INSURANCE
RECORD
THE VOICE OF TEXAS INSURANCE
Published Since 1934 • Dallas, Texas June 3, 2010 • Vol. 76 No. 11
FOCUS ON WORKERS COMPENSATION SPECIAL SECTION – PAGE 5
Bank Failures Surpass
Insurer Insolvencies
NEW YORK—The rapid rebound of property-casualty
(P/C) insurers from the financial crisis suggests that subjecting insurers to bank style regulation would constitute a
significant policy error, according to Dr. Robert Hartwig,
an economist and president of the Insurance Information
Institute (III).
Increased Regulation NOT Needed
“Bank style regulation would needlessly raise insurance
costs for hundreds of millions of insurance consumers and
could unfairly require insurers to subsidize the reckless lending practices and speculative activities of failed banks,” Dr.
Hartwig said, at a time when Congress is considering the
need for financial regulatory reform.
Oh How the Money Rolls In
In analyzing the 2009 year-end financial results for U.S.
property/casualty insurers, Dr. Hartwig highlighted the
$54.2 billion, or 11.8 percent, annual increase in claims
paying capacity, to $511.5 billion last year from $457.3
billion in 2008, a figure also known as policyholders’
surplus. In fact, by year-end 2009, the industry’s claims
paying capacity was within two percentage points of its
all-time record pre-crisis high of $521.8 billion. The key
factors contributing to the resurgence in capacity in 2009
were the recovery of the U.S. capital markets and strong
underwriting results — aided by a respite from high ca-tastrophe-related losses.
continued on page 29
Mission Attorney Indicted for
In This Issue
Fraud & Theft from
TDI-DWC Survives
Sunset Review
3
employee Benefit Plan
Workers Compensation
Special Section
5
HOUSTON—An attorney and former bank chairman has been indicted for allegedly defrauding clients of his law firm, as well as customers and employees
of a title company he owned, according to United States Attorney José Angel
Moreno.
113th IIAT Convention in
Fort Worth, June 13-15
20
SELLING STRATEGIES:
When Only A Mercedes Will Do 21
hospitals Shift Costs to
Auto Insurers, IRC Study Finds
22
Regelio “Roy” Ibanez Jr., 44, of Mission Texas, was charged with wire fraud and
theft from an employee benefit plan in an 11-count indictment returned by a Houston grand jury on Wednesday, March 14, 2010. On April 16, Ibanez surrendered
continued on page 29
Why Middle Men and Women are
Important by John “Josh” Fitzhugh 23
Regulators Scrutinize
Annuity Scams
24
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Customers Demand Improved
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26
IBhS Offers New Guidance to
Reduce Wildfire Risks
28
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