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Chatsworth Company Allegedly Underreported Payroll; Pleads No Contest to Fraud Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced Cover All, Inc., a 15-year old flooring and carpet installation company headquartered Chatsworth, pled no contest to one count of insurance fraud in Los Angeles County Superior Court. On June 2, 2006, the corporation was placed on five years probation and ordered to pay $6.3 million restitution to the victim, State Compensation Insurance Fund (SCIF).The case was referred to the California Department of Insurance’s Fraud Division (CDI) by SCIF and prosecuted by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.“Fraud is a major cost-driver in California’s… Read More »California Commissioner Announces $6.3 Million Restitution in Workers’ Comp Fraud Case

NEWARK, Calif.—Risk Management Solutions Inc. is making some elements of its information on catastrophes freely available on its Web site, the Newark, Calif.-based catastrophe modeler announced Wednesday.The RMS “Cat Updates,” which was previously available to RMS clients, offers damage summaries following significant catastrophes. The summaries are updated as new information becomes available, according to RMS.Information on estimated insured losses and other more detailed analysis will be available only to RMS subscribers.The free service is accessible at http://www.rms.com/catastrophe/catupdates/.

Hundreds of people who lost homes in last year’s wildfires did not have enough insurance to cover their rebuilding costs, according to a survey sponsored by United Policyholders, a San Francisco consumer organization. The survey asked 274 people about the losses they incurred in the wildfires that last fall swept across Southern California.Three-quarters of respondents said they didn’t have enough insurance to pay their rebuilding costs.And only 46 percent of those in the survey settled claims with their insurance companies; only a third of these said they were offered enough money to cover increased construction costs.For instance, Stan Newman figured… Read More »Survey: Hundreds Underinsured in Last Year’s California Wildfires

TRENTON, N.J.—A computer technician struck by a car while crossing a street to purchase cigarettes and snacks is entitled to medical and temporary disability workers compensation benefits, a New Jersey appeals court ruled last week.In 2003, the technician, Carlos Cruz, was driving a company van en route to a client when he parked across the street from a delicatessen to take his “usual morning break,” according to court records in the case of Carlos Cruz vs. Micros Retail Systems Inc.The deli was about five blocks off the direct route from his employer’s office, where Mr. Cruz began his trip, to… Read More »Court Ruling: Off-premises injury compensable

The rise in world food prices carries implications for both rich and poor countries – the latter will more fully feel the impact, as well as the insurance industry. The recent conference in Rome, organized by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), “has warned industrialized countries that unless they increase yields, eliminate barriers and move food to where it is needed, a global catastrophe could result,” said an article on the Lloyd’s web site.UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon told the conference that food production has to rise by 50 percent by 2030 to meet demand. Food costs have reached… Read More »Lloyd’s Analyzes Impact on Insurance of World Food Price Hikes

California lawmakers recently approved several insurance-related bills, addressing such topics as disaster response and automative repair following a crash. Following is a summary of recent legislation, as provided by the Association of California Insurance Companies. Assembly FloorAB 1848 (Ma) Income Tax Returns: Withholding. AB 1848 would require a business to impose backup withholding, at a rate of 7 percent, on any California business when payments to that business are subject to federal backup withholding. The bill passed the Assembly. The bill is awaiting assignment to a Senate committee. AB 2825 (Carter) Automotive Repair: Crash Parts. AB 2825 would require that… Read More »California Lawmakers Address Disaster Response, Automative Repair, and More

The California Department of Industrial Relations has launched an Insurance Coverage Program, an enforcement program designed to identify and target employers who fail to carry workers’ compensation insurance. DIR Director John C. Duncan said the program will help DIR “to systematically identify unlawfully uninsured employers to prioritize as enforcement targets.” “By partnering with other agencies we are leveraging our resources to seek out illegally operating employers and to level the playing field for those who follow the laws,” he said. Under California law, all employers are required to purchase workers’ compensation insurance or file a certificate to self-insure. The DIR’s… Read More »California Launches Workers’ Comp Enforcement Program

Roberto Ceniceros, businessinsurance.com 24-visit cap on chiropractic treatments for workers compensation injuries is constitutional, California state appeals court ruled Monday. The constitutional challenge to the limit on chiropractic treatments implemented as part of California’s 2003 workers comp reforms came in the case of Jose Facundo-Guerrero vs. Workers Compensation Appeals Board, Nurserymen’s Exchange et al. Mr. Facundo-Guerrero received 76 chiropractic treatments for an undisclosed injury while working for Nurserymen’s, which was insured by Argonaut Insurance Co., court records show. The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board determined he was entitled to benefits for only 24 of the treatments. Mr. Facundo-Guerrero sought reconsideration on… Read More »Court: Chiropractic treatment cap constitutional

Following a meeting with his Advisory Task Force on Insurance Fraud, Blue Ribbon Review Committee, California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced that he will implement five actions to help reduce fraudulent claims, including creating a fusion center for insurance fraud investigations so law enforcement can share information more efficiently and quickly to identify emerging trends and crime patterns. “Insurance fraud is not a victimless crime,” said Commissioner Poizner. “The costs are passed onto consumers to the tune of $500 a year for every man, woman and child and that’s why I have made fighting insurance fraud one of my highest… Read More »California Report Details How to Reduce Fraudulent Insurance Claims

The notion that talking on a cell phone while driving a car isn’t safe seems obvious, yet what happens in the brain while it juggles the two tasks is not. A study by a University of South Carolina psychology researcher featured in the journal, Experimental Psychology, provides a better understanding of why language – talking and listening, including on a cell phone – interferes with visual tasks, such as driving.In two different experiments, associate professor of psychology Dr. Amit Almor found that planning to speak and speaking put far more demands on the brain’s resources than listening.“We measured their attention… Read More »Insurance and Cell Phone Driving. Why They Don’t Mix Together?