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Public Nuisance Claims Denied by Ohio Supreme Court in Opioid Case

Article 0 Comments COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court ruled last Tuesday that the state’s product liability law prohibits counties from bringing public nuisance claims against national pharmaceutical chains as they did as part of national opioid litigation, a decision that could overturn a against the pharmacies. An attorney for the counties called the decision “devastating.” Justices were largely unanimous in their interpretation of an arcane disagreement over the state law, which had emerged in a lawsuit brought by Lake and Trumbull counties outside Cleveland against CVS, Walgreens and Walmart. The counties won their initial lawsuit — and were awarded $650 million in damages by a federal judge in 2022 — but the pharmacies had disputed the court’s reading of the Ohio Product Liability Act, which they said protected them from such sanctions. In an opinion written by Justice Joseph Deters, the court found that Ohio state lawmakers intended the law to prevent “all common law product liability causes of action” — even if they don’t seek compensatory damages but merely “equitable relief” for the communities. “The plain language of the OPLA abrogates product-liability claims, including product-related public-nuisance claims seeking equitable relief,” he wrote. “We are constrained to...

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What 4% Rule? Morningstar Has a New Number

“If a retiree is willing to adjust their spending in line with portfolio performance, that allows for higher starting withdrawals and generally higher lifetime withdrawals,” Benz observes. Ways to introduce such flexibility include forgoing inflation adjustments after the portfolio lost value in the preceding year to more complex systems such as the “guardrails” approach originally developed by financial planner Jonathan Guyton and computer scientist William Klinger. “All of these systems allowed for higher starting safe withdrawal rates than the fixed real spending rate we used as our base case,” Benz observes. The Nuts and Bolts of Alternative Methods Among the alternative spending strategies considered in the report is forgoing inflation adjustments following annual portfolio loss. The method begins with the base case of fixed real withdrawals throughout a 30-year time horizon. However, to preserve assets after down markets, the retiree skips the inflation adjustment for the year following a year in which the portfolio has declined in value. This might seem like a modest step, according to the researchers, but the small cuts in real spending are cumulative. Their effects “ripple into the future,” permanently reducing the retiree’s spending pattern. As a result, the initial spending rate can range toward...

Specialty Program Group Canada, Totten Insurance Group, Anderson-McTague & Associates Announce Strategic Amalgamation to Enhance Specialty Insurance Offerings Nationwide 0

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Specialty Program Group Canada, Totten Insurance Group, Anderson-McTague & Associates Announce Strategic Amalgamation to Enhance Specialty Insurance Offerings Nationwide

Toronto, ON (Dec. 10, 2024) – Specialty Program Group Canada Inc. (SPGC), a leader in commercial and personal property and casualty insurance solutions, is pleased to announce its intention to amalgamate with Totten Insurance Group Inc. (Totten) and Anderson McTague & Associates Ltd. (AMT), effective January 1, 2025. This strategic merger will unite three powerhouse specialty insurance organizations under one umbrella, strengthening their ability to serve brokers and clients across Canada. Upon completion of the amalgamation, SPGC will operate with 500 employees across five underwriting brands and one claims management brand. SPGC is headquartered in Vancouver and Toronto and has local underwriters across all Canadian provinces. The addition of Totten and AMT’s expertise, alongside SPGC’s trusted brands like Cansure, Beacon, and i3 Underwriting Services, will enhance the group’s ability to provide faster and more innovative solutions to brokers across the country. Cameron Copeland, President & CEO of SPGC, highlights the significance of this merger: “As we bring SPGC and Totten/AMT together, we are creating a truly national platform that will deliver greater value to our carrier and broker partners, and our policyholder customers. This amalgamation will allow us to strengthen our deep underwriting expertise, extend our capacity & capabilities, and...

