Best Cheap Insurance Quotes

The Dodd-Frank Act has passed the U.S. Senate with enough votes to avoid yet another Republican filibuster threat.

The Act, at Title V, includes substantial insurance industry reforms. The most significant is the establishment of a Federal Insurance Office (FIO) as a part of the Department of Treasury. The Secretary of the Treasury is also given rule making authority to implement/delegate the new duties of this office. The Act also establishes that surplus and reinsurance insurers will be subject to the regulation of their “domicile” instead of having to comply with multiple state requirements.

Two types of business insurance constitute a significant percentage of most companies’ insurance costs: health insurance and workers’ compensation. While health insurance may be mandatory for certain businesses under recent reforms and depending on the state, workers’ compensation is mandatory (with limited exceptions and depending on the state) and a necessary expense of doing business.

One significant way to reduce business insurance costs is to classify workers correctly. Paying “roofer” rates for an office clerk, can cost your business significant premium dollars. Monitor your workforce and classify each employee to their specific classification.

One of the reasons I enjoy writing about business insurance is because the insurance industry is often the market maker when it comes to significant change in the world. Yes, in the era of the AIG failure and several significant ethical lapses by insurers, it is hard to regard insurers as a force of change for the good. But, history proves otherwise. Fire and building codes, as an example, were driven by insurer efforts to reduce risk. Automobile safety left in the hands of manufacturers was slow to change. Once insurers got involved, however, safety changes were implemented (how safe was your parents’ car?).

For our Florida readers, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation in Florida has issued a statement advising policyholders that mail to it corporate offices (including premium checks) was fraudulently redirected between June 24 and June 29, 2010.

The affected address is 6676 Corporate Center Parkway, Jacksonville. The U.S. Post Office is investigating.

Policyholders who mailed a payment are being asked to call 1.888.685.1555 to confirm the payment was received. The company is asking policyholders to call first to “discuss options” before stopping payment of any premium check.

GEICO reminds us that the Fourth of July is a great time to enjoy family and traditions and it is also one of the most deadly holidays of the year for drivers.

If you are an employer with commercial auto insurance and drivers under your policy, than it is important that fleet safety is reviewed with the drivers regularly. But, that advice does not end at the workplace.

GEICO offers the following tips:

• Save your text messages for a time when you’re not driving.
• Make sure everyone in the car, backseat passengers too, are wearing safety belts.