Car Insurance

For the first time in India, National Insurance Co Ltd (NIC), a general insurance company, is planning a tie-up with an unnamed life insurance company for cross-selling of products.

“We have applied to the Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority (IRDA) for permission. If IRDA approves the proposal, the tie-up would happen this month itself,” said HS Wadhwa, chairman and managing director of NIC. But, he refused to divulge the name of the life insurance company.

NIC plans life insurance tie-up

A new study by the insurance industry says that the stability systems in some cars and trucks can greatly reduce the risk of getting in an accident.

The technology, which applies brake pressure to help a driver maintain control of the vehicle, was found to reduce the risk of a fatal crash by 34 per cent, according to the US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

It also reduces by 56 per cent the risk of a fatal single-vehicle crash - in instances when drivers lose control at high speeds or in inclement weather or when they nod off.

CAR STABILITY SYSTEMS SAVE LIVES

The Alberta government’s auto insurance reforms have backfired on the province, giving huge discounts to bad drivers while those with clean records see very little benefit, say critics inside the industry.

Changes to the way premiums are calculated mean some high-risk drivers are getting 50 per cent discounts, while those with no accidents are seeing reductions of a few dollars, according to brokers.

The issue confronted Progressive Conservative Premier Ralph Klein on the campaign trail Saturday after allegations arose that the government told brokers not to raise the issue before Albertans head to the polls.

“The Alberta government has asked brokers to keep quiet about the disparity in savings from auto reforms with an election approaching,” says a recent edition of Thompson’s World Insurance News, an industry publication.

Insurance brokers in Calgary echoed those concerns after Klein told reporters at a campaign stop in the city that “the system is not going to be perfect.”

New rates favour worst drivers

There are more than 12 million registered vehicles in Ohio and approximately 700,000 deer. So deer-vehicle accidents, especially from October through December — the deer mating season called “the rut” — are not only bound to happen, but have been happening at an increasing rate.

There were 31,729 deer-vehicle collisions in 2003 compared to 30,306 in 2002, according to the Ohio Highway Patrol. Those wrecks resulted in seven deaths and 989 injuries last year, and more than the five deaths and 898 injuries in 2002.

Deer-vehicle accident damages cost $63.5 million in Ohio last year. Nationally, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports more than 1.5 million crashes involving deer in the United States each year, costing an estimated $1.1 billion in vehicle damage.

Traffic accidents are on the rise

WOMEN drivers in the UK can breathe easy in the knowledge that they will still be able to access the cheaper car insurance premiums they have always been entitled to.

EU politicians threw out proposals which would have made it illegal for insurance companies to take gender into account when underwriting insurance premiums.

The UK insurance industry has a certain degree of sophistication that wouldn’t usually be found on the continent. Customers in the UK generally get a good deal for their money when it comes to car insurance. However, the bearing of gender on car insurance is an extremely important factor.

Women are still a safe bet for motor insurers

The Co-operators insurance company is warning area drivers to be wary of a bogus scheme.

At least 100 drivers from the Fredericton area have bought worthless insurance policies from an individual or individuals who are selling fake coverage, the company revealed Friday.

Shawn Murray, a company spokesperson, said drivers should beware of anyone offering cheap insurance through a fleet coverage policy.

The individual insists on a cash payment and also requires drivers to sign over their vehicle registration, he said.

Drivers left in lurch

Saying New Jersey motorists are not aware of all the automobile insurance options available, legislation sponsored by Sen. Joseph Kyrillos, (R-Middletown), which would better inform residents about the state’s low-cost insurance policies, passed the Senate Commerce Committee Oct. 18.

The bill, S-1703, requires the chief administrator of the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) to notify all motorists of the availability of basic automobile insurance policies, and the automobile insurance policy commonly referred to as “Dollar-A-Day� insurance.

The legislation stipulates that a notice be provided to residents when a vehicle is registered or inspected and when registration policies are renewed. The notice would be prepared by the commissioner of banking and insurance and would include: 1) a notice that the basic and the Dollar-A-Day policies are available at substantially less cost than the standard policy; 2) a statement indicating that all insurers that provide motor vehicle insurance to residents of New Jersey are required to provide basic and Dollar-A-Day insurance policies; and 3) a recommendation that drivers ask their insurers or agents if either of these policies is the best option for them, given their personal circumstances. Posters or signs would also be displayed in all motor vehicle facilities and offices.

Kyrillos bill demands MVC promote insurance options

The Co-operators insurance company is warning that some New Brunswick drivers have purchased worthless car policies through a scam.

The company issued a consumer alert on Friday, saying approximately 100 drivers in the Fredericton area have bought bogus policies from a person purporting to represent the company.

Co-operators spokesperson Shawn Murray says the company became aware of the situation when the owner of a fake policy tried to make a claim.

Scam artist sells bogus car insurance

Saying “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” Judge James P. Cullen sentenced Aldo Popow to 2 years’ probation for his role in an insurance scam that sent his father to prison.

In June, a jury found Popow’s father, Kenneth, 70, of Mount Joy guilty of conspiracy, insurance fraud and theft for his role in a series of insurance scams from January 2001 to October 2002.

Aldo Popow, 33, entered a plea of no contest to a charge of criminal mischief relating to the deliberate burning of a bus to collect on the insurance.

Aldo Popow sentenced in insurance fraud case

SINGAPORE : From November 12, motorists making accident claims will need to fill out a new standardised form, called the Singapore Accident Statement (SAS).

Some 700,000 of these forms are being sent out to policyholders, and will replace all the different forms currently used by insurance companies.

The move by the industry is to further cut down on inflated third-party claims and speed up the claims process.

New standardised motor accident report form to be used from Nov 12