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Icebreakers: 17 Questions to Ask Cruise Fans

6. What is your favorite port? Everyone who cruises has stories about great places they have visited. They often want to visit again and again. Their answer can give clues if they are beach people or if culture and history are their interests. 7. How is the food on board? This will get people talking. Meals in the main dining room, buffet and room service are generally included in your cruise fare. Most ships have specialty restaurants offering more upscale options, with a small surcharge. Veteran cruisers will tell you which cruise lines have better food or how the selections have changed over the years. 8. What is your favorite ship (or cruise line)? The cruise line they chose is not necessarily the one they most recently sailed. It often comes down to getting a good deal. Their favorite cruise line or ship might be a memory from the past. Many Cunard passengers speak fondly of the Queen Elizabeth 2, better known as the QE2. It left service in 2008. 9. Have you considered becoming a shareholder in the parent company? This might sound like an odd question to ask, almost pushing business into the conversation. Many of the cruise...

Trufla CRM Sets New Standards for the Insurance Industry 0

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Trufla CRM Sets New Standards for the Insurance Industry

truMarket is a CMS on steroids, added in rating and workflow automation Toronto, ON (Mar. 19, 2024) – In an industry-defining moment, Trufla is thrilled to unveil truMarket, a revolutionary customer relationship management (CRM) platform set to redefine the standards of insurance quoting and customer management. Crafted with groundbreaking features and an unwavering commitment to efficiency, data integration, and an unparalleled user experience, truMarket emerges as the quintessential tool for insurance brokers eager to transcend traditional client management boundaries. truMarket not only promises to elevate the operational capabilities of insurance brokers, carriers, and MGAs across the board but also to catalyze their growth, efficiency, and client service and retention strategies. Sherif Gemayel, CEO of Trufla, encapsulates the essence of truMarket, stating, “Imagine the collaborative genius of Salesforce’s adaptability, HubSpot’s lead management prowess, and Mulesoft’s seamless workflow automation—all converging to birth truMarket. That’s the level of innovation we’re bringing to the table.” Among its suite of transformative features, truMarket boasts instant home and auto, q  integrated with Trudi – Trufla’s AI rater, comprehensive data dashboards for unparalleled insight, API rating capabilities, rating engine integration, and automated data retrieval for accelerated quoting processes. Other rating verticals include cyber, D&O, E&O, CGL and...

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Alabama Bill Would let Alfa Federation, not Insurer, Sell Health Plans. BCBS is Fighting it.

Article 0 Comments Alfa, one of the largest property-casualty insurers in Alabama, is clarifying that it is not planning to move into the health insurance business: A hotly debated bill in the state Legislature would allow Alfa’s affiliated farmers federation to offer a health plan to some members, and some Alabama news reports this week suggested that Alfa Insurance is behind the move. “Alfa Insurance is a property-casualty and life insurance company. It has no intention of getting into health insurance coverage,” said Jeff Helms, director of communications for Alfa Farmers organization. Senate Bill 232 does not name Alfa, which started out as Alabama Farmers Federation in 1921 and created its insurance arm in the 1940s. But the bill would allow “nonprofit agricultural organizations” to provide health benefits to members and their families. Alfa officials have said they are hoping to reach small business owners and others who don’t qualify for the Affordable Care Act health plan, known as ObamaCare, but who say they can’t really afford market-based health insurance. Two Alabama news outlets indicated that Alfa Insurance, best known for its 1 million home and auto policies around the South, is now setting its sights on the health insurance...