Economic threats continue to overshadow climate and cyber risks: Marsh 0

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Economic threats continue to overshadow climate and cyber risks: Marsh

London, UK (Dec. 5, 2024) – Despite some signs of improvement in global economic conditions, business leaders across the majority of G20 countries[1] remain deeply concerned about the looming threats of recessions, labor shortages, and rising inflation, according to the latest Executive Opinion Survey conducted by the World Economic Forum and released by its strategic partners, Marsh McLennan and Zurich Insurance Group. The annual survey reveals the top five near-term risks identified by more than 11,000 business leaders from 121 countries. Economic downturn, labor and/or talent shortages and inflation continue to dominate the list as the top three risks cited by G20 business leaders for the next two years. This was followed by poverty and inequality, which ranked fourth. Extreme weather events featured in the G20’s top five risks, as the fifth biggest risk. This follows a year in which many G20 countries – including Brazil, Germany, Indonesia and the U.S. – experienced severe flooding, above-average rainfall, wildfires, extreme heat or elevated hurricane activity. The findings of this year’s survey also indicate growing concerns around technological risks, including adverse outcomes of artificial intelligence, such as misinformation and disinformation. These risks appear six times in the country-specific top five rankings this...

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How to Prospect for Life Settlements

So, yes, it is possible to cold call qualified candidates and ask the question: Do you have too much life insurance? This, of course, is the opposite of what life insurance producers have been trained to do since they first entered the business, but, nonetheless, it can be helpful for people who have life insurance policies they no longer want, no longer need or no longer can afford. However, the universe of prospects who still need insurance is much larger than the universe of prospects who would benefit from a life settlement. Rejection A more likely scenario is the traditional life insurance cold call that leads to the common objection: “I already have enough life insurance.” If you think you’re talking to a prospect old enough to qualify (ages 65 and older), an interesting pivot from this response could be: “Well, maybe you have too much life insurance, and I might be able to help you with that as well.” The foundation of your life settlement activity should really be your existing clients, by keeping aware of their life changes, financial changes, health changes and the status of their policies, and by building clients’ awareness that life settlements exist. You...

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Relm Launches 50-State MGA to Be Led by Lavigne

Article 0 Comments Specialty carrier Relm Insurance said it has launched a managing general agent licensed in all 50 states. Relm also said Keith Lavigne has joined as head of underwriting – US. He will report to Relm CEO and founder Joseph Ziolowski. “Operating our MGA in the U.S. enhances our ability to deepen and broaden our relationships with clients and brokers across the US insurance ecosystem,” said Ziolkowski. “With Keith at the helm, our underwriting framework in emerging sectors has become even stronger. His proven expertise will enhance our technical and operational underwriting capabilities as we continue to make innovation resilient for our clients.” Lavigne was most recently chief underwriting officer for Euclid Fiduciary. His more than 25 years of industry experience include managing large teams at AIG, Chubb, and Everest Insurance. Relm’s MGA office locations will be in New York, Miami, and Pennsylvania, according to the Bermuda-based company. Relm said the MGA is the first of its kind for emerging industries. Relm was launched in 2019 and has a product suite tailored for clients in “emerging and innovative industries.” Industries it serves include biotech, artificial intelligence, fintech, esports, Web3, digital assets, and space. Topics Insurance Wholesale Was this...

CSIO Announces Six New Compliance-Certified Insurers 0

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CSIO Announces Six New Compliance-Certified Insurers

Toronto, ON (Dec. 10, 2024) – CSIO is pleased to extend its congratulations with the announcement that the following six insurers have achieved CSIO’s Compliance Certification: Carleton-Fundy Mutual Insurance Company The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group Estrie-Richelieu Group Insurance Company Max Insurance My Mutual Insurance Stratford Underwriting Agency Inc. To achieve Certification, the insurers have eliminated all Z-Codes (non-standard coverage codes) from their data exchange with brokers, and now only use CSIO Standard codes. By eliminating Z-Codes, brokers benefit from accurate reporting, improved operational efficiency, targeted marketing, and an enhanced customer experience. “Compliance Certification is a key part of our industry initiative to establish clear, consistent, relevant Data Standards that save brokers valuable time,” said Catherine Smola, President & CEO of CSIO. “Certified insurers demonstrate a commitment to compliance best practices, providing brokers with streamlined workflows and a higher level of data quality in their BMS.” CSIO supports insurers in eliminating Z-Codes by mapping them to CSIO Standard codes. Insurers can also request the addition of new coverage codes to the Standards through our agile Maintenance Request (MR) process. Our National Standards Working Group reviews all submitted MRs and once approved, they can be programmed immediately into insurers’ systems, eliminating the...

