A slimmed-down version cleared Congress early Saturday when Republicans abandoned Trump’s core request. Here’s a look at what’s in the bill for disaster relief and where the money will go:...

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Who Will Vote on Fed Policy Next Year?

But there is disagreement over how far officials need to cut to reach that neutral level. Schmid has said a slower pace of rate cuts will allow officials to find out. “While I support dialing back the restrictiveness of policy, my preference would be to avoid outsized moves, especially given uncertainty over the eventual destination of policy and my desire to avoid contributing to financial market volatility,” Schmid said on Oct. 21.

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Claims Satisfaction Leaders Reveal Secrets to Success

Article 0 Comments What is the secret to an insurance claims experience that satisfies customers? For years, J.D. Power has conducted surveys and curated lists recognizing insurers that succeed at providing satisfactory claims experiences. Carrier Management recently asked claims leaders at two of the consistently higher-performing insurers to peel back the curtain and share what they’ve found works. Training Center, Task Forces Bolster Erie’s Commitment to Service At Erie Insurance, Cody Cook brings an actuarial background to his work in claims. Cook is the insurer’s senior vice president of claims—a role he began in 2020 after experience as an actuary led him to a decade-long leadership role in personal lines. Erie works with 14,000 independent agents at about 2,300 agencies across 12 states and Washington, D.C. This year, the company hit 7 million policies in force. The insurer consistently ranks highly on both the J.D. Power property and auto insurance claims satisfaction studies. The company notched the third highest score on the property claims list in 2024, for example, and second on the auto list in 2023. (The 2024 auto numbers had not been published as of press time.) Cook believes Erie has built its reputation as a company with...

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Americans Plan to Focus on Financial Stability in 2025

Many also said they could improve their finances by paying down credit cards and increasing retirement savings. Feeling Financial Stress Forty-four percent of survey respondents reported feeling stress about finances, about the same levels as reported last year. Another 41% said they are more stressed this year, while just 16% said they are less stressed. Fifty-two percent of millennials reported feeling more stress this year, compared with 37% of Gen Xers and 23% of boomers. As to what is causing their financial stress, 54% of respondents put it down to the cost of day-to-day expenses, 49% said their income or retirement income is too low, 35% cited too small an emergency fund and 35% said too much debt is contributing to their financial stress. The survey found that a majority of Americans confess bad financial habits: 30% spend too much on things they do not need 28% do not save any money 27% save some money, but not as much as they could 23% are not paying down debt fast enough 21% spend more that they make Many Americans surveyed have a brighter outlook for their finances in the new year. Thirty-five percent of respondents expect their financial situation to...

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Merrill to Settle Overtime Suit for $4.9M

The lawsuit was filed in Broward County, Florida, by Florence Grosch, a former Merrill financial advisor. In a complaint filed early in December, Grosch alleged that Merrill did not pay for all the overtime the FSAs and trainees logged beyond their stipulated 40-hour workweeks. Merrill Lynch has not yet responded to a request for comment, but case documents show a judge has approved the settlement agreement. Other stipulations include that Merrill Lynch has the right to recoup any funds that are either left over or left unclaimed by eligible advisors or trainees who do not wish to participate in the settlement agreement.

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ZestyAI Receives Regulatory Approval From Iowa Insurance Division

Article 0 Comments ZestyAI, a provider of AI-informed climate and property risk analytics solutions, has received regulatory approval from the Iowa Insurance Division for its Severe Convective Storm suite, including Z-HAIL, Z-WIND, and Z-STORM. ZestyAI’s Severe Convective Storm suite has already received approvals in other key hail belt states, including Texas, Colorado, Illinois and Indiana, with additional filings in progress. In 2024, Iowa experienced multiple billion-dollar severe weather events, with hailstorms driving billions in damages and insurance losses. Topics Legislation Iowa Was this article valuable? Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article. Submit No Thanks Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it. Submit No Thanks Here are more articles you may enjoy. Interested in Legislation? Get automatic alerts for this topic.

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Michigan Taco Restaurant Owner Ordered to Pay $823K in Back Wages

Article 0 Comments A federal court has ordered the owner of three West Michigan taco restaurants to pay 177 workers a total of $823,326 after the court granted the U.S. Department of Labor’s request for summary judgment, concluding that the restaurants operated an illegal tip pool that led to violations of federal minimum wage and overtime regulations. On Nov. 5, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan entered summary judgment against Sparty Tacos LLC in East Lansing, TC Tacos LLC in Traverse City and GR Tacos LLC in Grand Rapids – all operating as Barrio Tacos – and owner Jacob Hawley that required the employers to pay $411,663 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. The judgment resolves the department’s Sept. 7, 2023, complaint prompted by an investigation by its Wage and Hour Division that alleged Fair Labor Standards Act violations by the three restaurants and Hawley. Specifically, the court found the employers: Required tipped employees – who were paid by the employers using the tip credit – to surrender a portion of their cash and credit card tips to managers after each shift. Managers then redistributed these tips to non-tipped employees, including...

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Aviva Agrees to Buy UK Insurer Direct Line for £3.7 Billion

Article 0 Comments Aviva Plc agreed to buy Direct Line Insurance Group Plc for roughly £3.7 billion ($4.65 billion) in a deal that would create the UK’s largest motor insurer.Each Direct Line shareholder will be entitled to receive 0.2867 new Aviva shares, 129.7 pence in cash and as much as 5 pence in dividend, according to a statement on Monday. The transaction would value each Direct Line share at 275 pence apiece, representing a premium of about 73% to the closing price on Nov. 27, when Bloomberg News first reported the takeover interest. The board of Direct Line considers the terms to be “fair and reasonable” and intends to recommend unanimously that its shareholders vote in favor of the takeover, according to the statement. Upon completion, which is expected around mid-2025 subject to conditions and approvals, Aviva will hold roughly 87.5% of Direct Line. The deal “delivers significant value” and “reflects the attractiveness of Direct Line,” Danuta Gray, the target’s chair said in the statement. Direct Line shares jumped as much as 3.6% in early London trading on Monday, extending their gains to about 58% since the initial Nov. 27 report on Aviva’s pursuit, when they closed at 158.70 pence....