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Minnesota Homeowners Report Surge in Insurance Complaints

Article 0 Comments Minnesota homeowners insurance complaints rose 108% from 2020 to 2023, with of those complaints from homeowners concerned their claims were denied or they faced high out-of-pocket costs after damage from wind and hail. The Minnesota Department of Commerce (DOC) shared that homeowners reported 1,185 complaints in 2023, up from 569 in 2020. DOC said some insurance carriers now have exclusions that narrow coverage or require significantly higher deductibles for wind and hail damage, and homeowners are not aware of the changes to their policy until after they file a claim. DOC advises homeowners to look for any changes that may take effect during their next insurance renewal. “To avoid surprises after you submit a claim, be aware of possible changes to your homeowner insurance coverage” said Commerce Deputy Commissioner of Insurance Julia Dreier. “As Minnesota experiences more effects of our changing climate, with more extreme weather events such as hailstorms and windstorms, insurance costs are going to increase, and we want Minnesotans to be prepared.” Homeowners and auto insurance rates have risen in Minnesota in recent years. More extreme weather events that damage property and high inflation have led to higher costs for insurers. Several insurance policies...

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Insurtech Is the Consumer’s Annuity Edge

What You Need to Know Human beings hate gathering the information needed to create annuity comparisons. Machines seem not to mind. AI could make automating the comparison process work even better. Ever since the inception of life insurance services for the general public, the realm of annuities has been steered predominantly by copious quantities of paperwork and hour-long calls essential to establishing trust and credibility — no doubt a draining craft for all parties concerned, be it the insurance companies, agents, or even consumers. Nevertheless, it is the onset of efficient and effective software that has been swiftly rectifying the terrain, finding the most fruitful alternative to the conventional methods so commonly used in the annuity industry. Not only does this software — commonly known as insurance technology, or insurtech — provide the sincerest way for agents to build trust with a client, but it does so in a matter of seconds, combining the needs of all parties involved in the insurance transaction. It offers a wide range of top retirement plans for consumers, adapted to their desires and financial capabilities, enabling companies to carry products of superior quality whilst vitally maintaining control of their distribution. Companies such as, frankly,...

Messagepoint Named Winner in 2024 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards for New Generative AI Capabilities for Optimizing Customer Communications 0

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Messagepoint Named Winner in 2024 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards for New Generative AI Capabilities for Optimizing Customer Communications

Toronto, ON (Mar. 20, 2024) – Messagepoint Inc. is pleased to announce it has been named a winner for the second year in a row of Business Intelligence Group’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Excellence Awards, in the generative AI subcategory. The Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards identify and recognize the truly unique solutions that stand out in a crowded AI space. Messagepoint won for its Assisted Authoring, which harnesses the power of generative AI to help users create clearer, more consistent and compliant content faster than ever before. Messagepoint is recognized for being the first customer communications management (CCM) industry software provider to offer generative AI capabilities that support content optimization for plain language, reading levels, sentiment, length and translation. Messagepoint’s proprietary AI Messagepoint Advanced Rationalization and Content Intelligence Engine (MARCIE) plays a key role in that process by powering Assisted Authoring, which was initially released in 2020, along with semantic and syntactic algorithms to identify issues in reading levels, sentiment and brand consistency. In 2023, Messagepoint released new generative AI-powered capabilities to augment Assisted Authoring’s issue detection capabilities with content rewrites. Assisted Authoring now supports plain language rewrites that align with the new ISO standard, corrections for reading levels and sentiment...

ACORD’s 2023 Annual Member Report Details Achievements in Industry-Wide Digitalization Efforts 0

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ACORD’s 2023 Annual Member Report Details Achievements in Industry-Wide Digitalization Efforts

Report includes new ACORD research revealing a material correlation between high-performing insurance organization Total Shareholder Return (TSR) and use of ACORD assets New York, NY (Mar. 20, 2024) – ACORD, the global standards-setting body for the insurance industry, is pleased to announce the release of its 2023 Member Report, detailing its efforts on behalf of its members over the past year. ACORD welcomed more than 100 new members across various stakeholder types, from carriers to brokers to solution providers. The report notes several key achievements, including: Expansion of ACORD Next-Generation Digital Standards (NGDS), which provide lightweight, technology-agnostic Standards for use in fine-grained transactions, such as microservices and RESTful APIs Support of London Market modernization with ACORD Global Reinsurance and Large Commercial Standards as the market’s chosen method of data exchange Enhancements to ACORD Transcriber, ACORD Solutions Group’s intelligent document processing solution, with launches of extended features leveraging AI- and ML-enabled models to facilitate fast and accurate data extraction and population. “ACORD is in a unique position to help shape the future of insurance,” said Bill Pieroni, President & CEO of ACORD, in his annual message to the ACORD member community. “We have witnessed great change in the industry, and ACORD has grown and changed alongside our members....