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Lawsuit Accuses Major Food Companies of Marketing ‘Addictive’ Food to Kids

Article 0 Comments Major food companies, including Kraft Heinz, Mondelez and Coca-Cola, were hit with a new lawsuit in the U.S. on Tuesday accusing them of designing and marketing “ultra-processed” foods to be addictive to children, causing chronic disease. The lawsuit was filed in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas by Bryce Martinez, a Pennsylvania resident who alleges he developed type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, diagnosed at age 16, as a result of consuming the companies’ products. His lawyers at the firm Morgan & Morgan, a major U.S. plaintiffs’ firm, described the case as the first of its kind. The other companies being sued are Post Holdings, PepsiCo, General Mills, Nestle’s U.S. arm, WK Kellogg, Mars, Kellanova and Conagra. “There is currently no agreed upon scientific definition of ultra-processed foods,” Sarah Gallo, senior vice president of product policy for the Consumer Brands Association, an industry group representing food and beverage makers, said in a statement. “Attempting to classify foods as unhealthy simply because they are processed, or demonizing food by ignoring its full nutrient content, misleads consumers and exacerbates health disparities.” Evidence has grown in recent years that highly processed foods are linked to a wide range...

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Trump Will Have a Big Impact on Client Portfolios

All the changes that are coming mean your clients will need your guidance more than ever. And weaving through all these issues is the biggest question of all: What will it mean for your clients’ investments? There is substantial debate about how stocks will fare in the Trump administration. Will his tax cuts, and support for drilling, boost productivity — or will his tariffs and mass-deportation policies impede corporate profits? Wall Street analysts disagree, but there’s one topic no one seems bearish about: crypto. Trump has made it clear that he strongly supports crypto, as do a majority of members in the House and Senate — more than 275 of them, by one count. The Biden administration’s effort to prevent crypto companies from doing business in the United States will be immediately halted on Jan. 20 — as will Gary Gensler’s role as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Trump nominees Paul Atkins (SEC chair), David Sacks (AI and crypto czar) Scott Bessent (Treasury secretary), Howard Lutnick (Commerce secretary) and Kelly Loeffler (Small Business Administration head) are all strong proponents of digital assets, and they are widely expected to foster a regulatory environment that is the exact opposite of...

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Insurers’ Climate Losses Almost Match Premiums From Fossil Fuels

Article 0 Comments Top insurance companies suffered $10.6 billion of climate-attributed losses this year, just shy of the $11.3 billion of direct premiums they underwrote for commercial fossil-fuel clients in 2023, according to Insure Our Future. Of the 28 insurers reviewed, more than half were hit by climate-attributed losses that exceeded the coal, oil and gas premiums they earned, Insure Our Future said Tuesday in a statement. On average, fossil-fuel premiums account for less than 2% of total premiums, raising questions about why insurers aren’t using their immense influence to protect the other 98% of their business from spiraling climate risks. The report said climate change accounted for about $600 billion, or more than 33%, of global insured weather losses over the past two decades. Climate-attributed losses rose to an average 38% of total insured weather losses over the past decade, up from 31%. The insurance industry has itself warned about the rising toll. Insured losses from natural catastrophes are on track to exceed $135 billion in 2024, Swiss Re said in a recent statement. It marks the fifth consecutive year that insured losses from natural disasters will break the $100 billion mark. Insure our Future said the climate price...