Join Insurance-Canada.ca as an Event Strategist (Part-Time) 0

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Join Insurance-Canada.ca as an Event Strategist (Part-Time)

Toronto, ON (Mar. 21, 2024) — Join Insurance-Canada.ca, a cutting-edge firm driving innovation at the crossroads of insurance and technology. As a forward-thinking organization, we are in search of a Part-Time Event Strategist to play a crucial role in shaping our event agendas and securing dynamic speakers. If you possess a deep understanding of the Property & Casualty insurance industry, or have experience with strategic event planning, we invite you to be a part of our team. Job Title: Part-Time Event Strategist Company: Insurance-Canada.ca Location: Toronto, Ontario Job Overview: We are seeking a skilled Part-Time Event Strategist with a focus on curating event agendas and securing engaging speakers. In this role, you will be responsible for developing compelling and insightful event programs that align with our company’s goals and resonate with our target audience in the insurance and technology sectors. Responsibilities: Agenda Curation: Collaborate with internal teams to understand business objectives and industry trends. Develop strategic event agendas that address key topics, challenges, and opportunities in the insurance and technology space. Incorporate innovative formats and session types to enhance attendee engagement. Speaker Acquisition: Identify and reach out to industry experts, thought leaders, and influencers to participate as speakers in our...

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Chevron to Pay Over $13M in Settlement for California Oil Spills

Article 0 Comments Chevron will pay $13.1 million in settlement agreements with two California state agencies for past oil spills in Kern County, Bakersfield, the California natural resources agency said on Wednesday, as the major oil producing state strengthens regulations. Chevron, which has already paid for the cleanup costs for its oil spills in 2019, will pay $5.6 million to the California Department of Conservation, and $7.5 million to California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), the agency said in a statement. Chevron spilled a minimum of 800,000 gallons of oil and water into a creek bed in Kern county in 2019, according to local media. The state agency’s report says that this is the biggest fine to date for the two departments in California. “The settlements demonstrate our continuing commitment to take action to address issues and prevent similar incidents in the future,” Chevron said in an emailed response to Reuters. Of the money collected, $5.6 million will go towards ongoing work to plug old, orphaned wells and $7.5 million will go towards environmental enhancement projects, oil wildlife response preparedness and future spill response funding, the report added. CDFW documented over 70 oil spills between 2018 and 2023 in...

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State Farm Nonrenewing 30K California Homeowners, Renters

Article 0 Comments State Farm General Insurance Co. said it will non-renew 30,000 California homeowners, rental dwelling, and other property insurance policies State Farm announced in May last year it had stopped accepting new policy applications for property/casualty insurance in California for reasons including increased risks from wildfires and inflation. The decision followed a similar move by Allstate Corp. last year. An update on State Farm’s website says the insurer is working to ensure its long-term sustainability in California, and has “had to make some difficult but necessary decisions that will impact a portion of our California policyholders.” Beside non-renew 30,000 homeowners, rental dwelling, and other property insurance policies, which includes residential community association and business owners, the varrier said it will withdraw from offering commercial apartment policies with the non-renewal of all of those roughly 42,000 policies. “These actions are California-specific and will occur on a rolling basis over the next year, beginning on July 3, 2024, for homeowners, rental dwelling, residential community association and business owners policies and on August 20, 2024, for commercial apartment policies,” the announcement states. The policies represent roughly 2% of State Farm General’s policy count in California, according to the company. The California...